Blood Father

When i was a kid, i enjoyed seeing actors from the classic actors in Hollywood. There are many names i could mention, but let's do some of them. Chevy Chase, Steve Martin, Gene Hackman, Kurt Russel, Kevin Costner, Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Robert Redford, and the list goes on. There are so many of them, and i am happy to say that almost all of them are still working in films, even if though they are old. But there is something special about actors from another time in Hollywood, they have something special that not most young actors can replicate. I would like to take the time and focus on one legendary actor, who have been in the movie industry since the 70´s. Let´s talk about Mel Gibson. Most people probably know him from his australian action films Mad Mad, or perhaps as Martin Riggs in the Leathal Weapon film series. But the nice thing about Mel Gibson, is that he can do so many different films, and still manage to do a great character. One of the films i am thinking about, that some of you might remember, is a film called The Man Without  A Face. Seeing him play a man with a deformed face, who become a father figure for a young boy, is a film that deserves a view. This film was also directed by Mel Gibson, and from what i understand he wanted to do a smaller production, and take a break from the action genre. He made a good choice. Of course we all know that Mel Gibson have worked well in action films, and he have proved himself in several titles. I was one of the people who enjoyed his action film Payback from 1999, even though i know critics had very different opinion about this film. We could talk about his classics, and the films he directed that became huge successes. But there was a time when Mel got himself in trouble, perhaps some of you remember when he talked about jews. This became a very big issue and it did affect his career. Mel did continued making films, but either The Beaver or Meet The Gringo got fans interested, and they both bombed at the box office. It was not until he landed a role in The Expendables 3 we got to see him in better shape, and i have to say he gave this film a touch of Mel magic. Recently i got a chance to see his latest film Blood Father on VOD, and i was curious to see if he still got that sparkle in him. Is Mel back in his best film in years, or is this another one that no one will care about ?

Lydia ( Erin Moriarty ) and her boyfriend Jonah ( Diego Luna ) go with a criminal gang, armed with weapons, to go kill a tentant family who have stolen money. As they arrive, Jonah asks Lydia to watch the back exit. Something goes terribly wrong, and Jonah is killed. Lydia takes off, and run away, as she tries to figure out a safe location. She finally decide to call her father John ( Mel Gibson ) to come and pick her up. John comes to the location, and he can tell Lydia is in trouble, especially when he knows she have had trouble in the past. John lives out in a desert area, working as an tattoo artist, and have tried to leave his criminal life behind him. The criminal gang is out to locate Lydia, but they don´t know that her father is a well known ex con, and he knows how to take care of bad situations.

When you have no big expectations at all, and see a film that is better than you expected, you have to feel pleased. Blood Father is in no way original in any way, but that´s ok. Because the story between a young teenage daughter, and a father who tries to help his daughter, works better than many similar films i have seen in recent years. And the reason for that is Mel Gibsons acting performance. His character Link is a man with a rough past, and now he wants to leave all that behind. Of course he can´t eventually, but that is the way life is. His daughter Lydia played well by Erin Moriarty, combine really well with Gibson, and they match on their scenes together. There is plenty of violence here, but somehow it is a good idea, because this family have always had trouble, so you realise that this will never change. To see Gibson fight against drug criminals is actually a fun ride, he is an old school fighter and he will not give up that easily. Since the plot is not very interesting, you have to rely on the acting and the action scenes instead, and i have to say director Jean-Francios Richet have managed to combine this, in a positive way. He clearly have tried to make this film a classic revenge story, and made sure to use Gibson as a rough man, who gets another chance to clean up the problems. I also like the enviroment, where Gibson lives. A trailer wasteland with nothing but sand and simple people, living in a community, helping each other out. Nice to see William H. Macy here as well, as his friendly neighbor Kirby. If you think about it, when you look at the previous work of director Jean-Francois Richet, he have worked on effective action films before. He directed the remake of John Carpenter´s Assault On Precinct 13. For a remake, in a more updated version, i think he did a pretty good job. Blood Father is of course a completely different story, but from from a action perspective i feel that this is a film for people who enjoy classic action elements. Time might have passed, and Mel might be older, but he is still a great action actor, there is no doubt about that. Want to enjoy a film on a popcorn night with some drinks of Ron De Jeremy Rum ? I suggest you watch Blood Father and enjoy your evening, especially with that best rum in the world.

Rating: DDD