Review: Blood Father Brings Gibson Back With a Bang.
- Jan 12, 2017
- 2 min read
Personal life aside, Mel Gibson is one of my favourite actors. From Lethal Weapon to Braveheart and his latest, Blood Father, Gibson continues to prove he’s a powerhouse both onscreen and behind a camera. Directed by Jean-Francois Richet, it’s one of the better films of the year.
Gibson is Link an ex-con and recovering alcoholic who's trying his best to lie low, making a living as a trailer park tattoo artist. When he receives a distressed call from a daughter (Erin Moriarty) who’s been missing for years, things begin to fall apart. Between her drug problem and an incident involving a Mexican cartel, Link watches as everything he built collapses, and it’s up to him to put it back together.
Blood Father is both a thriller and an action film and excels at both. Gibson is excellent as a father with a troubled past, both funny and intense. Link's sponsor and only real friend, Kirby (William H Macy), is enjoyable to watch and while he only has a small role, he leaves a lasting impression. Michael Parks and Diego Luna are equally enjoyable as the villains of the movie. The characters are well written and excellently acted and help to establish a group that have known each other for sometime, without any of their past ever being shown.
The action is also well done. While it’s not the best and is certainly on a smaller scale when compared to many of Gibson’s other films, it remains visceral and real. From motorbike chases to desert shootouts, it often looks like a Mad Max film, doubly so with Gibson at the forefront. It’s punchy, explosive and enthralling.
Blood Father propels Gibson forward in his first major acting role in a long time. It’s a solid film with great characters and a decent story that never stops moving forward and it’s definitely worth checking out.
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