Truth, Apocalypse, & Denzel: 'The Book of Eli' Film Review

I have never watched the popular Denzel Washington film 'The Book of Eli.' I remember when it first came out and had wanted to see it, but my dad wouldn't let me watch rated R movies at the time. But while looking for a movie to watch, I came across it and decided to finally sit and see if it was as good as I'd heard it was.

A brief synopsis of the film goes as follows: Main protagonist, Eli (Denzel Washington), is going West, but gains unwarranted attention after the Bible in his possession is discovered by the main antagonist, Carnegie. Over the course of the journey, Eli is forced to fight against Carnegie and safely transport the Bible to a sanctuary located somewhere West. Overall, it was not a bad film. It has a fairly simple plot with an equally simple plot progression. It's predictable, but it works and (thankfully) doesn't try to be more dramatic than it needs to be. There are no mutated beasts or a mysterious prophesy with Eli as the "chosen one." None of that. It's just a guy taking a road trip with a Bible, except with bullets, a runaway girl, and a cool sword.

While I did get somewhat bored, there is an incredibly intriguing concept that, in one scene, reframes the entire movie and the main cast's motivations. This concept is that of the need for a society to have a central source (or structure) of truth, and how a social system grounded in an 'absolute truth' affects the individual's motive, loyalty, and sense of purpose. Continuing with this line of logic, a central truth can be, and has been, an effective method in which to control the population.

A core trait of the apocalypse genre is that the normative structures of society have broken down, leading to a new system rising with the core trait being either "the strongest rule", a return to a hunter/gatherer lifestyle, or complete anarchy. There are variations but, essentially, there is a breakdown of uniform morality. In 'The Book of Eli', the antagonist, Carnegie (Gary Oldman), is searching for the Bible. It just so happens that Eli (Washington) is in possession of the one book our villain has been looking high and low for. The reason is unknown until halfway through the film, after Eli and Solara (Mila Kunis) escape with the Bible. While talking to his right-hand man, who does not understand why his boss wants this book, Carnegie says to him,

"It's a weapon. A weapon aimed right at the hearts and minds of the weak and the desperate. It will give us control of them. If we wanna rule more than one small f****** town, we have to have it. People will come from all over, they'll do exactly what I tell them if the words are from the book."

This short monologue changed the entire movie for me. There aren't many mainstream films that place the Bible at the center of the plot, much less make it integral to the villain's plot. It is an unorthodox scheme for a movie antagonist. Usually, the villain's scheme boils down to brute force, power struggles, or maniacle plots to expose the fault of the current system. On the contrary, Carnegie's goal to obtain the Bible is unexpectedly thoughtful and level-headed, choosing to weaponize belief as a means to assert control rather than committing violence and then justifying it with belief/religion, expecting others to follow suit.

The subjects of the church, God, and the Bible are usually placed in movies to be ridiculed for hypocrisy or ineffectiveness in relation to the casts' dilemma (or worldview). However, this movie positions the Bible as the most important document necessary for the future of humanity and the reconstruction of society. It's refreshing because the former is played out and corny. I can expect the side character to say, "God help us," and the protagonist to respond with, "He can't save you now" with dramatic drums and cellos in the background. I can expect the "God-fearing" priest's main trait to be that he grasps his cross necklace and prays furiously whenever trouble comes, only to have the hero to say, "where's your god now?" during the climax when all hope seems to be lost. We have all seen it a million times before. So, to have my expectations flipped was a nice surprise.

'The Book of Eli' ends with Eli arriving at the western sanctuary where they have dedicated their time to building a library with as many notable and sacred texts as they can find. They also have a functioning printing press which is used to publish the Bible that is rewritten from Eli's memory. After the Bible is finished, Eli dies and Solara takes up his mantle and ventures back into the wasteland for reasons? Honestly, it isn't anything spectacular and the twist that Eli was actually blind the entire movie borders on unbelievable. Still, the religious aspect of the plot made up for the downfalls. It's certainly worth a watch if you are interested in religion in any way, and don't mind some action.