Rating: 
Summary: BLOOD WORKS FOR ME
Review: Sometimes when I read other reviewers, I think I've seen a different movie? Oh, well, I think Eastwood did a remarkably good job in bringing this excellent Michael Connelly book to screen. Having read the book, it was good to see Brian Hildegard's screenplay maintain the feel and tension of the novel. Eastwood directs well, and plays his role of Terry McCaleb to the max. It's one of the first movies where he plays a character more suitable to his age; but as my wife says, who cares if he's 72 and romances younger women? She said he could put her shoes under her bed anytime; of course, she'd have to move mine! But I digress...Wanda DeJesus and Tina Lifford are fine as the women in Clint's life--I particularly liked Lifford's portrayal of Jan, whose involvement with Clint goes a little deeper than what we think? I loved Paul Rodriguez and Dylan Walsh as the LA cops who want Clint out of the way. Walsh who doesn't say a lot, has a commanding presence as an alternate to Rodriguez's bravado. Anjelica Huston is perfect as Clint's doctor: I've known medical people just like her. Takes a small role and commands the screen when she's on. And of course, we can't overlook Jeff Daniels in his loopy role as Buddy Noone, Clint's neighbor and "partner."
There are twists galore, and I think someone out for an entertaining mystery should not be bored.
I LOVED IT.
Rating: 
Summary: At any age...
Review: ...I enjoy watching Clint Eastwood. If you are Clint Eastwood fan or simply like watching him occasionally you can hopefully appreciate the way he's adapted the roles he's taking to reflect that he is "maturing."Blood Work is one DVD that I'm glad I got for myself but that doesn't mean my husband hasn't appreciated the movie's allure. It put me into such a "Clint" state of mind that I went out the next day and bought In the Line of Fire (which we had on VHS) and True Crime (which we didn't have on VHS.) Clint, as a director, is including a lot of interviews and behind the scenes footage on his DVD releases...interesting stuff! Blood Work is certainly a bit formulaic but it also has some very interesting twists. I certainly won't spill the beans but I'd highly recommend it. It's not particularly violent (in comparison with some of his other movies) but it's definitely not G-Rated in it's content either.
Rating: 
Summary: Needs to Be Checked For for a Pulse
Review: For the first time in years I decided to forgo my antipathy toward CE & watch one of his flicks. I actually thought that the lame plot described on the box was the result of poor salesmanship. Also I thought that there would be no trouble finding a good script for a major box office draw like Mr. Eastwood. No such luck. This film is a clunker from stem to stern & the presence of old Clint just scuttles any chance of rising above the script's limitations. I am stunned that such a major presence in Action Cinema would turn in such a paint-by-number episode. I rank this film as neck & neck with Stallone's "Cop Land" for sheer boredom & paucity of surprises. Not being a fan I'm certain it's the last time I'll look at one of this clowns movies.
Rating:
Summary: Formulaic plot, stilted acting
Review: I don't know what happened to the plot in this movie, but it certainly seems like some crucial bits of information got lost. Eastwood and De Jesus give performances that are worthy of an amateur theatre group. The leaps of intuition that Eastwood's character takes are beyond belief, while the systematic whittling down of suspects is expected, and of course, the true villain is revealed just before the end, in all his glorious insanity, he has kidnapped De Jesus and her nephew, and uses this to keep Eastwood's character from shooting him. The movie ends with the typical 'good guy chases bad guy around empty, creepy place', with de Jesus getting in her revenge by pushing the dying villain's face under water. Full of bad lines, and worse acting, I would recommend skipping this one. Instead, watch Insomnia with Al Pacino.
Rating: 
Summary: Utterly useless
Review: Man, seldom I've witnessed something like this movie, which was supposed to be a "thriller". Nothing against CLint, much on the contraty: he chose a script and adpated it to his real age,a honest and clever movement. But the trouble is that seldom I've witnessed a thriller where you can DEFINITELY know who is the killer the first time he appears on the screen!! Amazing! SO obvious, so ludicrous! I'll not give his name (Spoil), but I guarantee you'll see it also... Sad...THis made me angry!
Rating:
Summary: rivoting and exciting
Review: one of clint eastwoods best films it rates up there with in the line of fire and absolute power 2 of my favorites.
Rating:
Summary: Only Eastwood Does It This Way
Review: This film is excellent, but obvious, and perhaps that's by design. What Clint Eastwood has done in "Blood Work" is to create a detective-thriller that is more about the detective than it is about the crime. That is not a new twist, and neither is the fact that the criminal he is investigating is targeting him specifically for special attention. What Eastwood does here to make this a worthy film is to take a conventional, derivative story and tell it with such a commitment to avoiding sentimentality or egotism that the "same old same old" kind of movie becomes entertaining again. On top of that, Eastwood uses both realism and irony with such deft craftmanship; it is not an exaggeration to say that I truly appreciate how secure I feel when I'm watching one of his stories unfold. I know I'm in good hands, and I can't wait to see what's coming next. The hero is vulnerable. Extraordinarily so. In fact, the very nature of his weakness is the foundation upon which the entire structure of the plot is built. It is a heavy-handed notion to present to an audience, but this film is not the first time someone has tried to tell a story with a premise that is symbolic to the point of absurdity. I think, perhaps, that Mr. Eastwood knew exactly what he was doing, though, because he takes this 500 pound gorilla and just lets it be a gorilla. He explores his subject, and he lets it be what it's got to be, and he doesn't dress it up. That's where the ego-less nature of Eastwood's directing and acting are really appreciated. The story is first. The truth of that character, in that situation, comes first. There is no hero's hero in the sense that traditional Hollywood likes for the cop-thriller. Instead, the audience gets treated to a pretty thorough exploration of the Eastwood persona that's emerged in his later films. Those films include "Unforgiven", "In the Line of Fire", "True Crime", "Absolute Power", and even "The Bridges of Madison County"--where he's become the guy who's too old, too sick, too snake-bitten, or too late, who can't possibly beat the odds that are against him unless he just stays true to himself, and he somehow does and wins the day, as well as redemption. This film is a case study of that type of Eastwood character, and I think in years to come that this will be a touchstone work in his oeuvre, in terms of the way Eastwood always seems to be poking at his own persona. I only have two criticisms of the film, but they combine to knock this down to four stars instead of five. First, the casting is flawed. Jeff Daniels did his best and I can live with that, but I would rather have seen a better actor play the goofball role, rather than see an actor known for goofball roles simply pushing himself a little farther. There are a lot of actors out there who could have pulled off that part a lot better. Case in point: Wanda De Jesus was a fantastic pick for the part of Graciella. A lot of other, better-known actresses could have come in and cakewalked the part of a strong, suffering woman on a mission; but it was wonderful to see (A) an excellent, unknown actress get the job wonderfully done, and (B) the pleasant surprise of seeing a non-white actress be the one who delivers such a powerful performance. Conversely, I also question the casting of Paul Rodriguez here, based on the same objections I have with Jeff Daniels' casting; why not go for someone who doesn't look like he's just delivering a pparody of his past roles? My second criticism is the failure of the film to answer a few key questions with any kind of clarity. Of course, that can't be discussed in this review, but suffice it to say that there are a couple key plot points that get glossed over in crucial moments, and it's annoying because it almost comes off like Eastwood simply forgot to tie them up (he could have, quite
easily). He's not sloppy like that very often. Incidentally, I'd like to note that Angelica Huston fans will be, perhaps, ambivalent about her casting in this film. Her acting, of course, is first-rate; I particularly enjoyed her the most out of all the fine people who worked in this project, but for her fans, this will be a character that she hasn't normally done. Overall, I highly recommend this film for Eastwood fans and for fans of investigative thrillers. Always there and rarely explained for the audience are the usual realistic touches that saturate Eastwood's films. To provide examples of this is to spoil the fun of watching it, though, so just take my word for it! Get this DVD and immerse yourself in some excellent, confident storytelling.
Rating:
Summary: Dirty Harry As An Ailing But Entertaining Geriatric!
Review: This film celebrates Clint's long overdue return to the murder mystery genre. And returns he does in high style and with a true passion in "Blood Work", a meaningful play on words that becomes evident over the progress of the film. Eastwood' s knowing, Oscar-winning directorial hands are firmly in evidence from the outset, and he has lovingly given us terrific cinematography of the San Diego seascapes along which much of the plot occurs. Her Clint plays a retired FBI profiler whose last assignment was with a serial murderer who got away, and by way of the opening chase scene caused the near-fatal heart attack that puts Eastwood permanently on the sidelines. Or so it would seem, until Eastwood's character receives an unexpected gift of life by way of a heart transplant, which serves to re-energize him and gives him a new lease on life. Through a series of seeming coincidences, Eastwood becomes re-involved in the case as a private detective, and what he discovers spins the case (and his life) into automatic overdrive. What results is indeed a thinking man's mystery, carried out with excitement and a lot of intersting plot turns along the way. The script is both tight and compelling, written by the author of "LA Confidential". Jeff Daniels is very good as the neighbor living two boats down from Clint's at the Marina, and given his own infirmities, Eastwood involves him in the proceedings as a designated driver. I had a strong suspicion from early on in the film based on my own personal animus against coincidences, and turned out to be pleasantly surprised with what I discovered as the plot progressed. This would be a welcome addition to anyone's murder mystery genre collection, one that is smart, suspenseful, and entertaining. Giving Clint's age of 72, it is unlikely there will ever be another Dirty Harry episode. In its absence, this entry satisfies the continuing hunger pains quite nicely. I recommend this as a great evening's entertainment. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Eastwood, reminding me of Dirty Harry
Review: Essentially, this movie is "Dirty Harry after Heart Surgery", which is not to say that it's bad. The acting is great on all sides (especially by Eastwood, portraying a hurt man magnificently). The action scenes are good, and it is a VERY good murder mystery. The only reason that this doesn't get four stars is due to the villan; I won't spoil it, but I just didn't agree with the final choice of actor, or who the villan turned out to be. Definately worth the money to buy and the time to watch a dozen times.
Rating:
Summary: Not Bad....
Review: I was dreading on seeing this movie, since I wanted to see a different movie that was out at the time. But my dad (being a Eastwood fan), wanted to see it. When I saw it, I didn't think it was THAT bad. I never read the books, so I had no clue who the killer was until it was over. The movie starts off a lil slow, but picks up with some twists & turns. Though many who never read the books may already know the killer by mid movie, just like my step-dad did the other day when we rented it. Not bad of a movie at all.
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