THE STORY – In a frontier landscape at the beginning of the 20th century, gunmen descend on a remote farmhouse, determined to exact revenge. Their target, a doctor — alone with his son and daughter — tries desperately to protect his children. Inevitably, bullets fly. Years later, Nina (Hayek Pinault) engages Tito (Demián Bichir), a lottery seller, in what seems like casual conversation at his kiosk. But the encounter is anything but chance. It soon dawns on him. “I know who you are,” Tito says, “and I know why you’ve come.“ As their conversation continues, it becomes clear that revenge casts a long shadow, and takes many forms.
THE CAST – Salma Hayek Pinault, Demián Bichir & Juan Minujin
THE TEAM – Angelina Jolie (Director/Writer) & Alessandro Baricco (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 91 Minutes
Angelina Jolie’s directorial works have mainly focused on one topic: War. “In the Land of Blood and Honey” depicts a love story set during the war in Bosnia; “First They Killed My Father” follows a child soldier in Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge regime; and “Unbroken” follows an American soldier captured by the Japanese during WWII. Each of these films takes place during the war in which their stories are set. Jolie’s latest film, “Without Blood,” does the opposite, taking place years after the war. The conflict may be over, but it still goes on internally for its characters. Adapting Alessandro Baricco’s novel of the same name, Jolie creates a parable about the impacts of war without specifying time and place like in the novel, creating a moving work that universally captures the effects of violence and tragedy on the mind, body, and soul.
The first thing you’ll immediately notice about “Without Blood” is how beautifully shot it is. Following a chase on horseback, its very opening frames may just be one of the most breathtaking shots to come out of a film premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival. The camera frames and follows a scene of men on horseback so perfectly, and it is set against the backdrop of a gorgeous gold landscape, reminding the audience of all the beauty covered in bloodshed. This reminder, thanks to its cinematography and flashbacks, lingers, especially in scenes where the camera’s lens is hit by the sun.
“Without Blood” introduces the audience to a father and his two children, seemingly living a peaceful, isolated life, believing that the war they just lived through is over. But one day, they are visited by three armed men seeking revenge against the father, a doctor, for crimes they believe he committed. Hiding his daughter under the floorboards, the blood of her family will inevitably drip onto her from the soaked floor, following a violent confrontation that is difficult to watch but captured in a way that makes it impossible to take your eyes off the screen.
The film’s captivating quality remains until its very end, especially as the film flashes forward many years later and re-introduces us to two characters who have lived many lives since that tragic day. The young girl under the floorboards is now middle-aged. As Salma Hayek Pinault enters, you immediately begin to wonder what’s going on in her character, Nina’s, mind. She approaches a man (Demián Bichir) at a lottery kiosk. At first, this encounter seems to be purely innocent flirtation; however, their meeting is no coincidence. They know who each other is, and they’ve both been waiting for this moment. Nina is here for revenge against the last man alive who attacked her family all those years ago. The man, Tito, is to ask for forgiveness from the child whose innocence and family he stole.
For the remainder of the film, they join each other at a table that requires incredibly difficult conversation and understanding. Jolie requires the same from her audience: to walk away from this film ready to engage more deeply with those around us, especially when those conversations touch on immense pain. The war may have ended years ago, but Nina and Tito’s pain has lasted much longer. In intimate close-ups of the pair, with flashbacks interspersed throughout, both reflect on that day and bring differing perspectives. Nina asks for answers and tells Tito her story, speaking of the father she knew, while Tito speaks of the man he thought her father was. Through their exchange of a story of unthinkable tragedy and unimaginable loss, the lines of good and evil become more blurred as both are were in the crosshairs of war and its effects.
“Without Blood” is a moving and contemplative work anchored by two commanding performances. The film may be dialogue-heavy, but you hook onto every word this pair exchanges. Through their emotive expressions, you can feel that these characters are going through an internal battle that has been impossible to shake. Hayek Pinault impresses, especially because she tells her character’s story with poise and control, no matter how traumatic. When the scene isn’t in flashback, Angelo Bonanni’s sound design evokes memories; the lighting of a candle sounds like the fire that engulfed Nina’s home. Rutger Hoedemaekers’s score effectively adds more depth to the piece by emphasizing the emotions the characters are going through at various points in the telling of their perspective.
Jolie’s “Without Blood“ is a piece of cinema that captivates from beginning to end, completely engulfing the audience in a story that, at times, is difficult to witness but one that feels rewarding in the end. Without specifying a specific war or the time and place, the film universally explores a neglected topic, creating a story much more profound and thought-provoking.
