Review: Red White & Blue
It’d probably be a pretty safe bet to assume that at some point in your life, you’ve befriended a person whose nomadic, uninhibited, or slackerish ways kept them jobless, homeless (does living in your car count?), or with one hand permanently thrust into the fire. You might even be that person — which is the narrative viewpoint assumed by Simon Rumley’s Red White & Blue, in which we’re immediately plunged into Erica’s world. The film’s young protagonist (Amanda Fuller) resplendent in white cowboy boots and too-tight everything else has a voracious sexual appetite, but it’s undeniably a reckless pursuit. She spends her nights shrouding her acned skin and fragile ego in the bowels of Austin’s seediest bars hunting for her next disposable bedfellow. Garish flirtations make her the ultimate fuck-toy target amongst the city’s other establishments.
We get a peek at another side of Erica, however, while she’s holed away in a halfway house sweeping floors to pay the rent like some kind of broken-down Cinderella and making friends with a young boy in the park. Nate (Noah Taylor) sees it too. Perhaps it’s her tousled ragamuffin looks, awkward smile, or the wounded animal peering back from behind those eyes — Nate understands and reaches out to help, despite her initial protests. There’s something equally damaged about the gaunt, bearded man — and his yarn about being an Iraq War veteran-turned-CIA prospect definitely seems dubious — but the affection he develops for Erica is genuinely touching.
Things take another turn when we meet Franki (Marc Senter) — a (wannabe) big, swinging dick whose prepackaged hipster sleaziness reeks of desperation. Franki wants to go on tour with his band, but circumstances have sabotaged his wanderlust. He’s been camping out in a hospital by his ailing mother’s bedside — that is, when he’s not battling it out with his cheating girlfriend. Eventually, some disturbing news is revealed that will affect the interconnected lives of everyone in Rumley’s triply-told tale, which spirals violently out of control.
This isn’t to say that Red White & Blue hammers you over the head with its bloodshed and bluntness. Rumley cuts away from most of the unpleasantness before things become unbearably trite. A few of the later scenes inch close to the edge, but strong and moving performances from Fuller and Taylor are instrumental in redeeming things. The real tension is derived from the story’s transitions, propelled by Richard Chester’s piano-driven score. The first half of the movie almost reads like a gritty indie drama à la Larry Clark. These are deeply flawed, but very human characters whose vulnerability and frankness win us over, inspiring us to root for them — particularly Nate. The tonal shift from this empathetic naturalism is brooding and savage — a quiet but fierce storm swirling with a life of its own, which leaves us anxiously squirming in our seats. We know there are going to be consequences for each character’s unruly actions, and the connections we begin to anticipate are unnerving.
There are no true heroes in Red White & Blue – and nor are there any real resolutions. With too much moral ambiguity to neatly compartmentalize, things swell in an excruciating finale, the aftershocks of which continue to be felt as the credits roll. This is a wound that can’t be bandaged and neatly wrapped up. Despite the movie’s unchained emotions and visceral punch, Rumley’s unflinching precision allows us to sink into his storytelling, and quietly interlope amongst his characters – even as darkness slowly envelops and extinguishes the last breath of hope that lit their way.
Red White & Blue is available on DVD
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Comments ( 2 )
Well I have to admit reading this review made me very curious about this movie. “Red, White, and Blue” starts out like a movie we’ve all seen before. The fragile woman setting herself up to be victimzied, and we just know its only a matter time before she meets someone with less then honorable intentions. Then it turns into a near melodrama in the middle. Then it turns into a vicious tale of vengence at its conclusion. Like you pointed out, there really isn’t anyone in the film that we can support. Each character seems like it could be their last day on earth and they really wouldn’t care.
CardinalIron added these pithy words on
Jul 19 11 at
7:25 PM
@CardinalIron: hope you enjoyed the movie…if you can say “enjoy” about this type of film. it definitely gets in your head for a while.
Alison added these pithy words on
Jul 19 11 at
9:32 PM
