A film that posits a world in which Indigenous people are immune from an epidemic that sees the dead rise and attempt to devour the brains of the living fails to adequately address the socio-economic dimensions fueling the crises facing many Indigenous communities, critics are saying.
Blood Quantum, the work of Mi’gMaq writer/director Jeff Barnaby, made its debut at the Toronto International Film Festival.
“The film really did a great job of depicting animated corpses attempting to eviscerate a group of survivors,” said festival attendee Chris Bela, who took in a screening of the film.
“But its failure to address the politics surrounding genetics and citizenship really threw me off and I have a hard time believing it now.”
Others, however, decried the central plot of the film — that only Indigenous people are immune from a zombie apocalypse — saying it’s a clear case of reverse racism and calling for its immediate ban.
