Bloodshot

RATING: C-

Bloodshot has the distinction of being the last movie released in theaters before... well... you know what. Released March 13, the day of the emergency declaration, put it in a quite unfortunate spot in terms of making money. Now, as of this writing, the movie theaters are open again (depending on where you live, anyway); but for a while it seemed within the realm of possibility that Bloodshot might be the last movie we saw in an indoor theater for a very long time. And that... would've definitely been a case of going out with something of a whimper rather than a bang. 

So what is Bloodshot, exactly? Well, it's a comic-book superhero movie--but it's not based off Marvel *or* DC. It's from another group called Valiant Comics, known for stuff like Bloodshot and the Harbingers. There's a fair chance that if you're not much of a comic reader, you've never heard of any this stuff. But they've made their way to the big screen, so here we are. 

Bloodshot (aka Ray Garrison, who is never actually called "Bloodshot" in this movie) is a character who gets killed and then resurrected by a private organization by way of infusing his body with ludicrous levels of nanotechnology, which basically make him nigh indestructible as long as the nanites are active, which quickly heal him. So... sort of like Wolverine, but with nanotechnology instead of a natural healing ability or metal skeleton, and without claws. Ray does have enhanced strength as a result, though. And of course, the shady organization in question has ulterior motives for "bringing him back"... which, it turns out, is more complicated than expected, and nothing is what it seems and stuff. 

Here's the thing about Bloodshot. It's not bad, necessarily. It just doesn't do enough to stand out in a crowded genre. There actually is a surprising twist of sorts regarding the shady organization and what they're doing to Ray, but the result makes the early movie's sequences feel like a waste of time -- even if what follows is a semi-unique plot, at least in the superhero world.

More problematically, there's very thin characterization here and basically zero development. Ray's character development basically begins and ends with Vin Diesel, who often feels about as robotic as the technology coursing through his character's veins. That, and swearing revenge on foes. The evil guy is evil, but we aren't given enough about his motivations. And there's also two forgettable side "antagonists" of sorts, one of whom is mostly just an annoying jerk for no tangible reason. 

Actually, that "robotic" word earlier probably sums fairly well how much of this feels. This movie isn't boring, and it's not like the plot in of itself is stupid. But there's just not much heart or soul here. The action scenes happen and some of them are fun, but it's hard to be that invested. The CGI being mostly rather "meh" at best doesn't help either. Lamorne Morris's character at least brings some comic relief to the fold. Guy Pearce and Eiza Gonzalez also at least seem like they're trying. 

As previously stated, the movie's not bad. It just feels too hollow and lacks too much heart to really make it be that worthwhile. If you're a mega-fan of the genre and want to see something new, I suppose it's worth a look, although there wasn't much of anything to make me interested in future installments. It's interesting to see a newcomer to the comic-book movie scene, but Valiant will have to do better in the future to stand out.