August N

The film has a lot of suspense that never pays off. It bears a lot of similarities to The Road, including a father-son pair on a journey through a post apocalyptic wasteland, constantly on their toes because bands of violent and evil men lurk seemingly everywhere along the way. Overall, the story is poorly executed and barely gets the job done. The noble message is that we all need a plan in life. We're all just minutes from shooting each other over some gerricans of gasoline (the film makes this point well). The Toms of the world are ready to protect their families with their plans, and the Wills need to be more like the Toms. Unfortunately that message gets lost for most people--if not when two of the three helpless women in the film are left for dead, then when someone who can't fire a gun manages to drift a narrow bridge in a Cadillac and ram a Ford F350 out of the way. Visually, the film is great for the post-apocalyptic fans. Earthquakes, smoke, dust, fires, the Northern Lights, more smoke, a volcano, a very thrilling lightning storm... I really enjoyed it, and there was even a gas mask being worn at one point. Most of the acting is good, as far as we can tell given the story. This is The Road meets 10 Cloverfield Lane, laced with Nocturnal Animals. Enjoy it. There might not be a sequel... unless Will has friends in Canada.