THERE ARE MAJOR SPOILERS IN THIS POST AT THE END!!!
I put it in the title but its always nice to reiterate things, so don't come running to me moaning... I warned you so don't be an idiot please. If you don't want to know then close this or if you've already seen The Grey and are interested in my view then stick around.
This is another Liam Neeson film and in my opinion its one of his best unfortunately I don't think it's well known which is a shame because it deserves a lot of recognition. The Grey was directed by Joe Carnahan who also directed the A-team film (staring Liam Neeson) Producing the film along side Carnahan is Ridley Scott who we all know was responsible for the Alien films. If I'm honest the film actually has quite an obscure cast, although over the years since its release I have come to recognise some of the actors for example:
Frank Grillo who is in "Warrior" as Joel Edgertons trainer and he is set to appear in the new Captain America film as Crossbones
James Badge Dale played one of the villains in Iron Man 3 who possessed Extremis and recently appeared in World War Z.
Anyway, The film is based on a group of men led by Liam Neeson, they all work in Alaska protecting an oil drilling team from Wolves. On the last day Liam's character John Ottoway plans to commit suicide but doesn't follow through. On the way home their plane is hit by a blizzard and the plane crashes killing a handful of people, Ottoway takes control of his team and quickly learns that they are in the wolves territory meaning the wolves will hunt and kill them. The film mainly focuses on the groups struggle to survive and unfortunately it does not work for all of them.
I have heard a lot of hate towards the film especially from animal experts and I can actually understand why. The wolves behaviour in this film is unrealistic compared to a real pack of wolves in the wild however I couldn't care, it bothers me a bit that the wolves behaviour is exaggerated but it adds a lot of depth to the film and emphasises the idea of survival, with the group facing other problems like mother nature they also have to deal with a pack of wolves looking for blood.
The main thing to remember about this film is that it has heart and soul, there is meaning in it and that's what makes it such a powerful film in my view, it's not just about guys killing wolves its about the nature of man and their response to a situation, as well as that this film also focuses on religious views which again cause a bit of controversy because Liam's character is Atheist.
Liam's performance is stunning, he's comes across as a hard working leader but inside he's broken and vulnerable; you learn why later on. A memorable scene (besides the ending) is Liam's... confrontation with god, he is so desperate to believe and receive a miracle that he shouts for gods help and thats an interesting turn his character takes and its very real. Whether your religious or not, you will turn to god one day because there's no one else there and it became a very touching scene for me because I don't believe in god but there will be a time when I will turn to him because I won't know what to do.
I would class this film as a thriller because those wolves jump out of nowhere! so that kept me anticipated for another attack and what was very interesting is that you don't always get a good look at the wolves because the film is very dark and the camera moves very quickly mirroring the wolves fast pace which actually made it quite scary for me, a particular scene that has been in-bedded in my memory is a long shot of glowing wolf eyes and that terrified me, you didn't see anything else other than a dancing fire and several pairs of yellow dots.
The entire film really is beautiful, the scenery is amazing, the actors are terrific and the conflicting emotion the film creates is overwhelming and I will be talking about the film scene, this is where anyone who wants to watch it... LEAVES!
Before you go I would just like to say thank you for reading.
Until next time :)
The Ending
The reason I want to talk about the ending is because although I cry a lot at films this is one that can change my mood instantly.
Liam Neeson has just lost the final survivor and he is alone, without realising he stumbles onto the wolves den (how inconvenient!) and is confronted by the Alpha male. Liam begins to stack the wallets of his fallen comrades and places his own on top... this is when the tears start!
Liam studies an image of his wife who is actually dying, a vision of Ottoway and his wife reveals that she is suffering from a disease and is slowly dying, we don't know what she is dying from or whether she is actually dead which may explain Liam's suicide attempt which is picked up by one of his friends. Ottoway faces the fact that he is going to die but realises that he should not go down without a fight. The music starts and he readies himself for his final fight using anything he can to form weapons:
Duck tape
3 glass bottles
a knife
and a watch
The final bit shows him reciting a poem that explains in the scene brilliantly:
Once more into the fray.
Into the last good fight I'll ever know.
Live and die on this day
Live and die on this day
Then BAM! he and the wolf charge at each other, cut to black!
Just brilliant, the only thing that killed it was the post credit scene that I have refused to watch for 3 years, I know what happens but I will not watch it because it kills that powerful scene.
I have no idea why I love this scene so much but like most films I think it goes down to the choice of music which made the scenario a lot sadder (the song is called into the fray)
What is so powerful about this scene is that his fate is left unknown even with the post credit scene but if you ignore that scene the ending is so much better.
I would give this film a solid 7/10
It had its issues but at the end of the day not only did it have me on the edge of my seat but it made me tear up and that must mean it did something right! thats all I have to say, just to end it... here are a few images from the final scene which stood out.
Ottoway see's his wife for the last time, she tells him not to be afraid and I'm always touched by his smile.
This is the crucial scene where Ottoway gets mad, he's not going out without a fight!
This image is just before he leaps into battle, its the transformation from his slightly nervous face to this aggressive concentration that sticks out the most in this scene... also his blue eyes stick out like a sore thumb.
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