BOOK OF ELI, THE

THE BOOK OF ELI

After the Apocalypse, your I-pod should still work just fine, however it mightt be better to get the I-pod Classic as that is the only one they showed working in "Book of Eli".

This time Denzel Washington and the Hughes Brothers take a stab at what the world will be like after civilization ends and scant traces of humanity are left to fend for themselves.

Whenever the Apocalypse does arrive, I will, no doubt be hardened to the point of acceptance since there have been an untold number of films addressing the demise of mankind. Holllywood must be setting us up for the real thing. This time, they have hinted that we need to all have I-pod classics if we want to enjoy our music after the big boom.

Like Viggo Mortensen"The Road", Denzel finds adrift on a road heading toward the West Coast. The world is bleak, food is scarce, water is scarcer, and it's every man (or woman) for himself. Also like "The Road" we don't know what happened - there was a flash of light and the world changed.

But unlike Viggo, Denzel's character (named Eli) knows exactly where he is going on the west coast. He is in possession of a book; the last of it's kind. A King James version of the Bible.

There is just one problem, he encounters a man named Carnegie (Gary Oldman) who has a plan for the book. His plan is world domination as he reorganizes the world into several little fiefdoms. So he is determined to get the book from Eli.

But as with all baddies in action movies, he has surrounded himself with a bunch of idiots. It is they whom he originally assigns to retrieve the book.

Eli, is no slouch though and armed with a knife and a pistol - and his trusty I-pod, easily repels the advances.

But he has been betrayed by a tag-along babe named Solara (Mila Kunis) whose mom (Jennifer Beals) is being held as concubine by Carnegie.

Now he must defend the book or let Carnegie achieve supreme power.

Yes, it sounds a bit hokey and it is. The movie deteriorates into a "Mad Max" knock off with marauding gangs in modified vehicles and lots of guns.

There is no mention of where they got the gas especially since the end-of-world event happened over thirty years ago. Surely whatever gas supplies would have been depleted by now! Wouldn't they?

To his credit, Denzel does his best to not break out laughing during the movie. It is very clear why this was a January release.

Nevertheless, "Book of Eli" is a decent chance to sit in the theatre while everyone else goes to see "Avatar" for the tenth time. --GEOFFREY BURTON

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