Institute History
Description
Blue Ruin premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where it screened in the Directors’ Fortnight and went on to win the FIPRESCI International Critics Prize. Filmmaker Jeremy Saulnier attended the 2013 Sundance Film Festival as the cinematographer for Matthew Porterfield’s I Used to Be Darker, which screened in the NEXT program.
A peaceful vagrant finds his quiet life upended by dreadful news and sets off for his childhood home to carry out an act of vengeance. Since he is only an amateur assassin, he winds up in a brutal fight to protect his estranged family.
With his second feature film, writer/director Jeremy Saulnier creates a classic American revenge story, crackling with sudden violence and black humor. The film maintains an impressive edge-of-your-seat pace through the script’s surprising twists and turns and the efficient work of editor Julia Bloch. Beyond the thrills, Saulnier grounds the film’s humanity in the captivating eyes of lead actor Macon Blair, which never lose the burning intensity of righteous duty and overpowering fear.