The Book of Eli....

Nope, haven't seen the film -- probably won't.

Don't get me wrong, I think both Denzel Washington and Gary Oldman are two of the greatest living actors today. Its only that the story seems like just another in a long line of post-apocalyptic "journey-through-the-wastelands" films. And our hero is carrying a mysterious book that promises to be the "last chance to save humanity...." It is, of course, the Bible. Big surprise there (not).

I think the story could have been better served if the writer(s) had opted for a more serious science fiction treatment. The film's tag line of "...some say the war tore a hole in the sky..." works to good effect here. There could have been some sort of higher dimensional rift created, compromising the Earth's magnetic field and allowing solar radiation, cosmic rays and even nastier things to lay waste to the landscapes of the planet.

Our hero could still be on his long journey to a distant location, charged with protecting a mysterious book that will save the world. Only now, when seen, the book is discovered to be full of numbers and equations. Its title "Eli" could be an acronym -- E.L.I. -- that might stand for something like "Electromagnetic Linear Induction." It is an engineering text, needed by a remnant group of scientists who are going to make one last attempt to close off the dimensional rift before all life on Earth is toast.

The story remains, the characters are still valid, but the journey is now even more important. And the plot now offers something not often seen -- science and its understanding of the forces of nature is what will save the future. That was the theme of much of the classic SF of the 60's and 70's that I read in my youth; something that we see nowhere near enough of in today's literary or cinematic efforts. I hope that changes, soon.

Time to go play with the cats.....