Movie Reviews

‘Dark Blood’ Blu-Ray Review – John Leguizamo Delivers One Of His Strongest Performances In Gritty Prison Drama

By Dillon Gonzales
March 8, 2022
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Misael (John Leguizamo, John Wick) is imprisoned, waiting to be sentenced for a revenge crime against the man who killed his child. During his confinement, he must adapt to a new life of abuse. His former life starts to become a distant memory as he is forgotten by his loved ones. Misael, lonely and abandoned, finds affection and tenderness in Sarna, the dog of the prison.

For thoughts on Dark Blood, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic here.

Video Quality

Dark Blood comes to Blu-Ray in a detailed 1080p presentation in its original aspect ratio that is quite strong in high definition. The clarity throughout is outstanding when not trying to replicate the disoriented headspace of the character. In neutral times, there are subtle flourishes in the gnarly prison production design that come through perfectly. Color saturation is great as it shows off the various shades of the dour color palette. This is a film that is often bathed in shadow throughout the runtime. Black levels are deep and do not fall victim to any noticeable digital noise or errors of the sort. Skin tones are natural to the lighting conditions, although a lot of exposed skin is covered in all manner of cuts and bruises as the story goes along. MVD Entertainment has delivered a pleasing high definition presentation here.

Audio Quality

The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track in the original Spanish never fails to accurately replicate this distinct environment. The soundscape on display here is very nuanced from the opening thuds of Misael beating a man to death. This film is not meant to be a full-throttle action film, but there are moments where certain sequences pack a bigger punch that one might expect. There are moments in this track that feel almost assaultive to the audience in their intensity. Dialogue comes through crystal clear with none of the information feeling lost to the music in the film or the sound effects. All of the effects have a nice sense of direction within the mix with noises such as people yelling at each other or water from showers rendering accurately. The movie uses environmental sounds to great effect, and the track retains strong detail even in the more chaotic developments. There are a few moments that make good use of the low end. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided.

Special Features

Behind The Scenes Gallery: A collection of still images from the production of the film are provided here.

Theatrical Trailer: The two-minute trailer is provided here.

Final Thoughts

Dark Blood is a very cold and dark journey into abuse and psychological degradation as flawlessly performed by star John Leguizamo. The path is not always the most pleasant as the character is put through an emotional and physical gauntlet, but it is hard to tear your eyes away from the screen. The abuse shown in the film is nothing completely new to cinema, but the film still offers up some intriguing twists to make the experience feel unique in the end. The film keeps you at an emotional distance which both benefits and detracts from the overall narrative in varying ways. Overall, though, this feature debut has more positives than negatives and is worth giving yourself over to the suffering. MVD Entertainment has released a Blu-Ray featuring a rock solid A/V presentation and a very slight amount of special features. Recommended

Dark Blood is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: MVD Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.