Blaze (2022) User Reviews

A good film with great potential!

[annienew-47525 · 7/10 · 24 November 2022]

*This review contains some spoilers*

Blaze is a story about many things; namely - trauma, mental health, childhood, single parenthood, courage and triumph. It's not an easy film to watch due to the bold subject matter it takes on, but the intent behind making this film seems to be positive. I really loved the intro music! I hope the soundtrack of this movie is released in the near future!

The protagonist - Blaze (Julia Savage) is introduced to us as an inquisitive child who seems to have a rich inner world. She is shown taking a known shortcut home from an ice-cream shop where she comes face-to-face with an unexpected situation. I loved the little symbolisms here - a puppy on the way that she stops to greet (symbolising innocence and normalcy) and wilted flowers that she passes by (could be symbolism for the danger that lies ahead). I feel this is a great teachable moment for parents to their kids on the importance of taking the safe way home even if it's a longer route.

The trauma that Blaze witnesses, leaves her traumatized. Julia Savage is impressive here as she is able to portray genuine terror on her face and is able to make us believe what her character is going through emotionally. I feel the makers of the film could introduce a warning before the movie begins as the trauma is quite difficult to watch. Huge props to Yael Stone for her portrayal of Hannah.

We meet Zephyr (the dragon) once Blaze manages to return home after the traumatic experience. My first reaction to when I saw the dragon was - it's so cute! The imaginary dragon is her friend so it's quite natural that it was made to look like a cute glittery friend rather than a monstrous thing!

The way we are introduced to Blaze's dad Luke (Simon Baker) left me with a warm feeling in my heart. The way he comes into her room, gently sits by her side whilst she's asleep, the way he gently lifts the comforter from which Blaze is sleeping under and finally the way in which he gently caresses his daughter's forehead, all this show the empathetic side of him and what a lovely, caring dad he is.

Julia's depiction of being in a catatonic state is highly impressive. Equally impressive is Luke's (Simon Baker) reaction when he realises that something is terribly wrong with his daughter.

The film further sheds a light on how broken the court system is. The court appointed psychiatrist comes across as strictly business-like whose main job is to get Blaze ready for the court hearing without really delving deep into the psychological state that Blaze is in.

It's here that we are introduced to the first psychedelic experience in the film. I'm not sure what it really means but after having watched the film a few times by now perhaps Blaze is trying to 'ground' herself while the psychiatrist talking in the background becomes like a white noise for her. (This is my interpretation and it could be wrong!)

The statement - "I didn't realize this was purely procedural support." hits you in the face depicting how cold the court system is.

Blaze's dragon helps her cope with the trauma. My first reaction to when I saw the dragon was - it's so cute! The imaginary dragon is her friend so it's quite natural that it was made to look like a cute glittery friend rather than a monstrous thing! The little figurines and especially the doll puppet are very cute and it made me smile whenever they popped up on the screen.

The court scene where Blaze has to testify about what happened is so well performed by both Julia and Simon. Simon as the father who has to bear witness to his daughter being asked uncomfortable questions in the court & having to be in the same room as the perpetrator is heart-wrenching to watch.

Interestingly, there are some scenes in this film that are nearly identical with some scenes that appear in Simon Baker's movie - Not Forgotten! I was amused to find how similar those scenes were. I won't be naming all of them here except for one (swipe to see pic no). If you've watched 'Not Forgotten' multiple times like I have, there's no way you'll miss the similarities between the scenes at different points during the film!

The film does a great job at showing the importance of having a supportive parent to whom a child can talk to without any apprehensions. It also serves as a reminder for parents to talk to them about personal safety; both physically as well as online. The film also depicts very subtly that learning self-defence is a very useful tool as much as it can be a constructive tool to release frustration and anger. Dance is a recurring tool used by the director to convey a release of pent-up emotions. It's a good thing, however some parts of those dance sequences didn't sit well with me.

That being said, there were plenty of memorable scenes and dialogues, all of which I won't mention here as they'd take away the charm of the film. I found the first half of the movie more well-defined and engaging than the second half. The puppetry, vfx and the make-up were all amazingly good! The transition between certain scenes was a bit abrupt at times but the strong performances by each and every cast member help deliver the story to its fullest.

Overall it's a good film with great potential. Highly recommended viewing for parents of teens and pre-teens and also for teens as well as young adults as there are wonderful life lessons in there!

Insightful yet deeply flawed

[comcockbot · 5/10 · 29 September 2022]

Blaze could have been so great. The concept sounds fantastic and Savage is doing a great job as the main. Most of the coming of age parts are actually really well done and the movie portrays the process of trauma management in a way that feels relatable.

However, the main hook of the movie is poorly executed. There is a huge disconnect between the style of the over the top candy colored visions of Blaze and the emotional minefield that its main characters navigate through.

Furthermore, these scenes are a one trick pony. Every single one of them blasts you with melodramatic pop songs with lyrics that are right in your face, there is no subtlety. There is no space to ponder about the meaning of what you're seeing because it screams it right at you. And quite frankly, it's annoying.

The moment I realized that each of these scenes will be like this was the most heart breaking moment of the movie. I don't say that to mock the people involved, I actually mean it. Because there is a ton of potential here, if these scenes were handled better this movie could have been one of this years best. But sadly it just screams: "look how childish, colorful, fantastic yet sad I am! Look at me! Look at me!" And boy, did that get on my nerves at some point.

Also, I don't think the make up and costumes are all that great in these scenes. The movie looks a bit cheesy and the dragon itself doesn't work as a character due to its design. It isn't emotional expressive which makes the movie fall apart in some scenes where it feels like Blaze had to actually say what the dragon is feeling.

These scenes rarely add something significant to the story. Some are outright pathetic (especially the ones near the end of the movie). And they felt out of place. Like they were tacked on as an afterthought.

In the end, this might have been the best time I had with such a flawed movie in a long time but it was so cringe inducing at times I couldn't fully enjoy the main story.

If you are more open minded about flashiness or if you don't feel the cringe with melodramatic contemporary songs featuring a howling singer than you might enjoy this movie way more than I did. But I don't think this was good enough to get a recommendation from me.

(Saw this at the Slash Filmfestival, Vienna)

I appreciate what this movie tries to do, not so much how it tries to do it.

[isaacsundaralingam · 7/10 · 8 March 2023]

Blaze is not a movie for everyone. And I'm still not sure if it was for me. The movie is about trauma and how people cope with it. But unlike what you would come to expect from a movie about such heavy topics, it puts a uniquely interesting spin on it with its gorgeous visual language and its dream-like vignettes.

The movie starts strong. The first act of the movie; where we are introduced to the conflict is excellently done. Actors Julia Savage and Simon Baker put up brilliant performances to communicate the movie's emotions the way the filmmaker would have wanted for it to be. There's so much subtelty to it that it had me excited for what's to come.

Unfortunately its novelty fades and the movie seemed to have exhausted itself the more it went on, in my opinion. It just never capitalized on it's excellent start and becomes a little too indulgent and a little too aimless. And by then end, you're left with the feeling that Blaze had the potential to be so much more.

All that aside, I still appreciate this movie for what it tries to do. It's definitely a unique and colorful cinematic experience and one that could inspire new avenues of storytelling.

A movie that makes you feel like you're a Blaze, like entering the door of John Malkovich

[picasoapple · 7/10 · 11 July 2023]

After watching this movie, I felt like I came out of a private exhibition by an artist at an art museum This movie is almost done with the eyes of the main character. The movie unravels the inner side of this one girl in a way that cannot be written, but can only be done in a movie.

It was so beautiful that the movie followed the girl's emotions and unraveled them into beautiful works of art And the soundtrack of this movie was really good and Julia Savage's main character was really good

The story of this movie is simple, and it can be summarized in one sentence as a story about a girl who experiences and overcomes trauma, but the direction of the movie is easy. The main character's inner self is expressed in a surreal way, but you can't feel the emotion unless you watch the movie.

Weird, Boring.

[bigcced-928-942329 · 4/10 · 28 November 2022]

It's like French people on drugs made a movie. Good quality. Good acting. Poor script.

It's one of those films that you keep hoping will get better, but it never does.

It's one of those films where you want to cheer for the main character, but she's so screwed up in the head that there's never much to cheer for.

How would I describe this movie?

Dull, boring, with an ending that was equally dull and boring.

Mental illness is sad. Pretty sure most people understand that point. I don't think most people need, or want it smashed into their face the way this movie does it.

Rape, and murder are both disturbing, and bad - most people understand that too ; however this film could have been done better.

Creative and Brilliant in Many Ways... except the rape scene

[carly-southern · 6/10 · 8 October 2022]

There's many ongoing conversations about rape/violence being depicted in film.

A previous review on this film explains how there's a lot in the film that is explicitly told to you and that's precisely the issue with the rape scene, for me. As a woman this scene made me feel like I wanted to throw up. I almost left the theatre. I think that scene could have been more powerful with less shown. I don't need to see the actual rape taking place to understand what Blaze is seeing. I can only assume the director wanted us to experience the horror through her eyes. But I didn't feel I was seeing it through her eyes - I was seeing it through mine and it was traumatizing. I wish I saw more of Blaze's face in that scene. I also felt immensely uncomfortable of the actors performing this scene. It reminds me of the discomfort of watching the rape scene in Blue Velvet. The sound of Hannah's head hitting the tree was very powerful and you understand what's going to happen next.

However, I didn't walk out of the theatre and I'm glad I stayed. Because there's lots of magic in this film. It reminds me of a Julie Taymour play or some sort of cotton Candy ExistenZ adaption. Very cool and unique in many ways. I loved the dragon - I disagree with the previous review mentioning it lacks facial expression. I felt its de-personalization and focus on texture was so interesting because the character is truly within Blaze so I didn't feel I needed to understand the dragon.

Some scenes could have felt forced or too out of the universe of the show but I didn't care, I enjoyed each texture and every move the imagination is taken through. Sometimes when you sit and watch a film with such unique production design it makes you challenge your own creativity and this one surely did. So thank you to the PD/Director duo.

Also the sound in this film could surely be criticized for being too over the top but I just accepted it as it was and it took me on a journey which I enjoyed.

Overall the rape scene almost made me not want to sit through the rest but I'm glad I did. I think if the rape could have been handled more sensitively I would have given this a 8/10.

More Like a Toaster Oven - Blaze

[arthur_tafero · 5/10 · 19 October 2022]

This film was potentially an interesting premise; unfortunately, there are too many flaws in the production to produce a Blaze. The film is more of a toaster-oven. The gradual psychological recovery of a young girl who witnesses a violent act probably takes place thousands of times a year in the US, so there is really nothing unique here. An examination of the adults and their characters might have been helpful, but those are missing from the film. The performance of the young girl playing Blaze is fine, and I am sure she has a future in film. The same cannot be said for the writers of the film, however.

Unique, surreal, imaginative.

[MK_Ultra_ · 9/10 · 9 November 2022]

The premise is one of how you interpret the visualization. To state too much of what it is about starts off the film and would be spoilers, so let's leave it at a young teen girl that stumbles upon a very traumatic situation that she isn't fully capable of understanding and how she compartmentalizes this event. The director uses surreal art quality scenes to show there was earlier trauma within the family dynamic that brought along her ability to deal with things by letting her mind go to an "otherwordly" head space. These scenes of where she takes her mind might not be for every viewer ability to grasp but that's what makes this unique. Reminiscent of another film from a couple of years ago, "I Kill Giants" which I also enjoyed because it showed another angle, grief from losing a mother ro cancer and how it was also dealt with internally, through the eyes and mind of a young girl.

That's also where the similarities end, as this not only deals with much heavier adult themes, it touches on how vulnerable a developing mind is, and how trauma can damage it, yes, even when A child loses a patent by divorce. Instead of the usual tropes to unpack these weighty psychological issues, this film goes for not so subtle visuals to show the trauma within and literally how she "slays" that metaphorical dragon that holds her back during the most challenging part of her ordeal.

Great acting. Solid script. Amazing visual content. Very memorable film, though yes, there is rough scene, that's some have alluded to and if you feel uncomfortable during this opening scene, than it did the film and writer justice ad it was handled in its rarest and brutal form without exploitation, but showing you why this sequence was as damaging as it should be for a child to witness.

Time wasting

[osbornkirkee · 1/10 · 19 November 2022]

Honestly it's a bore and pain to watch this movie. It literally is juz time wasting. Who even directed this movie. It looked like a 2022 sub part teletubby movie with a pinch amusement park colors. I watched this movie because it was above 5.0 in rating. Pls next time add P 1 year old to it. This looks like a movie for a 1 year old baby that doesn't understand anything and is thrilled by visuals and colors. It's truly time wasting to watch a movie like this in 2022. I will recommend it to those finding it difficult to sleep since it will do the job of making you sleep very well as well as get you confused and angry at the same time.

Covers a lot of difficult life issues

[ilovefreddiem · 10/10 · 3 February 2024]

I believe you need an imagination to experience a low budget art film. The rape scene was violent because rape is a violent act, it was also a murder. This movie was about a young girl who saw something terrible happen that she couldn't process. As she learns how to cope with the reality that these memories will always be with her, after sessions with a young female therapist she shared a bond with, she begins to grow up.

This film is also about how women, girls are not believed when they testify in court. This is probably what upset Blaze the most. It emphasized that most women are raped and or murdered by someone they know. The dragon puppet was beautiful and amazing, the puppeteers did a great job of making it come to life and to actually have it appear to express emotions, especially with the movement of its eyes. The dragon represents her childhood. There is so much color and glitter in this film as should be with a young girls fantasies and dreams. Some parts of her dreams were disturbing but necessary to the story. She even befriends the victim Hannah in her dreams. As Blaze grows up and becomes a woman and becomes stronger, she doesn't need Zephy anymore. It's sad but it she has to kill her childhood friend who always brought her comfort, she knew that she had to let go in order to become strong on her own so that she could face and testify against this terrible man. In her struggle Blaze does experience some mental health issues and until you have a child who has mental illness you can't understand how helpless a parent like her father, played by Simon Baker, can feel because you can't fix your child. This film dealt with a lot of difficult issues and I believe that the rape scene was an unfortunate beginning. I assume most of these reviews were written by adults and that they have seen worse in other shows and movies they've watched that weren't trying to deal with anything as important as this film. There's a lot of dream and fantasy sequences that you have to interpret and maybe some would find them funny and or boring but I believe it's because they couldn't figure them out. Art films aren't for everyone. There are no expensive special affects so imagination is required.

It's hilarious. One of the best unintentional comedies

[themightykazoo-30763 · 2/10 · 16 November 2022]

This movie owes me several beers as I spit up several times while watching. Unintentionally hilarious. I have nothing good to say about it.

My friends and I turned this on based on the poster and not knowing anything about it. While it has several boring segments we were laughing at how bad it was several times.

I would not recommend it at all for any reason but on a bored night when you are stoned or drunk and accidentally click on it you may enjoy it.

So bad it's nearly good in some segments. Overall it was a mess though. The poster is the best part of this movie.

I only have 24 letters left.

Boring and over reaching

[markgrant-30651 · 1/10 · 6 June 2023]

This is easily one of the worst movies l have seen.

Not because the cast did a terrible job, to the contrary, l believe the cast were great.

The problem as l see it was trying to make what is a very simple, plot into some sort of artsie film.

It was mostly boring, with lots of very bizarre scenes of dragons and very strange music that added absolutely nothing to the story.

I actually believe that all the bizarre stuff actually detracts from the story and waters down what is a very serious topic of rape and abuse.

This is one of those cases where less should be more,

The story is strong enough to stand on its own without all the bizarreness that has significantly detracted from the story.

Blaze - delivers a Mild Scorch

[krocheav · 4/10 · 14 August 2023]

It seems Australian moviemakers mistakenly believe they have to be controversially grim to be taken seriously. Back in the 70s and 80s, the world was singing the praises of Australia as being amongst the only countries producing quality entertainment for all-aged audiences. We were riding the crest of the wave in this field. Now we often tend to struggle to make ends meet with wall to wall social horror stories.

Blaze, while having moments of empathy, continually roller coasters its audience with either the super 'arty' or the super grim. When modern artists turn to making movies its inevitable it will be drowning in numerous forms of 'art'. The filmmaker, Del Kathryn Barton claims this story of a traumatised pre-teen following witnessing a rape/murder is not her personal biography but examines a similar thread of instances in her own life. She doesn't want to tell us just what happened to her and maybe we don't need to know.

Some of the 'dream like'sequences using stop-motion puppets are intriguing while others sequences more resemble a school kids installation in a gallery. Many of these are overlong, over-done, and heavy handed, most involve a creation that's half Luck Dragon and a glitter studded Mardi-grass float decoration.

Performances are fine-tuned, and the cinematography is stylish, but for a 99min movie this felt like over 2 Hrs. Those with a love of intense re-enacted studies of kids in trauma situations may appreciate this one, others may be reaching for the double speed remote. A little less art and more heart might have helped.

Beautiful, extraordinary art film with an incredible performance by Julia Savage

[CosmicDancer-2931 · 10/10 · 20 December 2023]

An introverted, imaginative girl on the cusp of womanhood experiences a life-alteringly awful event and the film follows her path to healing as she simulataneously crashes through the safe cocooon of her childhood into the adolescent reality of an imperfect, unjust world. Boldly envisioned by leading Australian Artist Del Kathryn Barton, this dark, beautiful and powerful film from acclaimed producers Causeway Films - (The Babadook, Talk to Me) packs a massive cathartic punch if you immerse yourself in the emotional journey of its central character. Breathtaking visuals, superlative sound design, a killer soundtrack, strong performances all round and an oscar-worthy bravura turn from the then barely 13 year old young Australian actress Julia Savage make for a profoundly affecting viewing experience.

Intimate, Relatable, Glittery and Precise

[HoloKoala · 9/10 · 1 March 2024]

To me this movie covers exactly how I used to cope with complex trauma for 20 years. It is insanely accurate, in terms of the psychedelic visions that a mind can create to self-soothe and in terms of healing both individually and as a family. Also, the touch on the need to tell the truth in a young, idealistic person is beautiful. Simon Baker broke my heart with his vulnerability and Julia Savage gave a pat on the shoulder to my inner tiger that sometimes forgets to breathe but could rule the world. I wish I had the chance to heal together my father, but we never found the words nor the emotional bridge to each other. This movie has helped go through it in the realm of fiction.