Blackbird

It’s a tale we’ve seen time and time again. A matriarch or patriarch brings their family together for a final farewell. Siblings clash, there are life-long tensions bubbling under the surface, and a big reveal rocks the boat in the third act. It’s an easy and accessible genre that can give actors something to sink their teeth into. But if the meat isn’t there, everything falls apart. Unfortunately, Blackbird has fallen victim to Hollywood’s latest lacklustre main course.

Susan Sarandon plays Lily, a wife and mother who has decided to willingly end her life after accepting that her body is crumbling to ALS. With the approval of her husband Paul (Sam Neill), she summons their immediate family for a final weekend together. Her daughters Jennifer and Anna (Kate Winslet and Mia Wasikowska) decide now would be the right time to air out their dirty laundry. Jennifer’s husband Michael (Rainn Wilson) and their son Jonathan (Anson Boon) tag along and sadly bring little to the table – except a rap or two. Anna’s partner Chris (Bex Taylor-Klaus) and Lily’s oldest friend Elizabeth (Lindsay Duncan) flesh out the group and thankfully save this film from disappearing into the cinema abyss.

Based on the Danish film Silent Heart, and penned by the same screenwriter Christian Torpe, Blackbird is a film that desperately needed to step above the mark and bring a fresh take to a recycled genre. There is little to no discussion of euthanasia, or the consequences of carrying it out in a state where it’s illegal. If Director Roger Michell intentionally avoided this to focus on the dynamics of the family, then this fell short, too. The characters felt hollow. Confrontational scenes felt anything but. The moments that were designed to pull at the heart strings felt empty, and the dramatic reveal in the film’s final scenes felt predictable and overshadowed by a certain character’s melodrama.

There are some touching moments though. A faux-Christmas dinner delivers the film’s best, with the emotional pendulum triggered by a single change in a character’s tone. This was a rare scene that did put a fly on the wall for this family’s dynamic. Anna’s partner Chris, being on the sidelines of a family fracturing, also manages to talk sense when no one else can. They are a well fleshed-out character, and Taylor-Klaus unexpectedly steals the show among their heavyweight co-stars. Duncan is also a standout as always, and Sarandon is pitch perfect as the airy-fairy bohemian/upper middle-class warrior with her wits about her. The rest of cast do as well as they can with what they’re given. In fact, there are no flawed performances here. Blackbird is unfortunately just another case of stellar actors being given little to work with.

The film is also impeccably shot. Utilising natural lighting and shooting at a stunning beach house in the south of England, the backdrop is dripping in beauty – which does add a sense of melancholia over what is happening indoors.

Overall, Blackbird is a fine film that unfortunately just misses the mark in some areas. The performances are solid, the location and soundtrack are both impeccably utilised, and some touching scenes peppered throughout keep this film from really falling apart. But to be a cut above the rest, it just needed to dig a little deeper.

Rating: 3/5

Blackbird 
In cinemas now
View Trailer