Last night, I watched a Lifetime film that originally aired in March, Bad Blood.

Why Was I Watching?

The main reason that I watched it was so I could get it off of my DVR.  I recorded Bad Blood when it originally aired in March, fully planning to promptly review it.  However, for whatever reason, I never got around to writing that review and Bad Blood sat, for 4 months, on my DVR.  Last night, I decided to rewatch Bad Blood, review Bad Blood, and finally erase Bad Blood!  (I need the space for all the shark movies that are going to be SyFy this week.)

What Was It About?

Bad Blood was a typical Lifetime mix of empowerment and exploitation.  Serial killer Oscar Marcus (Brett Rickaby) is dying of leukemia so he’s kidnapping, torturing, and murdering victims all across the southwest so that he can exchange his bad blood for their good blood.  (Or something like that — Bad Blood was not exactly an easy film to follow.)  However, because Oscar had a bone marrow transplant five years earlier, he’s not leaving his DNA behind at the crime scenes.  Instead, he’s leaving behind the DNA of his donor, Lauren (Taylor Cole).

And, since this is a Lifetime film, Lauren has both a mysterious past and a boyfriend involved in law enforcement.  However, when Lauren’s DNA starts to show up at crime scenes, that boyfriend is forced to arrest her.  (That’ll kill a relationship.)

However, Oscar rescues Lauren from the cops because he wants her blood.  And then Lauren escapes Oscar and teams up with her estranged father (Jeff Kober) to prove her innocence…

What Worked?

It’s strange.  I really didn’t like Bad Blood the first time I saw it but the second time, I discovered that it wasn’t as bad as I remembered.  There were a few strikingly atmospheric scenes towards the end of the film and there was something oddly charming about the film’s refusal to make any logical sense.

Jeff Kober was good as the irresponsible father and Brett Rickaby was a chillingly believable murderer.  The second time I watched the film, I better appreciated Taylor Cole’s performance as well.

What Did Not Work?

Bad Blood was not as bad as I remembered it being but it’s still not one of my favorite Lifetime films.  The pacing was off in a few key scenes and Lauren’s romance with the sheriff was pretty dull. As well, I didn’t care much for the film’s ending.  After what those people went through, everyone should have been a lot more traumatized.  Instead, it ended in a typically upbeat Lifetime sort of way.

“Oh my God!  Just like me!” Moments

I related to Lauren’s relationship with her dad.  Plus, Lauren’s a runner just like me!  (Lauren was also an auto mechanic, which was a totally “Oh my God!  Definitely not like me!” moment.)

Lessons Learned

DNA is a lot trickier than I thought.