Blue Ruin

BLUE RUIN is a fine revenge thriller of the type that you thought America couldn't make anymore. These low-fi films are the opposite of the bloated and glossy Hollywood-style blockbuster and all the better for it. The film I can most liken it to is THE ROVER, a similar low-key Aussie story about the path of revenge and the unusual outcomes that one must face when embarking down it.

To say too much about the plot of BLUE RUIN would be to spoil it, so I won't. What I will say is that this is a slow paced and spare film that keeps you gripped throughout, including in the moments where not much happens. It has a drive and consistency that makes it work. The suspense keeps you hooked to the ensuing events and the violence, when it comes, is brief but extremely hard-hitting. A squad of naturalistic performances enhance a film in which realism is key, and the result is one of the freshest American thrillers to be made in years.

This movie 'Blue Ruin' has received so much acclaim despite it lacking a star cast or any major publicity that I had to find out why. However once you have seen this film, it's easy to understand how this movie has captured the attention of so many people. Revenge thrillers are about a strong lead character who embarks on an impeccable road of destruction which is heroic and clinical, this is what we have come to expect but here we have something different. This movie follows a down and outer who returns home once he hears the murderer of his parents has been released. His aim is to take revenge which is something he has no preparation for and this leads to a series of tragic events. The film is riveting and compelling, with a real feel of the main character as he goes deeper and deeper into a path of self-destruction. This film is so different, you need to be patient with it and empathise with the lead character who makes some difficult decisions and is forced to bear the consequences.

When asked about the title of the movie, just after the screening at the AFI Silver on Saturday, the writer/director/cinematographer answered that the title is a synonym for debacle, and sure enough, it was there when I looked it up.

That about sums up what happens when a hapless grieving amateur seeks vengeance, a debacle.

The writer director and the star of the film have been at this movie making thing since they were both 8 years old. It is just great to see they broke through. You should know that the movie is 8 out of 10 and climbing on the indie list on Itunes. While you can see this on VOD, it is best seen on the big screen, and it is well worth the trip.

A very tense and taught thriller that puts you along side Dwight as events unfold. I am so accustomed to the actions of characters in your typical Hollywood revenge thrillers that in my mind I was intensely screaming at Dwight's actions when IT, hit the fan. Then the realization came, this is not a film where the lead character becomes a fuel raged unstoppable hero suddenly becoming an expert on how to kill.

The quietness is very intense in this film and you focus everything on the characters. That is how good the directing and the script are, the film is not afraid of the silence. You become aware of how fast your heart is beating in the silence. The directing by Jeremy Saulnier was handled expertly and was feast for the eyes. Beautiful cinematography and his utilization of natural lighting made it easy to get lost in the film. There are scenes that will make you squirm and there are humorous tension releasing moments, that is how tight the script is you are relived that you have those moments. Everyone in this cast is on point, I did not feel one off key from any of actors. The gamut of emotions that run through Dwight's ( Macon Blair) eyes alone is worth the price of admission. There are some great actor finds and also some actor re-found here. Eve Plum as an unredeemable character in the film. Yes, that Eve Plum. Applauds to the whole cast. The score from the Blair Bros is haunting and never over powers a scene. It might sound like I am gushing over this film, but if you can talk and think about a film long after the lights come up then gush I must.

If you find this film near you, do yourself a favor and see it and be kind to your friends and bring them along. You are guaranteed a long conversation over drinks afterward. This is not your typical revenge film, yes it bleeds, but it also bleeds emotions.

One of the strongest achievements in recent years in independent cinema is "Blue Ruin". It's brilliantly written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier who just a few years ago was making his own amateur monster movies with his friends, some of whom were involved in this inspired revenge thriller that is the antithesis of the usual commercial revenge thriller.

Shot on a less-than-shoestring budget, it stars Macon Blair (best friend of Saulnier since childhood) as Dwight, an apparent homeless drifter housing a grudge against a convict about to be released from prison whom he feels had murdered his parents. Dwight is obviously unaccustomed to violence (he's never fired a gun) and, as in the best of the Noir classics, makes one bad decision that plunges him way over his head into a harrowing murder plot that'll keep viewers on the edge of their seats.

What makes this film so unique is how its suspense comes from slow, quiet inexorable tension punctuated with a few acts of violence that seem authentic, bearing none of the sensationalism or tired clichés one gets in garbage like "Taken" and its tiresome ilk. The triumph of "Blue Ruin" is even greater when one realizes that its director used his own family house and his family car making it, and managed such a height of verisimilitude by using cinema in its purest form. Here an 'amateur' outdoes the Hollywood pros in making a superb virtually perfect thriller that won't easily be forgotten.