A Blast makes its point clear from the opening scene. Everyone deserves the right to freedom, choice and happiness. In the face of national crisis, in this case Greece, not everyone gets those rights, and its people goes down with the ship. There is truth in its biting cynicism and just like its title, it promises a turbulent ride. Unfortunately it suffers from an unnecessarily shuffled structure. The main timeline is confusing, but presumed the day that Maria fulfils the fantasy of someone who's in trouble and manages to run away from her family, country and problems.
The rest of it flashes to when she first meets her husband (who she has to endure a long distance relationship with) to when its revealed that her mother hasn't paid taxes for her business and their family has to pay the price. Too often does the film appear to cut to a flashback for no good reason and the film feels muddled for it. Granted, it does conjure the stressed emotions it wants and show the stages of life, but it's plagued by scenes of contrivances and lapses of irrationality. It's bolstered by strong performances, particularly from its leading lady Angeliki Papoulia coupled with great intimate but wide cinematography. A Blast does what it says on the tin to convey the damage of financial crisis but at the cost of severe untidiness.
7/10
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