Just watched this and loved it.
Reminded me very much of the Cormac McCarthy novel "The Road."
Wondering if anyone that has read/seen both agrees, and whether or not anyone might have read/heard whether McCarthy credits this film as an inspriation for that story.
Striking similarities.
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Yes! It really reminded me of "The Road." And, funny thing, I hated them both. The Road was very well-written and thought-provoking, as was this movie, but just too bleak and depressing for me. But the whole way through the movie i kept wondering if one inspired the other.
shareI agree that "The Road" was influenced by The Time of the Wolf. As far as I know, McCarthy has never acknowledged the inspiration, but the fact that "No Country for Old Men" also appears to be (slightly) informed by another Haneke film (Benny's Video) certainly implies a connection.
The Time of the Wolf and "The Road" are bleak, post-apocalyptic fables following widowers and their children in the wake of an unexplained catastrophe. Benny's Video and "No Country" share an enigmatic, captive bolt pistol-wielding antagonist.
Since Haneke's films came out before McCarthy wrote his novels, I can't believe this is a coincidence.
I wish McCarthy would acknowledge the influence.
I've seen/read both and love them both. Inspiration, influence... maybe. Both come from a long line of such stories, back to "Earth Abides" by George R. Stewart.
shareSure, I wasn't saying Haneke's ideas were completely original. But looking at the close time frame in which the movies/novels were released/published, I could imagine McCarthy working nods to Haneke into his books.
Absolutely the post-apocalyptic novel has been around for awhile, but the use of a captive bolt pistol as homicidal weapon is pretty rare. And since that weapon is really the only thing Benny's Video and No Country have in common, I wondered whether McCarthy had seen Haneke's other films as well. (Hence the possible connection between The Time of the Wolf and The Road.)
At the same time, no one can say for certain how long McCarthy worked on his novels before they were published, so there may be no connection at all. But because I'm a huge fan of both McCarthy and Haneke, I'd like to think there is.
Great book Earth Abides. Hard to find now.
shareI didn't even think about the Benny's Video/No Country connection...interesting theory.
I keep hearing The Road was a terrible movie, but I loved Time of the Wolf.
Not sure if I should check out The Road or not.
(And yes, I know most of you are mentioning the book...so don't pounce on me saying "it's not a movie it's a book you idiot! The book doesn't even count!" I hate that...)
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Thematically, they seem very related. And they are two of the bleakest human disaster stories I have ever seen.....
shareThey are indeed extremely similar. The Road could easily have been a sequel or heck even a remake.
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I haven't yet seen the film (looking forward to it, while also trying to avoid any spoilers), but Cormac McCarthy did a well-publisized interview with Oprah Winfrey shortly after "The Road" was published (it made Oprah's Book Club immediately following its release).
I had read "The Road" and watched the interview to gain some insight on what inspired him to write the book. It was pretty clear that McCarthy, who had just fathered his first child, was inspired by his experience as a father to write "The Road".
He explained that he had overwhelming feelings about protecting his son from the social evils of the world. He used the Man's struggle with protecting the Boy as a literal translation of his own feelings. My post is far less articulate than McCathy's own words, but I'm sure you get the idea. McCarthy is getting on in years, and it's apparent that he experienced very strong paternal feelings for his son.
It's easy to see how those feelings were articulated into such a powerful work of literature. I recently watched "The Road" which, for reasons unknown, saw very limited release in North America. I thought the movie represented an excellent film translation of the book. It's impossible to convey the intimacy of the Man's love for the Boy in the book, but the film was as faithful as a movie could be to its written counterpart, without venturing too far away from the book's original plot.
Now, if can I only find "Le Temps du Loup" on video..
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Except that McCarthy has stated (to Oprah Winfrey no less) that the Road was inspired by a visit to El Paso.
And there have been many, many post-apocalyptic movies and novels.
the basic theme is the same, but haneke's film has more facettes that mccarthy's usual "look at how terrible the world is".
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