Blood Work Movie Review:


There is just something about Clint Eastwood that makes him special to the world of cinema. Whether it is his gritty formulaic acting or his simple choices in direction. And it is also something about just seeing him get that rage in his eye. He is a legend to the world of cinema.

In his new film, Blood Work, Eastwood does his hard core fans a favor by creating another twisted adult detective film. There are a lot of holes in Blood Work, but the choices made by Eastwood as a director still brings out the elements of the hard boiled detective film genre.

The film opens with FBI profiler Terry McCaleb (Eastwood) chasing a serial killer, but then falling to the earth because of a heart attack. The story flashes forward two years later, where Terry is retired, has a new heart, and is living on a boast next to his neighbor, Buddy (Daniels). One day, Graciella Rivers (De Jesus) approaches Terry and tells him that she wants the retired profiler to find the man who brutally murdered her sister. Terry immediately rejects, but then is pulled into the case by learning that his new heart was the murder sister's heart. He now feels that it is something he must do. After being questioned by his old police buddies and yelled at by his doctor (Huston) to stay away from the case, Terry begins putting together pieces. As he gets closer and closer to finding the killer, he grows closer and closer to Graciella as well. The story takes an unexpected twist that is tied in heavily to the film's title.

Blood Work is based on the best selling novel by Michael Connelly and was scripted by Academy Award winning screenwriter Brian Helgeland (L.A. Confidential, 1997). The script has holes left and right that aren't filled. I do not want to give any examples, because they could serve as spoilers. However, it is Eastwood's craft of presenting the detective genre as director that makes this film click and overshadows the problems with in the script. Though his pacing is slow, Eastwood's character of McCaleb accomplishes each task that is called upon by the hard-boiled detective genre. I studied this genre of the cinema last spring in film literature class. The prime example of an old school hard-boiled detective genre is Jack Gitties in Roman Polanski's Chinatown (1974). The accomplishment of this genre is what I found rewarding in Blood Work. Eastwood doesn't dazzle the audience; he gives them a character-driven story that goes to the roots of its genre.

Eastwood is also an actor-director that is getting up there in age and he doesn't try to hide it. Just like with his last film, Space Cowboys (2000), he states that he is old through dialogue, but shows he still got it as a performer. His performance as Terry McCaleb is his best work since his role in Unforgiven (1992). The rest of the cast really just hither under Eastwood's lead and enjoy the ride. I found Wanda De Jesus to be over the top at moments as the tormented Graciella Rivers. Jeff Daniels provides some humor to the film as Terry's neighbor and sidekick, Buddy.

Blood Work is a detective story for adult audiences and true fans of Eastwood's work. Like I said, there are noticeable problems in the film, but seeing a legend like Clint Eastwood executing a detective genre is worth seeing.

Report Card Grade: B-

Joseph Tucker

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