Feature
Review | Blood Work
Written by: Brian
Orndorf
Rated: 6/10
I must hand it to Clint Eastwood. As most directors age these days,
their films get more infantile. Not Eastwood. His characters and
pictures seem to be maturing with the filmmaker, and his latest and 23rd
film, “Blood Work,” is an acceptable, though deeply clunky,
example of an adult thriller made by adults for adult audiences. A
refreshing change of pace, especially when it opens on the same
weekend as the juvenile “XXX.”
Aging FBI profiler Terry McCaleb (Clint Eastwood) has come across a
serial killer who wants to play with the agent for kicks. When Terry
stumbles on the killer by accident, a foot chase instigates a heart
attack and the killer gets away clean. Two years later, Terry has
found a heart donor, and is trying to rebuild his life under the stern
guidance of his cardiologist (Angelica Houston), and his slacker
houseboat neighbor, Buddy (Jeff Daniels). Out of the blue comes
Graciella (Wanda De Jesus, “Ghosts Of Mars“), a sister of a recent
murder victim, who wants Terry’s help to find the killer who got
away. The reason? Terry’s new heart came from Graciella’s sister,
and she wants vengeance. Terry willingly takes the case, but soon
finds that this new rash of murders might have a connection to a
killer that was believed to have disappeared.
There is nothing in “Blood Work” that you couldn’t get from
the recent rash of cop-themed television that seems to be everywhere
you turn a dial. But those shows don’t have Eastwood, and that’s
the main appeal of a film like “Blood Work.” It isn’t classic
Eastwood, but more tepid Eastwood, as evidence in recent films such as
“True Crime” and the delightful “Space Cowboys.” As he’s
aging, Eastwood’s passion for raging entertainment is eroding, and
“Blood Work” is his most disjointed film in over a decade. I
wouldn’t suggest that Eastwood is losing his touch, but that maybe
he’s just not that interested in a touch anymore. His films have
always been breezy, languid affairs, simply because Eastwood the
filmmaker is a minimalist, and I adore that. But “Blood Work”
suffers only when Eastwood is forced to keep things moving, and
that’s always been the filmmaker’s weakness.
While “Blood Work” is a serviceable and often engrossing
mystery/thriller, when it comes time to tie the loose ends together,
Eastwood has difficulty. There is a jarring cut between the second and
third acts that doesn’t help the film’s story at all. Being the
subtle, audience-trusting filmmaker that he is, Eastwood doesn’t
ground the story thoroughly enough, so when the killer is finally
revealed, I was confused more than placated. I can’t help but feel
precious scenes are on the cutting room floor, as this transition to
the climax is just too disruptive to come out of the laptop of writer
Brian Hegeland (“L.A. Confidential,” working here from the novel
by Michael Connelly). Equally as harsh is a last minute romance
between Terry and Graciella, which suffers from too little set up as
well.
Still, there is plenty to be excited about with “Blood Work,”
mainly because it’s always a treat to see Eastwood acting again.
Looking haggard, and refreshingly playing his age, Eastwood is a
soothing presence on-screen. With a little careful writing, “Blood
Work” could’ve easily been the last installment of Eastwood’s
landmark “Dirty Harry” franchise, as it deals with a hotshot,
elder cop overtaken by his own mortality. As much as I enjoyed
Eastwood’s performance, and those from Wanda De Jesus and a
particularity goofy Jeff Daniels, there is a missed opportunity here
that could have made the lukewarm “Blood Work” into something
stellar.
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