DIRECTOR: Jean-François Richet STARRING: Mel Gibson, Erin Moriarty, Diego Luna, Michael Parks, William H. Macy, Miguel Sandoval, Dale Dickey, Richard Cabral, Daniel Moncada, Ryan Dorsey, Raoul Max Trujillo, Brandi Cochran FRANCE 2016
9
Blood Father is possibly the biggest surprise of 2016. I knew it was going to be a good movie due to positive buzz and the involvement of the immensely talented Mel Gibson (despite how you personally feel about him), but the film was so much more than what I was expecting. The film is marketed as a B-movie action thriller and it is that but there’s such a strong emphasis on the character development and plot rather than action sequences and the dialog, particularly Gibson and William H. Macy’s is very funny and surprisingly well written. Blood Father reminds me of action films from the late 80s and early 90s like Die Hard and Lethal Weapon where you watch them for the performances and the experience rather than seeing shit get blown up. Blood Father is an absolute gem of a modern thriller/drama and please see it wherever you can as it’s limited release in cinemas. It’s not some thought provoking masterpiece and it has a simple premise, but for what it is, it’s absolutely terrific. Welcome back Mel.