Blue tells the story of a young woman with suicide ideation and follows her through a journey of loss, a botched suicide attempt and rebuilding her life through a beautiful friendship. This intense drama is the directorial debut for Gabriela Ledesma, who co-wrote the feature film with her wife and business partner, Callie Schuterra. The couple produced the film with MJ Caballero. This story is based on true events and what Ledesma experienced after her own suicide attempt.
Getting Right To the Heart Of the Story
The film opens with a chilling score and on a close up of blue eyes as the opening credits roll, then we see a young girl with a blank expression walking towards a barn. The opening narration expresses feelings of suicide ideation since childhood and acknowledging that she knew these feelings weren’t “normal” but neither was she. I could personally relate and immediately felt connected to the character and drawn in by the story.
Suddenly, we cut to present day where Helen Daniels (Callie Schuttera) loses her job and ill-stricken grandmother (Aubrey Manning). Helen attempts to end her life but she wakes up in the hospital and finds herself unwittingly comforted by strangers. A friendly and sympathetic nurse named Tori (Laura Harrison) and a cynical yet caring doctor (Judith Scott) commit themselves to overseeing Helen’s care. While at the hospital, Helen has a couple of run-ins with an older man named Robert (Shaw Jones), who happens to hold an executive position at his firm and takes a sympathetic liking to her.
He offers her a job at his firm and the two grow close. The friendship between Helen and Robert becomes emotionally intimate as they bond and get to know each other. When Robert starts disappearing and then goes missing without word to any of his colleagues, including Helen, she investigates and discovers that he is terminally ill. Their friendship takes a new turn and her lust for life begins to develop when she realizes how fragile it is; that while she was trying to end hers, someone else was fighting for theirs.
The Characters and the Actors Who Portrayed Them
There is a natural kinship between Helen and Robert which is portrayed well with the onscreen chemistry between Schuttera and Jones. Their relationship remains platonic and doesn’t cross the line but it begs the question, would it have been different had Robert not been ill? Would a romance have developed? Probably. But then this story would have ended up like every other Hollywood cliché and wouldn’t be as powerful as it is.
I think it was a brilliant decision on the part of Schuttera and Ledesma to keep the relationship between Helen and Robert a platonic one. Helen’s character is in a vulnerable emotional state throughout the film that it might have been irresponsible on the part of the filmmakers to throw her into a romantic entanglement while she’s trying to put the pieces of her life back together. Instead, Helen was given the opportunity to explore and discover herself, for probably the first time in her life.
When it comes to a character dealing with suicide ideation, depression and self-harm, Schuttera nailed it. We see her go through treatment and therapy. There are moments of frustration on her face that accurately capture something real and relatable. She doesn’t pretend that everything is okay when it isn’t. She calls bullshit on the new age meditation when it isn’t helping her feel any better. She actually gives her treatment a real shot, albeit loaded with cynicism and dark humor which made the character authentic and sincere, even in her sadness.
Jones was great in his role as Robert, who becomes Helen’s lifeline while she’s in treatment. He gives her the means to be able to support herself and begin to put her life back together as he himself is preparing to lose his and everything he’s worked so hard for.
Nurse Tori and Dr. Carol are characters that help Helen along in her recovery. Scott‘s portrayal of Dr. Carol was nothing short of perfection. She’s kind but cautious and misanthropic. She’s seen it all before and isn’t going to let anything over on her. She carries herself with strength and resilience, genuinely wanting to see Helen get better and make a life for herself.
The entire supporting cast from support group members to coworkers and hospital staff – each gave a dedicated performance to Blue. This is a cast of characters that demand our attention because each one is captivating.
Visuals and Sound
Many low budget independent films are riddled with all sorts of forgivable flaws (as long as the story has heart, soul and characters we can relate to). Blue isn’t one of those types of films. For a low budget independent film, the cinematic quality can pass for a big budget Hollywood film. The picture is crisp, clear and clean. Sam Wilkerson is responsible for the look of the film, as director of photography, and captured the essence of the story beautifully.
The original score crafted by Penka Kouneva fits the film like a snug glove on a cold winter day. A simple piano can haunt a picture so perfectly, as is showcased in the opening of Blue. The soundscape keeps the pace and mood of the scenes steady throughout the film.
Blue: Conclusion
Helen’s attempt at suicide wasn’t entirely unsuccessful. She did kill a part of herself and ended one sad chapter of her story, waking up to a new chapter of her life. In this new chapter, she was given an opportunity to heal and she learned about friendship, love, trust and found reasons worth living for. I laughed. I cried. I related and understood.
Ledesma succeeded in covering a tough subject, based on her own experiences. Blue has a lot of heart, and being based on true events, it doesn’t sugarcoat the reality of suicide ideation but it doesn’t glorify it either. It is clear that careful consideration was taken to tell this story with compassion.
Which other films do you think have authentic characters that are so relatable? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!
Blue was released on VOD on October 22, 2019.
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