The Way (film)

A good friend (Martin) recently recommended watching a film made in 2010, "The Way."  I watched it on DVD with my wife, Lori.  We both really enjoyed it.  I highly recommend it to others.

It's a film written, directed, and co-produced by Emilio Estevez

Emilio Estevez

(once considered the leader of the Brat Pack).  It stars his father, Martin Sheen (whose name is actually Ramon Estevez).

The film centers around El Camino de Santiago (The Way of St. James).  For those unfamiliar with this, it is a 500 mile (800 km) pilgrimage route that begins in the French Pyrenees and ends

El Camino de Santiago (highlighted in red)

in Santiago De Compista in Northwestern Spain.  By tradition, St. James made it this far in his apostolic missionary journeys, and his bones are interred at the Cathedral there.  During the Middle Ages, this route became one of the major pilgrimage routes.  Though by the mid-80s, the pilgrimage attracted few pilgrims, since then it has attracted a growing number, so that by 2010 (the year of the film), over 270,000 undertook the full pilgrimage.  (Many who now undertake this journey are not Catholics, or even Christians, but those in search of spirituality, or an experience to give their life meaning, or other personal reasons.)

The story centers around a lapsed Catholic, Thomas Avery (Martin Sheen), an ophthalmologist completely engaged in his practice, and little else.  His son, Daniel (Emelio Estevez), rejects his father's lifestyle, seeks to see the world, wants to engage in the lives of others and help them when possible.  Daniel decides to undertake El Camino de Santiago, but dies on his first day on the journey in the Pyrenees alone in a storm.

Much like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, Thomas is swept up to France, to deal with the death of his son.  Once he finds out all the details, he feels it his duty to accomplish the pilgrimage for his son by carrying his son's cremated ashes along the pilgrimage route.  Again, much like Dorothy, he encounters 3 companions, at intervals.  As with Dorothy, during the journey, he learns much about himself and others.

Though I wouldn't put this up in arena of an Academy Award picture, I still highly recommend this film, and think you will enjoy viewing it.