The Way

"You don't choose a life. You live one."

2010 2h 8m EN

👍

7.1

SOLID

🍅

82%

FRESH

👌

METACRITIC

⭐

7.3

IMDB

★7.1TMDB · 675🍅82%Rotten Tomatoes●64Metacritic★7.3IMDB · 37,826

AdventureDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

When his son dies while hiking the famed Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in the Pyrenees, Tom flies to France to claim the remains. Looking for insights into his estranged child’s life, he decides to complete the 500-mile mountain trek to Spain. Tom soon joins up with other travelers and realizes they’re all searching for something.

“You don't choose a life. You live one.”

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Cast

Martin Sheen
Tom
Emilio Estevez
Daniel
Deborah Kara Unger
Sarah
Yorick van Wageningen
Joost
James Nesbitt
Jack
Tchéky Karyo
Captain Henri
Ángela Molina
Angelica
Carlos Leal
Jean

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Emilio Estevez
Writers: Emilio Estevez, Jack Hitt
Languages: French, English, Spanish
Countries: Spain, United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 16 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: French, English, Spanish.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Spain, United States of America.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Emilio Estevez, shot by Juan Miguel Azpiroz. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Tyler Bates. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Raúl Dávalos shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez and Deborah Kara Unger carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "You don't choose a life. You live one.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Emilio Estevez directs. Juan Miguel Azpiroz behind the camera. Tyler Bates scores. Raúl Dávalos cuts. Produced in Spain, United States of America. Dialogue in French, English, Spanish.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 16 years ago.
2Dialogue crosses 3 languages: French, English, Spanish.
3International production across 2 countries: Spain, United States of America.
4Directed by Emilio Estevez, shot by Juan Miguel Azpiroz. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Tyler Bates. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Raúl Dávalos shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez and Deborah Kara Unger carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "You don't choose a life. You live one.".
9IMDB entry: tt1441912 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 12 themes, including "spain", "france", "parent child relationship", "pilgrimage".

The technical file

Cinematography: Juan Miguel Azpiroz
Original score: Tyler Bates
Editing: Raúl Dávalos
Production design: Víctor Molero
Costume design: Tatiana Hernández
Makeup / hair: Raquel Fidalgo
Runtime: 128 min · 2h 8m
Status: Released
Box office: $13,900,000
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: The Way (2010)
Rotten Tomatoes: 82% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 64/100
IMDB rating: 7.3/10 · 37,826 votes
MPAA: PG-13

Awards

1 win & 8 nominations total

Also by

Emilio Estevez

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

tmdb280390232022-08-25
★ 1/10
Dr. Thomas Avery (Martin Sheen), an American ophthalmologist, goes to France following the death of his son Daniel, killed in the Pyrenees during a storm on the Camino de Santiago (aka the Way of St. James). We see, by way of flashback, that Thomas and Daniel's relationship was strained – and according to the former had been so "since his mother died." Daniel went to Europe without his father's blessing ("We agreed that if l let you take me to the airport, you wouldn't lecture me about how l'm ruining my life"); additionally, Daniel had earlier broken the news to Thomas that he wasn't going to finish his doctorate ("Margaret Mead didn't become a great cultural anthropologist by staying in school"). Daniel is played by Emilio Estévez, who happens to be Sheen's real-life son; unfortunately, he also was 48 years old – and looked it – when the movie was released, thus making his character more 'midlife crisis' than 'teenage angst.' I can believe 69-year-old (at the time) Sheen playing a 60-year-old man, but Estévez can't help coming off like a pathetic victim of arrested development, even if he's also aiming for nine years younger – which would make him about 40; regardless of whether Margaret Mead did or did not become "a great cultural anthropologist by staying in school," the fact remains that by age 35 she'd already published Coming of Age in Samoa and Sex and Temperament in Three Primitive Societies, two influential works in her chosen field. Daniel, conversely, not only hasn't even finished a doctorate, but didn't finish, for that matter, the Camino the Santiago either – he barely even started it, in point of fact; he died "only one day into the trek." All things considered, Daniel was kind of a screw-up; in that sense, Estévez should have gotten his brother Charlie to play him instead.
Crazypiglady2023-01-30
★ 8/10
A thin but poignant plot takes us on a beautiful journey through Northern Spain. Along the way, Tom (Martin Sheen) is joined by three unwanted other travellers as he completes his dead son's journey along the Camino Way. Along the journey, they learn more about each other and share their stories. The film could have gone deeper into these stories but this would have taken the focus away from the main story of Tom's personal mission. James Nesbitt plays an annoying Irish writer, Jack but Tom, originally planning a solo journey, is equally annoyed by his new Dutch and Canadian companions. All are plausible people one might expect to find on such a journey. The soundtrack is amazing but the real stars are the landscapes and locations showcased with brilliant cinematography. A beautiful film which won't prepare you to walk the Camino but it will give you the views and (romanticised) atmosphere of travelling through Northern Spain. (8/10)