R, 90 min.
Director/Writers: Jeremy
Saulnier
Starring: Macon Blair, Devin
Ratray, Amy Hargreaves, Kevin Kolack, Eve Plumb, David W. Thompson, Brent
Werzner, Stacy Rock, Sidné Anderson
“Blue Ruin” is one of those
independent films that wears the blood, sweat and tears of the filmmakers’
efforts right out on every frame. It’s a dismal story about a family broken by
the choices of the previous generation. If you’ve seen Jeff Nichols’ brilliant
debut “Shotgun Stories”, you have an idea of the subject matter. “Blue Ruin”
isn’t as stylish as Nichols’ film and it’s much more brutal and devastating.
We meet a homeless man
living near a costal boardwalk. Dwight’s routine seems pretty well set as he
culls the beach and garbage bins for what he needs to live. He lives in an
abandoned car that proves to be a bit of an insight into his resourcefulness
after his direction is shifted by some disturbing news. The news is delivered
by a police officer, who obviously knows him and cares more about his well
being than his vagrancy.
Dwight sets off to find a
man who has been released from prison on parole. The details of Dwight’s grudge
with this man are slow to be revealed, but I don’t think it is a spoiler to
reveal that this man is responsible for the death of his parents. Dwight
meticulously stalks this man and his family, and to reveal any more would be
too much of a spoiler. It’s important to reflect, however, that it has been
made clear that Dwight has no history of violence and beyond his grudge with
this man seems very innocent as portrayed by Macon Blair.
Dwight is a very isolated
person due to the tragedy that befell his family. He is not without a support
system. He has just chosen to reject that support. His sister still lives in
the same town, where the man’s family still runs a high profile limousine
business. They may have their hands in some more organized criminal activity,
but this is a crime family like the one depicted in the backwoods movie “Winter’s
Bone”. They place their gun racks prominently on their vehicles instead of
wearing Versace suits.
While there is great tension
in the set up to the story, there is also a great deal of tension delivered in
the fact that this dark business in which he engages is not Dwight’s calling. He’s
not Bruce Willis doling out Hollywood justice. His actions sink just as deep as
those perpetrated against him and he is not as skilled as his opponents. His
success is dependent more on his deep passionate desperation to make them pay
rather than any sort of skill or even luck.
“Blue Ruin” is a remarkable
dark modern noir by writer/director Jeremy Saulnier. His sophomore effort after
the horror flick “Murder Party”, I would expect great things from this director
considering his efficient story telling. This film is proof that the
independent film market is as strong as it ever was, recalling such impressive
indies as “Blood Simple” and “Red Rock West”. This is one of the best films of
the year.
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