Rod Blackhurst’s ‘Blood for Dust’ is a taut crime thriller that shows an honest salesman breaking bad. The screenplay, written by Blackhurst along with David Ebeltoft, presents yet another tale about righteous individuals making morally reprehensible choices for survival.
With the rise of anti-hero trope in today’s TV landscape, such narratives have been explored numerous times. From Breaking Bad to Barry, they often explore the theme of lack of moral judgment resulting from an unavoidable set of circumstances. Blood For Dust is no exception.
We meet Cliff (played by Scoot McNairy) and Ricky (played by Kit Harrington), who both worked together as a salesman at Meridian. After a failed deal, one of their colleagues decided to end his life. With the situation gone awry, these two men parted ways and tried to find ways to make up for their financial losses.
However, unlike Ricky, Cliff was a married man with children and was responsible for their well-being besides his. After leaving Meridian, He continued walking on a faith-driven path backed by religious beliefs. He chose alternatives that would not steer him to a sinful life of lawlessness. For a while, he kept selling heart zappers. Unfortunately, peddling the idea of protection from untimely death is a hard sell. So, it did not fare enough for his survival.
Amidst a looming danger of potential gig loss, Cliff suddenly meets Ricky in a bar after ages. Ricky introduces an opportunity where Cliff’s salesmanship could come in handy. Cliff isn’t on board with this potentially risky venture right away. But desperation often leads us to strange paths. Cliff falls prey to the same notion. He accepts Ricky’s dubious deal and begins working despite knowing the risks involved.
Unlike Cliff’s apprehension about stepping into the muddy waters, Ricky seems much more comfortable. He introduces Cliff to his superior to get him under the wings. He believes Cliff’s unthreatening presence can make up for a great cover to transport illegal goods. Cliff still plays hard sell. He wants Ricky’s dealer to see him, not desperate for them.
A still from Blood for Dust (2023).After intimidating Cliff to establish their power dynamics, he is brought in to work alongside them. He starts learning the ropes of this trade, whereas Ricky works on another deal. One thing leads to another, and he gets caught in a series of bad choices that put his life in danger. Survival gains another meaning for him when he had to contend with life-or-death situations.
Throughout its roughly one-and-a-half-hour duration, the script makes its characters contemplate the nature of their actions. It presents a great mosaic of motives and consequences to lay out an intriguing character-driven drama. The chilling landscapes offer a rich atmospheric backing for an unnerving experience.
All their choices are a result of their innate desire to sell versions of truths about their lives. Be it the hope of a better life, aspiration of a different kind of life, or trading on one’s vulnerability, the script paints the picture of today’s capital-driven world.
So, even though we see two desperate salesmen trying to rebuild their lives, we find a little bit of ourselves in them. We also desire to earn enough to leave behind the thought of earning anymore. The script creates a smart distinction between that desire and greed. Like Walter White’s journey, Ricky and Cliff have their own stages of desires.
The question remains – how far would one go to make these capital-driven goals come true? The distinct personalities of Ricky and Cliff present differing viewpoints of looking at it. The direction haunts us with its quietly devastating contemplation. After all, the tricky part isn’t just getting caught for lawless actions. What if one is left to live without consequences? How far can one sustain living without a smudge of guilt? Can one ever truly be free from it?
Blood for Dust dwells upon it without letting its somber tone seem forced. The seriousness appears calculated but genuine. The actors add a lot to flesh out the complexities of their dilemmas. While Ricky is presented as a representation of his suave, greed-driven salesman, Cliff is a value-driven man haunted by his past. His actions are rooted in his desire to repent.
Scoot McNairy presents Cliff as a man caught up in an endless cycle of bad choices. His eyes deftly capture the depths of a man repeatedly falling onto a slippery slope against his will. This performance is just another addition to knowing the actor’s range, who had already broken me with his performance in Fairyland.
Blood for Dust was screened at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival
Blood for Dust (2023) Movie Links: IMDb, Tribeca
Blood for Dust (2023) Movie Cast: Scoot McNairy, Kit Harington, Josh Lucas, Stephen Dorff, Ethan Suplee, Nora Zehetner, Amber Rose Mason
Director: Rod Blackhurst
Screenwriter: David Ebeltoft
Language: English
Runtime: 98 Minutes
Editor: Justin Oakey
Cinematographer: Justin Derry
