February 16, 2024
FILM: BLEEDING LOVE
DIRECTED BY: EMMA WESTENBERG
STARRING: EWAN MCGREGOR, CLARA MCGREGOR
RATING: 3 out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
Ewan McGregor first came to major public consciousness with the 1996 Danny Boyle film Trainspotting. McGregor played a heroine addict who struggles to get off drugs and find a better way into adulthood. In Bleeding Love, the actor now stars with his own daughter Clara who plays an addict herself. It’s an interesting pairing. Clara looks nothing like her father with her dark hair, big eyes, and Carly Simon-esque mouth. Yet, it’s clear that the real life relationship here allows for some genuine family chemistry and inner strife.
The characters aren’t given names, as they are simply known as father and daughter. Father has picked daughter up in San Diego where they begin a journey to Santa Fe. Father is worried about her and wants to introduce her to a painter friend who might help her get back on her feet. Daughter is only 20 and has very recently OD’d. Her parents are no longer married and this road trip also serves to allow for some bonding and a way back to each other after a period of estrangement. Along the way, they meet various characters that help them in times of need, such as when their car breaks down. All the while, old issues surface leading to a pretty powerful and effective climax.
As a road trip movie, this one isn’t that different from many others we’ve seen over the years. Bit by bit though we are introduced to a slow unraveling of father-daughter issues which are pretty significant. Dad, who is now a landscaper, has also struggled with addiction thus establishing an all too familiar connection between the characters. They bond over music in the car (Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis in particular.) Through flashbacks we see that they did once have a pretty solid and playful connection when she was a little girl. His issues created a chasm between them though and now they are forced to build a bridge back to each other.
Ewan McGregor has always been solid in these more mature roles. A few emotional scenes here reminded me of his performance in the 2012 film The Impossible. It’s not a far stretch of a part considering other meatier roles we’ve seen him take on, such as in Moulin Rouge and the recent mini series Halston. The real find is his daughter Clara. She gets a few powerful scenes here, in particular a blowout confrontation with her father. Within this part she masterfully demonstrates distance, enjoyment, and darkness. Clearly she has a wide range as a performer and while she’s appeared in numerous films and television shows in the past seven years I think this could be a role that finally brings her to another level of critical success.
Bleeding Love isn’t the most original road trip film out there but it does offer a nice portrait of a troubled relationship between a father and daughter with actors who know very well to how to bring that familiar struggle to life on screen.
Bleeding Love is available to rent on Amazon Prime.
FILM: BLEEDING LOVE
DIRECTED BY: EMMA WESTENBERG
STARRING: EWAN MCGREGOR, CLARA MCGREGOR
RATING: 3 out of 4 stars
By Dan Pal
Ewan McGregor first came to major public consciousness with the 1996 Danny Boyle film Trainspotting. McGregor played a heroine addict who struggles to get off drugs and find a better way into adulthood. In Bleeding Love, the actor now stars with his own daughter Clara who plays an addict herself. It’s an interesting pairing. Clara looks nothing like her father with her dark hair, big eyes, and Carly Simon-esque mouth. Yet, it’s clear that the real life relationship here allows for some genuine family chemistry and inner strife.
The characters aren’t given names, as they are simply known as father and daughter. Father has picked daughter up in San Diego where they begin a journey to Santa Fe. Father is worried about her and wants to introduce her to a painter friend who might help her get back on her feet. Daughter is only 20 and has very recently OD’d. Her parents are no longer married and this road trip also serves to allow for some bonding and a way back to each other after a period of estrangement. Along the way, they meet various characters that help them in times of need, such as when their car breaks down. All the while, old issues surface leading to a pretty powerful and effective climax.
As a road trip movie, this one isn’t that different from many others we’ve seen over the years. Bit by bit though we are introduced to a slow unraveling of father-daughter issues which are pretty significant. Dad, who is now a landscaper, has also struggled with addiction thus establishing an all too familiar connection between the characters. They bond over music in the car (Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis in particular.) Through flashbacks we see that they did once have a pretty solid and playful connection when she was a little girl. His issues created a chasm between them though and now they are forced to build a bridge back to each other.
Ewan McGregor has always been solid in these more mature roles. A few emotional scenes here reminded me of his performance in the 2012 film The Impossible. It’s not a far stretch of a part considering other meatier roles we’ve seen him take on, such as in Moulin Rouge and the recent mini series Halston. The real find is his daughter Clara. She gets a few powerful scenes here, in particular a blowout confrontation with her father. Within this part she masterfully demonstrates distance, enjoyment, and darkness. Clearly she has a wide range as a performer and while she’s appeared in numerous films and television shows in the past seven years I think this could be a role that finally brings her to another level of critical success.
Bleeding Love isn’t the most original road trip film out there but it does offer a nice portrait of a troubled relationship between a father and daughter with actors who know very well to how to bring that familiar struggle to life on screen.
Bleeding Love is available to rent on Amazon Prime.