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Blood Father (2016)

Director:
Jean-Francois Richet
COUNTRY
USA
GENRE
Action/Thriller
NORWEGIAN TITLE
Blood Father
RUNNING TIME
88 minutes
Producer:
Chris Briggs
Peter Craig
Pascal Caucheteux
Sebastien K. Lemercier
Screenwriter (based on Peter Craig's novel):
Peter Craig
Andrea Berloff


Cast includes:

CHARACTER ACTOR/ACTRESS RATING
John Link Mel Gibson
Lydia Link Erin Moriarty
Kirby Curtis William H. Macy ½
Jonah Pincerna Diego Luna
Jayson Thomas Mann
Cherise Dale Dickey
Preacher Michael Parks
Cleaner Raoul Trujillo

 

Review

It's good to see Mel Gibson back in his good-old crazy-eyed, frenetic action-mode, and it's a pleasant surprise to see that he has actually toned himself down to fit his current age. He looks ravaged by time, but considering that, he couldn't have found a better role than this "blood father" John Link. He's an ex-convict and recovering alcoholic living in a trailer park when one day his runaway teenage daughter calls to tell him she's gotten in trouble with a rather bad-ass drug-dealing gang. It's a merciless dog-eat-dog world novelist/screenwriter Peter Craig tells about here, filled with all kinds of desperados and opportunists. At face value nothing is new under the sun, but the story is tight, and director Jean-Francois Richet's economical style makes the film unstoppably suspenseful. And although the relationship between father Gibson and daughter Erin Moriarty is something of a film cliché, there's a sweetness and genuineness between them that makes it stand out. Moriarty may well be a real talent. And so are several of the supporting players here: Macy, Luna, Parks and Dickey.

Copyright © 08.12.2016 Fredrik Gunerius Fevang

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