Blood and Money – Allagash (2020)

Directed by: John Barr | 89 minutes | thriller | Actors: Tom Berenger, Kristen Hager, Paul Ben-Victor, Jimmy LeBlanc, Mark Sivertsen, Brian Duffy, Ace Gibson, Ryan Homchick, Caroline Portu, Erica McDermott, Bates Wilder, Lisa Lynch, Melissa McMeekin, Gary Tanguay, David J. Curtis

Jim Reed, a retired veteran in the fall of his life living a roaming life in his motor home, is hunting in the backwoods of Allagash, a hamlet in the rugged and sparsely populated parts of Northern Maine, in the middle of winter. He discovers a dead woman carrying a duffel bag containing a large sum of money. Things spiral out of control when Jim encounters a group of criminals looking for the loot from their casino heist. As they rush each other over the course of a few days, the stark and frigid landscape forms a test that tests the willpower and survival instinct of those involved. Who is the hunter and who is the prey?

This film initially listened (and still on the film database IMDb) to the name ‘Allagash’, but has been renamed ‘Blood and Money’ for marketing reasons, a title that has a nicer mouth and suggests more action and spectacle. The film is the directorial debut of John Barr, originally a ‘gaffer’ (someone who deals with the electricity on the set), but now also a director.

The storyline immediately evokes memories of ‘A Simple Plan’ (which is also set against a snowy winter backdrop) and ‘No Country for Old Men’. These films also revolve around a large money find that ultimately has far-reaching and nasty consequences for the ‘lucky’ finders. ‘Blood and Money’, however, lacks the depth and highly developed characters of those thematically related films. The film mainly unfolds as a classic shootout thriller between a bunch of ruthless criminals and a decaying, but military-trained race survivor.

There isn’t much dialogue, so ‘Blood and Money’ mainly relies on the atmospheric images. They show a landscape that is as beautiful as it is irreconcilable. The film is mainly supported by Tom Berenger, who, even at the age of 71, is still convincing as a hardened war veteran who bravely defends himself against the harsh elements and the much younger criminals who are after him. The wide landscape shots contrast beautifully with the intimate close-ups of Berenger’s drawn face. The crooks are unfortunately made of cardboard and commit an impressive series of stupidities. The morbid, sometimes tragicomic undertone of the film is sometimes reminiscent of the style of the Coen brothers and exudes a kind of karmic futility: the lives of most individuals are an exhausting struggle that is completely meaningless in the larger cosmic.

‘Blood and Money’ is not a bad movie, but with a somewhat thicker plot and better developed side characters could have been a really good film. Now it is indeed, but you still get the feeling that there had been more.