Blood Father

This review may contain spoilers!

If this is Mel Gibson's big return to cinema then I am excited for what he's gonna do next! I would give Blood Father an 8.5/10.

At first approach this film keeps to the basics of any good standard action film, however there is a gritty undertone that can only be brought to life from the desolate desert setting of the film. At every point it can this film subverts your expectations and avoids playing up the spectacle; what this film values is creating realistic situations and characters. I was hooked on this film from start to finish, it's very well paced. The cinematography looks amazing, every shot captures either the intensity of the scene or frames the setting and characters extremely well. The editing aids the pacing immensely, hitting all the right cues and keeping the progress steady. The action sequences looked terrific, the final fight of the film felt primal and dirty; without a doubt some of the best action I've seen this year.

Diego Luna, who played Jonah, was a really menacing antagonist whose wild behaviour really started the film off well; when we see Luna again by the end of the film his desperation and almost pathetic attitude added even more layers to his character. William H. Macy, who played Kirby, was a rather likeable role and had some nice chemistry with Gibson; I found his delivery to be quite comedic and entertaining. Miguel Sandoval, who played Arturo Rios, just connected with Gibson and brought one of the best scenes of the film to bear; he brought a more honorable type of criminal to the film and simultaneously had a very quiet form of menace when he confronted Luna at the end. Richard Cabral, who played Joker, took over as the main antagonist for Luna briefly and he was superb to watch; he had an intensity and a ferocity to his performance that really made him stand out. Raoul Max Trujillo, who played The Cleaner, is one of those physical henchman characters who could've been forgettable had it not been for Trujillo's skilled acting; anyone can act well with a vast chunk of lines but to create an interesting character through body language and facial expression alone takes a lot of talent.

However the best performance came from Mel Gibson, who played Link. Gibson's performance is just unreal in Blood Father and it's absolutely a major part of why I've given the film such a high rating. Action heroes are a dime a dozen these days so it's hard to stand out from the crowd, in my mind Gibson has created a role that is very unique and special. His rough and rugged exterior is tempered to the criminal world Link lives in, and this is a character with the capacity for violence within him. I loved how Gibson delivered his dialogue, it really showed his range; from caring father to wild outbursts to extremely funny remarks. Link is a survivor, a mad dog, a recovering alcoholic and of course, a father.

Blood Father does take a while before the film gets really tense like it was at the start of the film, unfortunately this means a significant chunk of the film feels a bit safe. I also wished the father/daughter relationship between Link and Lydia felt more genuine. The score for the film was incredibly forgettable, there were many instances where the music just didn't add anything to the scenes.

Erin Moriarty, who played Lydia, felt like she was all over the place when it came to the acting in this film; Moriarty didn't do a good jump of constructing a character who seemed in the least bit realistic. Michael Parks, who played Preacher, was such an unusual role in this film; Parks doesn't put much energy into his character and didn't have the connection with Gibson that his role demanded. Thomas Mann, who played Jason Motel Clerk, was a really out of place minor role; Mann did not fit the tone of this story and seemed an odd addition to the cast.