Bryan Says...![]() I was immediately intrigued by The Grey the moment I heard people comparing it to Frozen, a favorite thriller (or chiller?) of mine that is reviewed here. However, aside from some snow, and wolves...I really don't see the resemblance. Especially when it comes to the tension that Frozen so wonderfully disturbed me with.
Not that The Grey falls completely flat. Liam Neeson is great as always; No matter what character he is portraying, he is a believable, likeable guy. Some moments are totally shocking - like the plane crash sequence that sets up the entire story of eight men surviving in the vast blizzards of Alaska. The sound mixing is so unbelievable incredible in this quick scene that you may find yourselves having trouble to catch your breath in the moments after. The biggest issue that frost-bites the film on the ass is its predictability. It becomes a game of wondering who will go next and in what ridiculously over-the-top way it will be, similarly to Final Destination. The problem is that The Grey presents these moments completely earnestly...so it's kind of like seeing that awkward girl from your creative writing class read a poem about sex. Though the thriller isn't completely captivating or exciting through the whole running time, I do have to give them props for such a surprisingly touching finale. The haunting (though not completely original) score moves over you like a chilly breeze, and as we see Neeson's life flash before his eyes, it's like we were there for all of it as well. When the credits rolled, I momentarily thought I loved the movie...because I loved the ending. The Grey gets 2.5 buckets from me. Rewatch Value: I find this one just as forgettable as Taken. I certainly won't seek it out for a rewatch, but I'll probably enjoy myself enough if I end up seeing it again. | Emily says...![]() In its last five minutes, The Grey manages to become more than a typical survivor movie. The breath-taking scenery, the bewitching music and the solid acting all come together to create a masterpiece: five minutes of raw emotion and fantastic film-making.
Those five minutes, though, are all the film can truly boost. Otherwise, this survivor story in which Liam Neeson leads an oil-rigging team after their plane crashes in the Alaskan wilderness proves just as cliché as its plot sounds. Extra entrails and blood are really the only aspects that set it apart from the dozen other wilderness films. To be fair, though, the film did try to craft characters deeper than the average survival flick. But even though audiences get a glimpse into the personal lives of each survivor, the utter hopelessness of the situation ensures that audience members don’t get too attached. Who wants to connect with characters that will—at least it seems—inevitably end up dead? Too much optimism can be obvious, but too little makes for an un-engaged audience. The dreadfully dark mood of the film is only magnified by the insurmountable antagonists: the wolves. At first they appear only occasionally, but then suddenly they’re everywhere—every step the survivors take are stalked by these blood-thirsty creatures who at times seem more human than animal. Basically, they are way too contrived. The Grey didn't manage to elevate the status of the survivor movie, but, overall, it didn’t really harm it either--an unmemorable but decently enjoyable film. I give The Grey 3 buckets of popcorn. Rewatch Value: I probably won't revisit this film, mostly because I'll probably forget it exists in a week. |