Blood Father (2016)

Review

88min

Genre:      Action, Crime, Thriller

Director:   Jean-François Richet

Cast:        Mel Gibson, Erin Moriarty, Diego Luna…and more

Writers:    Peter Craig and Andrea Berloff

-Synopsis-

Mel Gibson stars as a tough ex-con tattoo artist who goes on the run with his estranged daughter, a rebellious teen-turned gangster arm-candy, to protect her from from dangerous drug dealers intent on killing her in this action/thriller from French director Jean-François Richet (Assault on Precinct 13, One Wild Moment).

On a long road of career recovery from both self-inflicted wounds and being hung out to dry by Hollywood, Mel Gibson has flown under the radar by starring in smaller and critically overlooked movies over the last six years, usually as some sort of tough older character which takes advanced of his more grizzled current look. And with ‘Blood Father’ he continues the trend by leading a father-daughter road film, with plenty of crime and drama in a distinct B-movie package.

Gibson stars as recovering alcoholic ex-con “John Link”; a divorced middle-aged trailer-park tattoo artist, whose simple life is turned upside down when his runaway teenage daughter (Erin Moriarty) suddenly turns up asking for help. In a bid to protect her from ruthless criminals, they take to the road and in the process find out uncomfortable truths about each other, as “Link” calls in old favours on a journey which seems destined for a fiery ending.

At first glance it might look like Gibson is going into Liam Neeson “badass at 60” territory, and there’s certainly quite a bit of ‘Taken’ in the film, although not nearly enough; there’s also a hint of ‘No Country for Old Men’, only without the refreshing and gripping narrative or legitimate tension which comes from the unexpected. Ultimately ‘Blood Father’ is predictable and unimaginative, without the level of execution to do something captivating with the overly familiar elements.

In a performance which has bafflingly been hailed as a career highlight by some, Mel Gibson does his best to combine real life experiences of addiction and redemption with the madcap intensity of his “Martin Riggs” glory days; but he has very little to work with and the result is an unconvincing character who talks plenty but has little of substance to say.

Despite boasting a strong supporting cast which features the likes of William H. Macy, Michael Parks and Diego Luna; the performances in ‘Blood Father’ are surprisingly poor, but it only goes to prove how even experienced talent cannot bring lazy and uninspired screenwriting to life. The film is littered with unconvincing and clichéd dialogue, most evident in several tedious character monologues designed to build tension and drama, which they don’t, and provide character back-story, which you quickly find yourself not caring about.

The characters in general are thinly-drawn and fall into the familiar tropes of ex-cons, rebellious teenagers and ruthless Latino drug-dealers, so it’s left to the action to pick up the considerable slack, but that hardly impresses either. ‘Blood Father’ certainly has a few decent shootouts and chases but it never really commits to the action genre, nor is much of a thriller and we’ve established that it’s forgettable as a drama, so in the end it’s stuck between genres without excelling in any.

Nevertheless it’s a well-shot film with cinematography which vividly captures the dusty desert majesty of the American Southwest, and there’s just about enough action to moderately entertain over a short 90 minute runtime. But given the positive reception following its Cannes premiere, ‘Blood Father’ is a disappointing vehicle for Mel Gibson, but we have high hopes for his directorial return ‘Hacksaw Ridge’. Meanwhile if you want to see how a gripping modern crime drama set in the dusty American plains should look, check out ‘Hell or High Water’.

The Bottom Line…

Neither a gripping character drama nor a particularly thrilling action/thriller, its strong cast can’t quite elevate this poorly written run-of-the-mill crime drama; ‘Blood Father’ has a resurrected Mel Gibson and couple of things going for it, but even “Mad Max” couldn’t rescue an unimaginative movie that’s likely to slip your mind as soon as you leave the cinema.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

No Country for Old Men (2007)

Multiple Oscar-winning “Coen Brothers” nihilistic thriller/drama following the plight of a stoic and resourceful Texas man, as he is hunted by a seemingly unstoppable figure after taking a suitcase full of money from the gruesome scene of a botched drug-deal.

Directed by Joel & Ethan Coen and starring Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin and Tommy Lee Jones among others.

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