Blue Ruin

Directed by Jeremy Saulnier
Starring Macon Blair, Devin Ratray, Amy Hargreaves, Kevin Kolack, Eve Plumb and David W. Thompson
In UK Cinemas May 2nd, 2014

by Joanna Orland

Blue Ruin is a classic and brutal story of revenge.  While the theme of revenge is at its core, Jeremy Saulnier’s thriller is not an over-the-top action piece like such revenge films as Taken, The Raid, Death Wish or Kill Bill.  Rather than huge action sequences, Saulnier uses tension building as the main narrative hook in this gripping thriller.  There is very little dialogue, very little exposition, but very little of it needed.  The physicality of lead actor Macon Blair alongside the slowed detailed pace, sound design and score, tells the story more empathetically than words or action ever could.

Dwight Evans is an outsider, living life on the fringes of society.  A turn of events leads him to return to his childhood home to carry out an act of vengeance.  As an amateur assassin who doesn’t even enjoy the act of killing, this revenge thriller is portrayed in a realistic fashion, on a small budget, with an indie mindset.

If the idea of an indie revenge thriller isn’t for you, well I think you need to see this film just to be proven wrong.  As one of the most tense films I’ve seen in recent cinema, one that uses little dialogue and exposition to build tension and tell a story, this is a film that needs to be added to all film buffs’ must-see lists.