Sundance 2022: Blood Review

This will be one of many reviews during this year’s Sundance Film Festival, to keep up with our latest coverage, click here.

Bradley Rust Gray’s Blood is a drama about having a second chance at love and life. The protagonist, Chloe (Juri), visits Japan after losing her husband. As she grapples with her loss and starts a new life in Japan, she needs help rebuilding and falling in love once again. The film is a tale about overcoming grief and learning to move on to lead a fruitful love-filled life.

While Blood is not directly a character study, it has a contemplative tone surrounding the current predicament of Chloe. Grappling with the loss of your loved ones, learning to love again, exploring new perspectives of looking at life are essential themes of the film, communicated through Chloe’s different experiences in Japan. All the supporting characters play a crucial role in bringing these experiences to life. The combination of Chloe’s memories and her new experiences creates a pathway for us to understand how she grows out of her grief and starts a new chapter of her life.

While all the bittersweet moments, grounded realities, and conversations keep us company throughout the film, the film lacks a clear and distinctive goal. It’s hard to know what Blood wants audiences to feel. The scenes feel like a haphazard, meandering collection of moments from Chloe’s life with no end goal in sight. The screenplay does not do justice to the protagonist’s inner need. Even if the film expects the audience to piece the emotional journey together on their own, the less-than-meaty characters make it difficult to follow with interest. Had it not been so random and meandering, the dramatic elements would undoubtedly have had a lot more impact.

The film lacks a hook to latch on. A clear elucidation of where the film is headed or the central premise comes too late. The film cannot redeem audience interest in the subject matter. This makes the already overlong running time more problematic. Also, the film does not capitalize on its premise. From a character study point of view, portraying rebirth after a grave loss could carry a lot of gravitas, but unfortunately, this potential remains untapped. But, the film plays out in a quiet-conventional drama trope. Therefore its unique selling point is lost.

Nonetheless, credit goes to the cast for creating an evocative film. The performances shine above and beyond the weak script. especially Juri who gives an admirable performance as Chloe. Takashi Ueno as Toshi also gives a worthy lead performance, complementing Juri’s work and the character arcs. Another highlight of the film is the cultural depiction of Japan. Japan is not just a location in the film but an integral aspect of things that transpire. It is almost like a character in itself. Last but not least, kudos to the score as well. While it is minimal, it adds value by bringing out the characters’ emotions and state of mind.

In the end, what could have been an opportunity to present a harrowing realistic depiction of starting a new life is lost with Blood. While there are definite merits of the film, it could have been much more impactful with a focused, crisp goal and some interesting character work.

still courtesy of Mutressa Movies

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