Blue Ruin
Directed by Jeremy Saulnier
- crime
- thriller
The story
When the quiet life of a beach bum is upended by dreadful news, he sets off for his childhood home to carry out an act of vengeance. However, he proves an inept assassin and finds himself in a brutal fight to protect his estranged family.
What it’s like
Sun-bleached Virginia coastline shot in wide, washed-out daylight, then slipping into grimy motel fluorescents and rain-slick back roads at night. Jeremy Saulnier's camera stays close and handheld on its shabby, unlucky drifter, with long quiet stretches of him wandering, eating, and watching before a sudden, jarring burst of violence. The sound design is sparse: wind, tires on gravel, a few punctuating gunshots that land hard and ugly, with an unobtrusive score that mostly leaves room for silence. The vibe is bleak, tense unease with a dry undertow of grim humor. It suits a late night alone or a moody rainy evening rather than casual background viewing. Violence is frequent and brutal: close-quarters shootings, bloody wounds, and graphic deaths, with real consequences and little glamour. Dread is constant, and the mood is cold and heavy. Best for viewers who want a lean, unsentimental revenge story about damaged people and the messy cost of violence, not a gentle or comforting watch.
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