Critique of “Blood Quantum” (2020): A Movie Review

In Jeff Barnaby’s gritty apocalyptic thriller , Blood Quantum, a zombie outbreak has ravaged the globe. Except for the isolated Mi’kmaq Reservation, where the inhabitants seem immune to the virus. Native Americans are being flooded by tourists and townies alike, who flock to their lands in search of a cure and refuge. They must use their individuality and pride to protect themselves and outsiders from the virus. Since I am always down for a good old-fashioned zombie film, I expect to see the same thing I have seen before. In some films, zombies stumble, while in others, they run. In some movies, zombies still have some level of cognition in their brains. But in others, it’s only gray matter. Sometimes, the environment is unusual. It’s set on a Native Canadian Reservation where everyone is familiar with each other and the pace of life is a bit slower. The reserve has an eccentric sheriff (Michael Greyeyes from the “True Detective” series of TV), his ex-wife (Elle Maija Tailfeathers from “The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open”) a wild child son (Forrest Goodluck ” The revenant“) and his wilder stepbrother (” Drunktown’s Finest“) as well as a wise old man (Stonehors This situation does appear cliched at first, even if you ignore the recent proliferation of zombie films. It’s rare that a horror film tells its story from a different perspective than the one of White People. It’s rare to find horror films featuring people of color, and even less that focus on indigenous cultures. It’s easy for a movie to rely on a unique setting or perspective as the only thing that makes it interesting. Blood Quantum however, has a cast of appealing characters and plenty visceral violence. A dead dog begins to reanimate after a fish, gutted and caught in a lake nearby, starts flopping about. The virus is only a matter time before it reaches humans. A man, who shares a cell with his son and stepbrother, becomes infected. As people are bitten, and many of them die horribly, madness follows. Then, the film jumps several months. The peaceful days of the picturesque Quebec village are gone, replaced with a desolate land, a fortress and armed guards. There is also a sense of paranoia. The question is: If the Natives are immune to the virus do they have a duty to shelter the less fortunate? Do they owe themselves the duty to help? . . well, themselves? The community is sparked into war by this dilemma, as Gordon (the aggressive Lysol) rails against the possibility of outsiders being infected. Supplies, at least of bullets and gasoline, are running out. It’s time to make a decision. Did I mention violence? Blood Quantum does not disappoint. The amount of blood and guts in the movie is enough to satisfy most fans. The pacing was a bit off. The focus of the film is often on the relationship and conflicts between the characters, and not on their defense against zombie hordes. The actors were required to perform a lot of heavy drama in a number of scenes, which was not always successful. Tailfeathers, Goodluck, and the rest of the cast are all excellent, with their characters displaying empathy and dignity. However, some other performances seemed a bit one-dimensional. To be fair, the characters may have been that way from the start. There are actors who are better suited to action than melodrama. Blood Quantum is still a very good zombie film, even if it’s a little uneven at times. It is an enjoyable roller coaster ride when it gets going, and it can be a bit of traffic jam when fighting stops and people are forced to talk.