The Road To Perdition

The Road to Perdition is a visually exciting tale of revenge and retribution. The story revolves around Michael Sullivan Sr., (Tom Hanks), who just happens to be a hitman for the Irish mob, and his son, Michael Sullivan, Jr. (Tyler Hoechlin). It's almost impossible to look at Tom Hanks without having a "nice-guy" image cross your mind. Yet, he is great in the subtle role of Michael Sullivan, Sr. He finds a way to stay the hardened killer throughout the whole film, but you can still see the moral struggle that he is feeling in his eyes. Michael Sullivan, Sr. may be a mobster, but he is also a man with a strong sense of loyalty and parental responsibility.

In the beginning, Michael Sullivan is not quite the hero I was hoping he would be. He is a father that is quite distant from his two young boys, Michael Jr. and Peter. He is so distant that the boys are not sure what Michael Sullivan does for a living. They know that he works for Mr. Rooney, and that he puts food on the table, but they don't know how he does it, or what he does for Mr. Rooney. Now I don't know about you, but my kids want to know any and everything they can about my day, and what I do. And the boys especially want to know exactly what is it that daddy does. (Thankfully, in my case, daddy is a crane operator.) Nonetheless, Mr. Sullivan does an outstanding job hiding exactly what he does from his children. But we all know that you can't hide things from kids for long, especially if they really want to know something. Eventually, all of what he has been trying to hide does come out, and his oldest son ( who reminds me an awful lot of my oldest son, age an all) now knows that his father, someone he loves and respects, is nothing more than a cold hearted killer, murderer, and triggerman.

Now this new turn of events puts Michael, Sr. in a difficult place. He feels loyalty to Mr. Rooney, who is like a father to him, but he also wants his family to be safe, knowing that Mr. Rooney will not like it when he finds out that his son, Michael, Jr. knows what's going on. He also wants his son to be better than him and to have a better life. He doesn't want his namesake to follow in his footsteps. What should he do? Nothing. He didn't have time to do anything. Mr. Rooney's real son does it for him by killing Michael Sr.'s wife and youngest boy Peter. Now, I don't know about you, but the last thing I would do if I was the leader of a mob-type outfit is piss off the hitman that kills everyone for me. This man obviously antisocial and has no compassion when he is getting rid of the people that get in my way. But he does it anyway. Then the real movie begins, and Michael Sullivan, Sr. in my eyes becomes a hero.

Michael Sr. takes his remaining son, (Michael Jr. in case you're having a hard time following) and runs. Now Michael Sr. has two reasons (or extrinsive motivations) to really be a hitman. The two reasons are: first to avenge of the death of his wife and youngest child; and then to make sure that his living son is safe. It's a struggle between his moral values. On one hand, he doesn't want to set a bad example and glorify his lifestyle to his son. But on the other hand, he must use his lifestyle to ensure their safety. He has this internal struggle. It's kill or be killed. The end justifies the means. I think that's very honorable.

I really like the way Michael Sr.'s personality comes full circle. He goes from being this cold mysterious man who seems to have no deep feelings to a man that finally sees the light on raising his son to be a good person. The realization that he didn't know his younger son has really made him start to appreciate his older one. He sees that he has a chance to get to know him and he genuinely tries. He starts to see that he's not just some kid, but he's his kid. And he is all he has. He also knows that Michael Jr. has the ability to be just like him, and that is something he does not want to happen. So, then what should you do to make sure that your son doesn't do the things that you do? You show him exactly what not to be like. Michael Sr. has to throw his son into the life that he ultimately didn't even want his son to see to begin with. Some might joke that Michael Sr. has entered Erikson's seventh stage of development: generativity vs. stagnation; making a difference for the next generation. (Wood, Wood and Boyd 246)

I certainly hope that my family never finds themselves in this situation. It's tragic, and now this twelve year old child is going to live with complete strangers. I'm sure that he will have a good life from here on out, but it still won't be his mother and father. I can't help but put my own family into this movie. My husband would be Michael Sullivan Sr., and my oldest son Michael Jr. The thought of them having to go through everything that these two went through is heartbreaking. And then that thought of my son growing up without me or my husband is even more disturbing. I am secure and comforted in the knowledge that if something similar ever happened to my family, that my husband would without