Don't buy the hype. This is a true crapfest! And the guy playing the main character should have his acting license revoked for putting on the worst performance ever.
A beautifully shot B-movie. Writing and acting were sub-par and the plot could have been purchased from a vending machine. Reminds me of The Place Beyond the Pines or something else similarly not-so-good. Still, cinematography and entertainment value make Blue Ruin just barely worth the watch.
Just when you thought the revenge thriller genre had nothing new to say, here comes Blue Ruin, an indie flick by up-and-comer Jeremy Saulnier, made on a shoestring budget, but not looking like it. Gorgeously shot from top to bottom, Blue Ruin in a game of Solitaire Fiasco in which the protagonist seems to do the "smart" "movie" things he must do to carry out his plans, but real world logic has other ideas. Saulnier keeps asking "what would *I* do?" but also "what would then happen if I did?". There lies its freshness, in simultaneously playing within the genre's rules and refusing to play by them. I can't wait to see Saulnier's Green Room now.
It carries this subdued tone throughout with its minimal dialogue and languid pace but when you think back on it you can tell it was carefully made and actually quite masterful. I really enjoyed it. The first thirty minutes stand out as particularly stunning to me in terms of storytelling.
Revenge stories. You thought that they couldn’t do anther one that is both unique and engaging but along comes “Blue Ruin” to prove that it isn’t true. It’s been a pretty great year for film so far and while I didn’t get a chance to see this is a theater, I’m still glad I was able to watch it on DVD. There are some films from three years ago that still haven’t managed a DVD release and thankfully this wasn’t one of them.
The film stars Macon Blair, who is almost a split image of Nathan Lane, as Dwight, a homeless man living out of his car on the shores of Delaware. It’s pretty much inferred off the bat that Dwight is troubled by something as he makes no attempt at panhandling or other form of making money. He doesn’t like people and he likes to keep it that way. A friendly police officer brings Dwight in to inform him that a certain person is getting out of jail and the story slowly begins to unfold from there. I say slowly mostly because I mean just that. Jeremy Saulnier took great care with his breakthrough film, telling the story in a slow burning and delicately paced fashion. We aren’t getting spoon fed details and I had to rewind the film twice to make sure I caught turns in the plot. The film has minimal dialogue as our protagonist Dwight is very soft spoken and a lot of the film takes place with only him.
Saulnier, who started his career as a cinematographer, composes some pretty beautiful shots in a barren Virginian landscape. They way he approached the violence reminded me of another filmmaker, Ben Wheatly, in which what we get isn’t stylized, but rather highly realistic. There were some real shockingly violent moments in this film that just hit harder due to the realism.
Saulnier is a promising filmmaker that should be due some serious budget for his next film. That is the way Hollywood is going now. You have Josh Trank, Gareth Edwards, James Gunn, and Rian Johnson all at the helm of big franchises. It’s only a matter of time before a talent such as Saulnier gets his due and if it is anything like Blue Ruin, I’m going to like it.
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Comments 1 - 12 of 12
monty
Don't buy the hype. This is a true crapfest! And the guy playing the main character should have his acting license revoked for putting on the worst performance ever.tweet_tweet
One of those typically over-hyped movies at the end of which you wonder "Is it the same movie that people are raving about?"devilsadvocado
A beautifully shot B-movie. Writing and acting were sub-par and the plot could have been purchased from a vending machine. Reminds me of The Place Beyond the Pines or something else similarly not-so-good. Still, cinematography and entertainment value make Blue Ruin just barely worth the watch.Marasmusine
Interesting to me as it felt like the protagonist was on the autism spectrum.senorroboto
A unique, visually stunning tale.MoutardedShroom
what a brutal filmkombelpeter
Melancholy and verry effective revenge thriller.Siskoid
Just when you thought the revenge thriller genre had nothing new to say, here comes Blue Ruin, an indie flick by up-and-comer Jeremy Saulnier, made on a shoestring budget, but not looking like it. Gorgeously shot from top to bottom, Blue Ruin in a game of Solitaire Fiasco in which the protagonist seems to do the "smart" "movie" things he must do to carry out his plans, but real world logic has other ideas. Saulnier keeps asking "what would *I* do?" but also "what would then happen if I did?". There lies its freshness, in simultaneously playing within the genre's rules and refusing to play by them. I can't wait to see Saulnier's Green Room now.PrinceJax
It carries this subdued tone throughout with its minimal dialogue and languid pace but when you think back on it you can tell it was carefully made and actually quite masterful. I really enjoyed it. The first thirty minutes stand out as particularly stunning to me in terms of storytelling.Bavis Trickle
Not usually a fan of revenge films but this one was pretty good. Well acted and beautifully shot.The_Comatorium
Revenge stories. You thought that they couldn’t do anther one that is both unique and engaging but along comes “Blue Ruin” to prove that it isn’t true. It’s been a pretty great year for film so far and while I didn’t get a chance to see this is a theater, I’m still glad I was able to watch it on DVD. There are some films from three years ago that still haven’t managed a DVD release and thankfully this wasn’t one of them.The film stars Macon Blair, who is almost a split image of Nathan Lane, as Dwight, a homeless man living out of his car on the shores of Delaware. It’s pretty much inferred off the bat that Dwight is troubled by something as he makes no attempt at panhandling or other form of making money. He doesn’t like people and he likes to keep it that way. A friendly police officer brings Dwight in to inform him that a certain person is getting out of jail and the story slowly begins to unfold from there. I say slowly mostly because I mean just that. Jeremy Saulnier took great care with his breakthrough film, telling the story in a slow burning and delicately paced fashion. We aren’t getting spoon fed details and I had to rewind the film twice to make sure I caught turns in the plot. The film has minimal dialogue as our protagonist Dwight is very soft spoken and a lot of the film takes place with only him.
Saulnier, who started his career as a cinematographer, composes some pretty beautiful shots in a barren Virginian landscape. They way he approached the violence reminded me of another filmmaker, Ben Wheatly, in which what we get isn’t stylized, but rather highly realistic. There were some real shockingly violent moments in this film that just hit harder due to the realism.
Saulnier is a promising filmmaker that should be due some serious budget for his next film. That is the way Hollywood is going now. You have Josh Trank, Gareth Edwards, James Gunn, and Rian Johnson all at the helm of big franchises. It’s only a matter of time before a talent such as Saulnier gets his due and if it is anything like Blue Ruin, I’m going to like it.
4/5
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zkrat
A grisly, dark, violent but quite humorous revenge flick. I think I liked it.