Blood River (2009)
Review by Jude Felton
I couldn’t tell you the exact date that I first saw the trailer for Blood River, I’m sorry but I don’t store that kind of information in the dark recesses of my mind, but it must have been sometime in 2008. I do, however, remember thinking to myself that this was a movie that I had to see. Sure there are plenty of good trailers for crappy films out there, far too many in fact, yet this one stuck in my mind. So, I have been waiting ever since for this movie to get a release and, fingers crossed, all going well it should see the light of day in 2010.
I had purchased director Adam Mason’s 2006 movie Broken (review), in which he co-directed with Simon Boyes who also co-writes Blood River, some time back without really knowing much about it. As it turned out it was a film that impressed me. Some lumped it in with the so-called, and I despise using this term, “torture porn” sub-genre that was apparently in its prime at that time. For me, though, I felt it was something deeper than that. Sure, it had its shocks and gory sequences but there was more going on there than it would first seem. That’s how I felt about it anyway. Regardless, having watched and enjoyed Broken as well as a previous short movie entitled Prey, I was eager to see how Blood River turned out.
The plot at the very core of Blood River is deceptively simple, and not a million miles removed from many other horror films, yet I assure you things aren’t always quite what they seem. A newly-wed couple, Summer and Clark, are driving cross country to visit Summer’s parents to break the news to them that she is expecting the couple’s first child. Along the way they pass a hitchhiker. For once though, in a movie, the couple do not stop to pick him up. Instead they carry on along their way until they make an overnight stop at a motel.
The following day they head off once again on their journey, only it doesn’t go as smoothly as they would like. A blown tire and some cuts and bruises later they find themselves stranded in the middle of the desert. If they stay there they will surely die due to the intense desert heat, so they try to make it to a town they see marked on the map. It is at this town that they once again come into contact with Joseph, hitchhiker they passed early. He seems to be a friendly enough fellow, albeit a slightly strange one, and seems to be willing to try and help Summer and Clark.
Blood River is not a straightforward run-of-the-mill kind of horror movie, it’s definitely what you would call a slow-burner, one that requires the viewer to pay attention to what is going on and even benefits from repeated viewing. There is plenty of dialogue in this movie, especially from Andrew Howard who is quite excellent as Joseph, and it is in no hurry to get anywhere quickly. The plot slowly draws you in and never goes in quite the direction you expect it to. What is not said or shown is just as important here as what is. Yes, it is one of those movies that requires you to actually think and to a degree come up with your own conclusions. The answers aren’t just thrown out there for easy consumption.
This is a movie of contrasts, from the stunningly beautiful cinematography to the cruel events that unfold. The acting from the small cast is spot on thanks to a script that allows each of the three main characters to grow as the movie travels along its journey. The pacing may not be to some folks liking as, like I mentioned before, this is a slow-burning beast of a movie. However, those with patience should find that it is all worth it. I certainly thought it was. Blood River was one of those rare occasions in the movies where I found it truly was worth the wait.
Watch the trailer:
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