Film review: Mel Gibson finds role he slides into perfectly in Blood Father

Erin Moriarty and Mel Gibson in Blood Father. Courtesy Front Row Filmed Entertainment

Blood Father

Director: Jean Francois Richet

Starring: Mel Gibson, Erin Moriarty, William H Macy

Three and a half stars

It has been a rough 10 years or so for one-time Hollywood darling Mel Gibson.

Once acclaimed for his roles in smash hit movies including Mad Max and Lethal Weapon franchises, and as the director who made The Passion of the Christ and the Oscar-winning Braveheart, the Australian-American actor-director is now known for his battle with alcohol and his drink-fuelled rants targeting minorities, and religious and ethnic groups.

His former partner Oksana Grigorieva, meanwhile, took out a restraining order against him in 2010 following a recorded abusive phone call and allegations of domestic violence.

The combined effect is that he has been largely ostracised by much of the Hollywood elite for the past decade. Since directing Apocalypto in 2006, his only two lead roles were in 2010's Edge of Darkness and the 2011 flop The Beaver. Although there has been talk of new projects since, nothing has come to fruition, until now. The team behind Blood Father seem to have hit on a novel way of reigniting Gibson's career: if an actor has gained a reputation as a cantankerous, drink-addicted, obnoxious, middle-aged man, why not cast him as a cantankerous, drink-addicted, obnoxious, middle-aged man? It's a role he slides into perfectly.

Gibson plays John Link, a recovering alcoholic ex-con, living in a trailer park at the fringes of society, with only one real friend, Kirby (William H Macy), his AA mentor.

Then Link’s estranged daughter, Lydia (Erin Moriarty), reappears unexpectedly, having seriously annoyed a Mexican drug cartel, and it is no surprise that his parole violations start to mount as the pair take to the road seeking brutal revenge on her tormentors.

It’s classic b-movie fare – tonally, aesthetically and narratively – complete with the bikers, shotguns, tattoos, classic cars and even Nazis that populated the classic late 1960s and 1970s grindhouse movies the film more than nods towards.

It's not polished, it's not pretty – and the script could have been written in 10 minutes during the intermission of a retro screening of Vanishing Point – but fans of exploitation/revenge movies will love it as a fast-paced, ultraviolent homage to a much-maligned genre. Gibson's performance, too, is a reminder of how effectively he can dominate the screen, though as noted, how much acting was required for this particular role is open to debate.

The exchanges between Link and his daughter are surprisingly witty for such pulp fare, and Macy is, as ever, a pleasure to watch, even in a relatively minor role.

Will this film resurrect Gibson’s career? Probably not. Will it leave you breathless and wondering why you haven’t watched your favourite Russ Meyer classics for so long? Absolutely.