Blood Quantum

 

Name: Blood Quantum

Directed By: Jeff Barnaby 

Subgenre: Zombie

Series: Spooktober 2020 entry #6; review #68

Review: Despite the name, Blood Quantum isn't a sci-fi horror but, rather, a take on the zombie apocalypse from the perspective of Indigenous people, specifically the Mi'kmaq tribe. The film centers around an extended family of said people as they discover the dead aren't being kind enough to stay dead. Following that gruesome day, we're transported six months into the future where we find that the tribe has become one of the few remaining conclaves around because Indigenous people are immune to the zombie virus. Since it's a zombie movie, the safety of the conclave doesn't stay that way for long. Incidentally, all of the zombies in the film are white. These facts aren't explicitly explored in much overt detail, but they provide enough social commentary (are you picking up on a theme for the month yet?) to breathe some new life into a dying subgenre of horror. I say "overt" detail because there's plenty of subtext the film explores, namely the idea of blood quantum itself. As you've probably assumed from the blog's title (rightly so), I'm a pretty run-of-the-mill white guy from the US. As such, I've been fairly ignorant about the concept of blood quantum and related matters of race and identity (an absolutely shocking revelation, I'm sure). For those, like me, who are unfamiliar: blood quantum is the controversial system of measuring how much "Indian blood" a person has, as drafted by the American federal government, with the not-so-subtle aim to limit the amount of people who can legitimately (according to them) claim citizenship in specific tribes. See, the more that people from those tribes began to have children with those outside of the tribe, the percentage of their native blood began to diminish until, eventually, their descendants wouldn't be "Indian enough" to remain in the tribe. And, therefore, limit the number of people who could benefit from Native-related treaties and the like. It's a purity test with the purpose of systematically maintain a "Colonial Catch-22," to force those in the tribes to remain segregated or to reach out and risk diminishing tribal rosters. Given that, there's an extra layer of existential horror in watching a cast of Indigenous peoples fend off hordes of white zombies who have the power to infect them, inevitably leading to one more shambling pallid corpse and one fewer tribes-person. Beyond that, there's plenty of violence to go around, and the effects are well done. Unfortunately, some of the acting is stiff and hampered by awkward dialogue. There was something missing here that I can't quite put my finger on. In the end, Blood Quantum still presents a new interpretation of the well-trodden zombie flick, but the social commentary and special effects alone aren't enough to elevate it into something truly memorable.

Overall Score: 3.5 out of 5 Chads shambling without rhythm. Did Blood Quantum scare you? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

IMDB: Here

How to Watch: Blood Quantum is available on these platforms.

Official Trailer