The Grey (2012)
February 18, 2012 Leave a comment
Rated: R
Genre: Action/Survival/Drama
Info: IMDb
Directed By: Joe Carnahan
Starring: Liam Neeson, Dermot Mulroney, Frank Grillo
“The Grey” is the gripping tale of Ottway (Neeson), a stone faced hunter hired by an oil company to kill wolves and protect workers in a remote region of Alaska. In the beginning of the movie we see that Ottway no longer wishes to live and almost takes his own life. As fate would have it, his plane ride home crashes and it becomes his job to ensure the survival of those who did not die in the crash. What follows is a harrowing story of survival in which Ottway must struggle with both his inner demons and those roaming the woods around him.
I noticed a lot of people at the theatre had mixed feelings about this movie. Predictably, today’s ADD generation of movie goers were delighted during the action parts, but just could not handle the suspense or story. I, however, enjoyed this movie. Survival stories are slowly beginning to pop their head into entertainment with shows like “I survived” and “I shouldn’t be alive” and movies such as “127 hours”. This story is one that will keep you rooting for the survivors as they move inches towards civilization and eventual rescue.
The survivors are faced with some pretty rough hardships. The freezing cold and weather conditions. Starvation. Injuries. And worst of all, their plane crashed right in the middle of wolf hunting territory. Neeson and his gang of survivors are viciously hunted by weirdly large and aggressive CGI wolves (the viciousness of these wolves being the most Hollywood-esque aspect of the entire film). One by one, the survivors are picked off, either by the elements or by the wolves. No two guys really die the same, which was pretty cool. Also, each survivor is sculpted out and given unique characteristics and back stories, which separates this movie from a horror movie where people hardly even have names. You find yourself getting attached to certain characters and then being a bit upset when they bite it.
I enjoyed watching Neeson’s character do all that he can to stay alive, even though he is proven to be suicidal, just so that he can get the other survivors home to their families. The struggle that he goes through seems a bit too real, which ropes you into the film. The ending of the movie seems to be what some people were bothered by the most, but I felt that it was very fitting and satisfying.he highlight of this movie for me was the plane crash, which is so surreal, it’s scary. Also, there is a little tid-bit after the credits, but nothing really worth staying for.