Technically speaking THE GREY is a first class action thriller…
It’s got all the elements of fright, surprise, action and manly survival one could ask for. And its primary setting of the sub-arctic Alaskan wilderness is relentless as duplicated for the film in Canada.
THE GREY stars Liam Neeson as an unlikely hero who, along with a group of oil-rig roughnecks, are the only survivors left and stranded after their plane crashes into this godforsaken icy horrorland.
But if the jet crash and the Alaskan winter wasn’t brutal enough, the survivors now face a new enemy, a vicious packs of rogue wolves.
And they’re hungry.
One by one the men are brutally attacked and torn to pieces by these four-legged demons. Yet as the group shrinks in numbers they continue to forge ahead through the snow and raging blizzards in search of lifesaving humanity. All the while losing their battle of trying to fight off these hounds from hell.
And so it goes for nearly two relentless hours of screen time until it’s down to just Neeson, the elements and the wolves.
Can he and will he finally survive the final showdown between man and beast?
Well, the filmmakers here come dangerously close in showing this horrific one-on-one—that is until the screen suddenly goes dark and the credits begin to roll.
Hint: Try to stay through the entire end-credits for one final brief scene. It may not be the big payoff you were hoping for but it certainly points the conclusion in the right direction.
One final observation.
The plane crash, as staged from the perspective of inside the jet’s cabin, is unlike any I’ve ever witnessed in a movie. Absolutely terrifying. Hats off to the filmmakers and especially the so-called set designers and decorators.
Liam Neeson, Dermot Mulroney, Frank Grillo and James Badge Dale in director Joe Carnahan’s THE GREY, raising 3 out of 5 menacing fingers.
JACK GOES TO THE MOVIES Friday mornings at 6:40 a.m. on NewsRadio KMBZ Am & Fm / Also Friday’s at 8:20 a.m. on 1660 RADIO BACH / and anytime on Time-Warner Cable’s K.C. ON DEMAND, Channel 411.
Gangs of Wolves?
Does Liam need the dough or is he just bored? Why is he doing schlock like this? I’ve gotta feeling this will be at Redbox in 6 weeks.
What the movie missed
After eating the roughnecks the wolves had consumed so much meth they wouldn’t sleep for a week. They also wouldn’t eat.
Liam is just following in the footsteps of all movie stars. Eventually the good scrips stop coming but the schlock keeps coming. If he doesn’t take the money someone will.
I’m thinking mini-liquor bottles broken and held between your knuckles is a back idea.
Liam Neeson punching wolves in the face with knuckles covered in broken glass is his own Connery/Zardoz moment.
Love it.
Unlikely Hero?
“I don’t know who you are. I don’t know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don’t have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills; skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let my daughter go now, that’ll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don’t, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you.”
Ever since Taken, Liam Neeson has become some sort of a middle-aged, everyman badass. Those wolves don’t stand a chance against him.
Continued Great Work Jack
P.S. you should have gotten TWO TICKETS, oh well, you looked great….had a nice time at Stans party….
A Better name for movie would be Iiam and his Girly Men
Really? That’s the plot? People fighting off wolves? Do the wolves at least have laser beams?
Geeesh, this is a lame plot.
Plane crashes and some busted mini bottles is best weapons they can find. Just goes to show how stupid sreenwriters in Hollywood think people are. One trashed plane would be so full of weapons to deal with wolves from seat parts to ripped off chucks of metal.
Suppose to be oil rig roughnecks in this story sounds to me like a bunch of girly men who together couldn’t deal with some wolves.
Should have stayed with the plane and done a story on how they ate each other for food. Least that would be something people could believe and understand.
Joe Carnahan’s a cool dude. Tends to do better work when he’s directing his own material.
Carnahan
I think I might like this is I’m a fan of his work…Narc especially , the way better than I expected A-Team and yes, even Smokin’ Aces. They might not be Oscar-worthy (who cares?!) offerings, but they’re manly flicks and that’s a pretty rare commodity in Hollywood these days.
Listen When I Spreak
“You hear me, Hitler? I’ve made a list. I’ve checked it twice. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don’t let the Jews go, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you. Then I will kill some wolves.”