User reviews

So far, Blumhouse Films has done no wrong in my eyes. You can pretty much cover your eyes, point your finger to any one of their titles, and still come up a winner. "Family Blood," unfortunately, wasn't one of those.

Yes, it's a vampire story. And, yes, there were variations to that mythos on display here. But that couldn't make up for the fact that the movie was a long, slow-burning chore with characters you don't really care about. At least the filmmakers didn't throw the whole AA/NA concept down your throat...that much.

I loved the premise and unique spin to a vampire movie but it jumped all over the place and was just made poorly. I hope someone tried the idea again with better directing.

Remember Vinessa Shaw? She was the lead female (Excluding the witches) in cult favorite Hocus Pocus (1993). Since then she's done.........and then there was.........and who could forget? Erm, stuff?

Here she leads as a former drug addict turned vampire and the affect it has on her and her two children. I can't help but feel like the whole movie was one big metaphor for addiction.

There is a problem though and it's a big one. The movie is unforgivably boring, so boring in fact I fell asleep about 1/3 of the way through and had to watch the thing from scratch again the next day.

It's SO lifeless, the characters simply aren't likeable and honestly until the last few minutes nothing happens. On top of that I see people claiming this is a new spin on the tired vampire formula, my question is how? How is this a new spin? This has been done before, the whole thing is devoid of originality.

Not one for fans of vampire cinema or for that matter cinema period.

The Good:

.......nope

The Bad:

I actually fell asleep and had to watch it again

So boring

Lifeless nonsense

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

Vinessa Shaw has nothing to contribute to the industry

Regular vampires > Twilight Vampires > These vampires

Watched this with a couple of friends, the movie was very generic and boring, overdone plot and had forgettable characters, wouldn't recommend this 3/10

When it comes to modern Horror, lowered expectations have been serving me quite well for over a decade now. Think about it, it's a lot easier to enjoy a film even when it's mediocre and below if one's expectations are for a mediocre and below viewing experience. It even allows for a few pleasant surprises, when one of these films turn out to be good. In the case of Family Blood, not expecting a masterpiece (and not getting one) has made it so I actually enjoyed it, albeit to a limited extent.

Considering this title doesn't currently have a synopsis and the limited summary gives very little details - I consider most details (even those one finds out in the first 30 minutes) as spoilers and will refrain from mentioning them. Suffice it to say that the best part about Family Blood, in my opinion, is the portraying of protagonist Ellie's attempts to cope with her addictions, both her original one and her new one. The acting is also great, especially by the younger cast, i.e. Ellie's children Kyle and Amy who are forced to see their mother spiraling out of control.

Both IMDB and Netflix have this title tagged as Horror as well as Thriller, which in my opinion is utterly misleading and almost deceptive. Three or four Horror scenes and a plot revolving around a single element usually considered a Horror component do not make a Horror film. Family Blood is a good enough Drama and quite suspenseful at times, but it is far from being actually scary in any way. As an addict myself (clean and sober, going on seven years, yay me) I got some added emotional value out of watching this, but I doubt most people would find this title to be more than average, at best.

In summary, Family Blood is not unwatchable and could even be quite enjoyable, with lowered expectations. It's one of these films available on Netflix which are suspenseful enough to enjoy and not enough scary or horrific to ruin a good meal or snack. Not really recommended, not really not recommended, just average. You might enjoy it, you might not.

This is one of the most terrible movies i have ever seen in my life, poor story telling in a very slow tempo. Really don't waste your time, you have been warned!

This movie was a slow burn kind of, but it is really smart, and I thought a unique take on the type of movie it is. 5/10 would rewatch this with a friend.

Different from what you might be used to but with that comes intrigue. Only complaint is that despite the slow process, character development was kind of a miss, as well as certain aspects of the movie where they had a chance to totally invent itself since it was a pretty original idea. Instead they fell back on tired ideas. When it comes to casting not to bad pretty good fits except for a role that really wasn't too important. Ajiino Alexus did a fine job but doesn't pass for a high school kid, which falls on the casting director. If you have time give it a watch.

An attempt on a very over done plot. This was boring, slow, pointless and very disappointing considering its a BH movie. Not worth the time.

Decently cast & acting,was overall ok. Cinematography felt amateur,editing was poor. Bad weather? Need something to watch? Check it out.

Interesting Twist on the genre. Combination of horror and drama which I love.

I just watched Family Blood on Netflix, knowing that it hadn't been favorably reviewed so my expectations were lowered. I'm still a bit surprised by the low rating on here (currently a 4.3), the film has a lot going for it, but also has it's share of issues. First off, the production values on this one are excellent, especially assuming this was likely a lower budgeted film. But a great looking and sound film does not make a film great. The story is pretty interesting, if nothing totally new. A mother of two teenagers who is trying to overcome a drug addiction becomes a vampire (via another vampire) and then begins to deal with her new addiction to blood. The blood addiction being compared to drugs is very heavy handed, but that's where this one redeems itself a bit. It focuses more on drama than horror, and so if you're looking for straight up horror this one is not for you, however if you like some drama in the mix, you might want to give it a shot. I enjoyed the slow pace, as I mentioned before, my expectations were that it was heavily focused on drama and so I didn't feel disappointed in the lack of horror on screen. However there are numerous unnecessary "jump" scares (that didn't make me jump) where they are just too forced. Also how many times are people going to call out a character's name? Holy! Half the dialogue in this was just saying the a name of a character, often multiple times over. The biggest issue to me though was the editing. I don't mean every cut, but most scene transitions were handled clumsily. It seemed like they needed to fill a gap in between scenes and transitions were awkward. Characters felt like they just appeared and disappeared as the the filmmakers needed at any moment during a scene. They'd wander down a hallway for no real reason and then they'd be somewhere else entirely a couple of shots later. It was strange.

Overall the story is decent, if maybe sometimes a bit slow, and it gets bogged down by some odd editing choices. The actors do a commendable job, and the cinematography is great. If you're looking for horror then skip it, if you are looking for something more about the drama with horror elements then it might be worth a shot.

I always like a good scary movie, but this one isn't scary or good. Absolutely NOTHING happens the first 30 minutes, and it gets worse from there. The only cast member i was familiar with was James Ransome, who starred in 'Ken Park'...and I can still see his famous scene from that movie in my mind's eye, and believe me, it was 100 times scarier than his role here (Google it). I have no idea where Netflix finds these turkeys. It seems for every decent flick, there are ten that should never have seen the light of day, and I'm being generous. Don't waste your time.

I gave this movie a go after reading reviews really wish I hadn't bothered nuff said

Well this movie was so boring. I believe it was one of the most boring films that I've ever seen. I felt so tired after watching it which didn't happen any time before. God don't let create such bad as this one any more.

Family Blood is such a curious film, on paper it sounded like something I'd have really enjoyed. Unfortunately I didn't, I normally like slow, engaging horror films, I can cope with an ambling pace, but this takes it to extremes, I was bored from start to finish, so much so I had to spool through parts. The acting was decent, but the editing and production really does let it down. At times it felt more like melodrama then horror, this odd blurring between genres may suit some, but I just felt bored, there was something about the feel of the movie I just didn't like, maybe it was the story itself.

I can't really find many positive things to say sadly. 3/10

I do not recommend this movie unless you're a vampire enthusiast, otherwise its a big nono. 3 stars is just for the actors.

One of the worst out there. Boring, dull, lacking , overdone and a waste of time.

Had no idea what this was, however ,I was Totally surprised. It has to do with a real addiction and one that is an even more deadly kind, VAMPIRISM. It is a slowly paced film with a great lead up to the dread. That performances are all top notch, especially the young son. He has watched his mother go from a drug addiction too often to get help with a to no avail. His disappointment watching his mother slip back to her habit only this time out it is one that he would never imagine.I also must mention the sound. I had to mute the sound at least three time thinking there was something coming from somewhere other than the film. It was very creepy to say the least. I will watch this again, it was that good. I think a lot of the negative comments are due to the fact that there was very little blood. There really did not need to be.

I liked the story line. I liked the slow and steady pace. I really enjoy movies with those qualities. I also love that it's not a volume roller coaster. You know, louder than hell and then suddenly the actors are whispering and then loud again and back and forth. I hate riding the volume buttons on my remote as I'm watching a movie. What I didn't like is how dark it was. I love a dark themed movie but I can't stand when I can't see everything on the screen. I know that may not make sense to a lot of people but there's a difference between a dark movie and a poorly lit movie. But that's just me. My two cents.

Plot: fine, cool. Basic vampire movie. Nothing new, but not terrible.

It was the characters I had a problem with. Every single one was so flat and boring. You couldn't make any emotional connection with them. Then there was this constant flip flop of emotions towards other characters.

The scares were minimal and basic.

Honestly, don't waste your time on this one. It was a bore rather than a b movie.

The premise is good, but this movie takes a long time to go nowhere. I fast forwarded and it was still too slow. Just people looking at each other in judgement after they do something awkward or weird happens. It is more of a sad drama than a horror movie.