Blood Ties review

Back to the streets...

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Gallic actor/director Guillaume Canet delivers his first English effort – a remake of 2008’s Les Liens Du Sang (in which he starred), relocated to 1970s Brooklyn. Co-written with James Gray, it recalls Gray’s We Own The Night , with its story of two brothers – Clive Owen’s ex-con Chris, Billy Crudup’s cop Frank – on opposite sides of the law.

Despite a cracking cast (Zoe Saldana, Mila Kunis and Marion Cotillard included) it’s a sprawling, messy movie, nowhere near as lean as Canet’s Tell No One . But wade through all the flares and flare-ups and you’ll be rewarded: the ending is absolutely killer.

Freelance writer

James Mottram is a freelance film journalist, author of books that dive deep into films like Die Hard and Tenet, and a regular guest on the Total Film podcast. You'll find his writings on GamesRadar+ and Total Film, and in newspapers and magazines from across the world like The Times, The Independent, The i, Metro, The National, Marie Claire, and MindFood. 

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