Blood Father

Oh how I wish that Mel Gibson didn’t screw up his career.  There was a time when a new Mel Gibson film was almost a seminal thing, no matter the genre. That’s because the actor was capable of transcending so many genres, sometimes in the same film, sometimes in a single scene.  He always brought an intensity, sadness, and comedic timing, that made him a rare “movie star” that could sell both box-office receipts and award buzz.  What’s worse (well, worse now) is that as good of an actor as Mel is, he’s an even better director that was working at a creative high when he destroyed the ground beneath his own feet.

Even after his first transgression, which hasn’t allowed him to star in a leading role in a major studio release since, he was still given a chance, and a decent enough budget to direct films like The Passion of the Christ and Apocalypto.  I have issues with Passion, but it’s astounding to me that Gibson made a film in three dead languages that doesn’t need subtitles (his plan was to release it as such, but he relented on that).  His a visceral, visual artist, that doesn’t call too much attention to his visual eye, yet he miraculously gets his point across thorough character. Apocalypto is brilliant and brutal in all the ways I expect from Gibson, but you could tell he was just on the cusp of being a master of a kind of art that we don’t see today.  Then his demons got the best of him, and ten years later…here we are.  Luckily Blood Father is a reminder of what the man can do once you put a camera in front of him (We’ll get answers on his directorial talents later this year).

Gibson plays John Link, an ex-convict who fights to protect his estranged daughter from the drug cartel that is hunting her down. Link is a man that has ruined his life through alcohol and drugs, but he’s no longer in jail, and living in a quiet exile.  When his daughter Lydia (Erin Moriarty) shows up, he instantly cares about what kind of person she has become, but prefers to keep her safe first, and ask her questions about her personal choices later.  The two of them spend the film on the run as Link must use connections from his past life and his skills as an ex-criminal to keep him and his daughter alive.

It’s a very straight-forward premise and conducts itself as such, but it does all of it in an entertaining enough way to warrant a look.  It helps that it’s elevated by a towering performance by Gibson, who made me forget his past mistakes (and past performances).  His Link has all of the rage, pathos, and comedic sensibilities, that makes Gibson a compelling performer.  I enjoyed the relationship with his daughter as much as his moments of violent outbursts in the film.  Moriarty, as Lydia, is hit and miss; the character is a well written one, but the performance, at times, isn’t up to snuff.  Though whenever Moriarty is on-screen with Gibson, she supplies a strong bubbly counter to his grizzled annoyance.

Jean-Francios Richet, the film’s director, has a decent enough eye to let the grittiness of his story not drag down the film’s sun-drenched pallet. Things may play out predictably, but when it was all said and done, the performance by Gibson carries a story that, in the hands of a lesser actor, would flounder.  I hope people see this film, and Gibson gets more work as an actor, because he’s better than most.

Grade: B