Blood Work

Forty-three years older
For those of us Clint Eastwood fans who remember him as the young and headstrong Rowdy Yates in the TV series RAWHIDE (1959-1966), going to see the latest Eastwood Big Screen epic is a sobering reminder that time catches up to us all.

In BLOOD WORK, Clint plays Terry McCaleb, a high profile FBI agent who suffers a severe heart attack while chasing (on foot) a vicious serial killer who leaves taunting messages for McCaleb at the crime scene. Terry finds that climbing over fences just isn't as easy at is used to be, but then a Clint Eastwood character in the old days would've just stood back and shot the perp down at long range with his .44 Magnum. Oh, well. In any case, it's now two years later and Terry is just off a heart transplant and retired to his boat. Graciella (Wanda De Jesus) shows up to request that McCaleb get back in harness to investigate the death of her sister, who was murdered in a convenience store holdup. McCaleb at first demurs, but then has a change of heart, so...

A more than solid Eastwood vehicle
We all know good 'ol Clint isn't getting any younger, and he knows that himself which is part of what makes Blood Work as good as it is. Eastwood plays an FBI agent drawn out of retirement to find a serial killer which Eastwood had a heart attack chasing. What develops is a game of cat & mouse between Eastwood and the killer, culminating in a stunning revelation and an ending similar to that of another Eastwood starring/directing effort; In the Line of Fire. Blood Work is a smart, intelligent thriller and a throwbacl to the days when movies didn't have to rely on anemic storylines and bloated special effects to get going. Sadly though, Blood Work will most likely go ignored by audiences while overblown, mindless action pics like XXX rake in the millions. Still though, you should really give Blood Work a try, it's a real gem.

Good Work
There is a masked hold-up artist/killer on the loose, and the police believe the cold-hearted criminal to be selecting the locations purposefully, and that his victims are just unlucky, random individuals. Retired FBI agent Terry McCaleb thinks that it is the *locations* which are random, and that the killer's victims are very, very specific. Will his wisdom prevail? That is one of the interesting plot elements in "Blood Work", the 20th movie starring Clint Eastwood that he has also directed.

Eastwood plays McCaleb, a gritty man with a gentle streak, who was forced into retirement after suffering a heart attack while chasing a serial killer on his last case. Two years later, McCaleb receives a new heart, and the serial killer is still at-large. Terry McCaleb is Eastwood playing his age. We know that this man used to possess solid physical strength, but age has diminished that strength, so now he is left to rely almost solely on his keen intellect. That intellect does not fail him,...

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