Review of On the Road (2014) by Simon G — 21 Jan 2014

Jack Kerouac's seminal novel finally gets its long overdue film adaptation. Its been over three decades since executive producer Francis Ford Coppola bought the rights to On the Road back in 1979 and after various attempts to bring the book to the screen it wasn't until Coppola saw 2004's The Motorcycle Diaries that he knew he'd found his writer and director in the guise of Jose Rivera and Walter Salles, respectively.

Much has been made about the inclusion of Kristen Stewart as Marylou - I was worried that her part could have been expanded on to give her more screen-time - but I can safely say that this was a marketing ploy to get bums on seats and Marylou remains a bit character as she was in the novel. Also she plays the part well, giving a looseness to her character - befitting of the time - missing from the likes of the.

Intense and tightly wound Bella Swan.

The difficulty in adapting a novel like On the Road to the screen is in its lack of narrative structure; the story being more a collection of travel vignettes, or, diary entries, if you will. This is the biggest flaw with On the Road, the lack of a narrative arc leaves the film with a feeling of not really going anywhere, with no real conclusion. It is the journey that is important but what made the novel so great was Kerouac's fluid and spontaneous writing style. The way he turns life's boredom and mundanity into an adventure with larger than life characters who leap from the page. In the novel Dean Moriarty (Garret Hedlund) rips through the story (and I know its a strange comparison) much in the way Heath Ledger's Joker rips through The Dark Knight. Here though, Dean's wildness and energy (Kerouac describes him as literally bouncing off the walls) seems somewhat muted, Hedlund giving a darker, more brooding portrayal.

The film is very faithful to its source material, in fact maybe a little too faithful (a problem which Silent Hill suffered from - and again, a strange comparison, I know). But some stops on Kerouac's adventures feel a little rushed or not fully formed, lacking the vibrancy of the written word on the page. The scene in which Sal hitches a ride with a bunch of guys in the back of a truck as it bounds along the highway, the drivers not even stopped for bathroom breaks. On the page this was one of the most memorable scenes from the novel - and ironically, one without Dean - as the men drink their way through a shared bottle of whiskey as they whiz through the Nebraska night before hitting the bars of Cheyenne. On screen however, we never get to see this as the story lifts off before we make it to nightfall. And this seems to be a recurring theme in the film, we are treated to choice moments from the novel, like Sal meeting Terry on a late night bus and then shacking up with her, picking cotton in California but again this is only a part of the story, we don't see the proceeding time they spend together in LA or meeting her brothers.

And here lies On the Road's biggest flaw; not that we don't see the entirety of certain events or that some of them fall flat but that there is much thrown in which will please fans of the novel but they seem exactly that: thrown in. Included to stay faithful but not to aid the story. The film would have benefited, and I can't believe I'm saying this being such a purist, from having left certain events out completely in order to more adequately explore and portray other events more fully - certainly for this 2 hour cut anyway. Giving the feeling of three definite acts - in terms of pacing - would have given the story a much needed arc to hold together the hotch-potchness of Kerouac's travels and adventures. Unless of course there is footage lying somewhere on the cutting room floor meaning a more definitive 3 hour directors cut could be a possibility.

Some of this feeling of disjointedness could have been alleviated in the conclusion but instead this is where the least time is spent. Dean and Sal's final adventure down into Mexico is a pivotal moment in the novel and one of the most vividly realised. Bugs smashing into Sal's face as he drives with his head out the window in the Mexican night before he, Dean and Stan decide to sleep in the jungle. Instead we get a little of Mexico City night life before the inevitable end to the journey - and while the scene is played out with gravitas by both actors we don't really feel Sal's pain the way we should.

A lot a complaints then about this long awaited adaptation of a generation defining novel but you'll notice 4 stars at the top of this review and that's because taken as a film in its own right On the Road is engaging, intense and as a period piece, perfectly captures the vibe of a young, lost generation trying to find their way, and their place, in post-WWII America. The performances are excellent through-out; the young leads, although perhaps not the perfect choice for the roles, do handle their respective characters with care with the more heavyweight supporting cast doing just that: supporting the leads and giving them a solid foundation to work from.

Sam Riley has already proved the deftness with which he can play autobiographical roles with his outstanding performance as the late Ian Curtis in the Joy Division biopic Control. Garrett Hedlund meanwhile really steals the show here injecting his Dean Moriarty with enough balls, swagger and handsome intensity to give a respectful portrayal of a legendary character and let's face it, a character who was never going to be as fully realised on screen as the Kerouac nuts were hoping given that the character himself was the man seen through the eyes of Kerouac and therein lies this character's greatness.