This wasn’t actually a movie I would have chosen to see on my own, but I occasionally choose to go to the secret showings at Cineworld…because sometimes I like to be surprised by a film that’s showing. I was really happy when I saw one secret showing and it turned out to be Dungeons and Dragons! (I did guess that, but only because I was asked what movie I thought would be showing. I 100% didn’t think it would actually be that movie).
Anyway…I wasn’t especially taken with the movie. I think part of it was due to not being able to connect emotionally with the main character, Sandra, who was accused of killing her husband. Most of the movie involved the court case where evidence was presented and unfolded to reveal secrets and lies to the jury who were to decide if she was innocent or not. Unfortunately, while that could have been done really well, this movie just…did not.
There was no real mystery in the movie…or perhaps I should say, I didn’t care about the mystery. I didn’t care about finding out if Sandra had killed her husband or not. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly why, but there’s one point where she’s getting food from the fridge and she says, ‘I’m so tired of crying!’ and…she doesn’t cry. She’s never shown to cry, even when she complains that she’s tired of doing so.
I kind of wish that this movie had stuck to the French language, rather than constantly slipping into English, because I think that ruined the effects of the movie. I’m fine with subtitles, but it wasn’t really necessary to keep having the English language forced into the movie. It might have contributed to my lack of connection to Sandra, as it was made clear that she didn’t enjoy the French language and made little attempt to speak it even when she was in the country.
I felt like the best character in this movie was Daniel. I wasn’t sure if he was saying things because he was trying to save the parent he had left, or if he really believed them…and that ambiguity was one thing I did feel that the movie got right.
I think this movie did far too much telling rather than showing, particularly when it came to insisting that Sandra was bisexual, or that she had affairs. There was actually nothing in this movie to show that she was bisexual, or that she’d had affairs…and I actually rolled my eyes when she said, ‘I didn’t have an affair, because I told him exactly what I’d done!’, because…for someone who was supposed to be intelligent (as a writer), that was just so stupid.
I don’t think this is a movie I would recommend watching. I felt that the main character just didn’t carry the plot of the movie…which is my own opinion, of course. She was just really difficult to empathise with, which is important for a main character of a movie. But if you’ve seen the film and have your own opinions, I’d love to hear those!
Ink of Blood 