Blood - film review

A routine, fashionably grimy police thriller, undone by crucial miscasting
Blood, film
© Charlie Gray 2012, All Rights Reserved.
31 May 2013

A routine, fashionably grimy police thriller, undone by crucial miscasting. Paul Bettany is a committed, intense actor who, after the release of A Beautiful Mind, seemed on the verge of superstardom. Despite — or maybe because of — this he doesn't fit as Joe, a seaside copper whose perfect life falls apart when he, along with his put-upon brother (Stephen Graham), take on the case of a murdered 12-year-old. It’s not just Bettany’s blokey accent that feels off, it’s his physical presence — he’s a too-beautiful blot on the landscape. Every time he opens his mouth, or looms over the homely Graham, you forget about the moral dilemmas being posed and find yourself thinking about the state of the 41-year-old’s (suddenly not so brilliant) career.

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