Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good dogs, but why let the cat let out of the bag so soon?, 14 Mar 2008
A good film essentially; a cast of characters you would be hard pressed to feel any sympathy for but this is not detrimental to the film. A group of young offenders go to a prison service owned remote island, a kind of outdoor team building/boot camp affairs. I did find it a bit unrealistic that half a dozen very dangerous offenders (murderer, bank robber, serial sex offender etc) would just be accompanied by one staff member, but small point.
They meet some females who are basically there for the same reason and the film revolves around an individual with an array of weapons and dogs hunting them down. Strangely I thought, the 'maniac' and his motive are revealed very early on, soon after the first killing which does take some of the suspense and guesswork out of it especially as there were another couple of strands which could have been used to keep the viewer guessing. Very watchable for what it is, has been compared to scum, dog soldiers and Lord of the flies but is not quite as good as any of those.
I would say be wary of another review that reveals the protaganist but it is revealed so prematurely anyway it probably wouldn't matter too much if you found out beforehand. All in all good effects, nothing wrong with the story and acting fine, worth a watch.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
You're not feeling rehabilitated?, 27 Jul 2008
Sometimes I like my horror faire served up nice and rare, with plenty of blood left in it to gush out each time you bite in to it. Wilderness is sort of like that, taking a cast of pretty unlikable characters, throwing them in a desperate situation in an isolated environment, and letting the blood flow wherever it may. Admittedly, it can be hard to win me over with a team of bullies and whiners, but director Michael J. Basset proved himself well up to the challenge. Wilderness won't find itself a spot on my list of favorite horror movies, but it does its whole survival horror thing quite well indeed.
The Wilderness of this film's title refers to a rugged, uninhabited island that used to be used for soldier survival training but now offers itself as an ideal place for troubled young people to get a pungent taste of reality and hopefully learn to work together rather than continue in their juvenile delinquent ways. Our gang of misfits land themselves a week's stay there following the most unfortunate death of one of their own. It turns out that they are far from alone there, however. Meeting up with a small, similar group of juvenile delinquent girls doesn't bother anyone, apart from the two group leaders, but finding themselves hunted by a mad killer (and his ferocious dogs) is generally looked upon as bad news all the way around. There isn't a lot of suspense built around the killer's identity, as that is revealed pretty early on. The focus is more on the teens' interaction as their numbers dwindle and the psychotic thought processes that landed them all in a Young Offenders Institution to begin with rear their ugly and increasingly violent heads. Can these malcontents somehow work together as a team in order to survive? Uh, no.
There's not an excessive amount of gore by any means, but Wilderness does deliver a few impressive little scenes. Don't expect a lot of character development here, though. The only potentially interesting character is Callum (Toby Kebbell), the new guy, but the air of mystery he brings with him never amounts to anything. Even though he's the only one with enough gumption to stand up to the bully Steve (Steve Wight), he never manages to distinguish himself from the others. As much as I hated the little runt, I have to say that the character of Steve pretty much made the movie for me. The killer ultimately provides little in the way of satisfaction, and not just because we know his identity so early on. Steve makes sure we don't get bored.
Wilderness may not have a lot in the way of originality to offer, but it is a pretty taut thriller that throws us gorehounds a few juicy little bones along the way. Don't expect the psychological undertones of a Lord of the Flies or the good vs. evil dichotomy of The Most Dangerous Game, though. This film is too raw and primal to play any of those psychological games. I found it pretty much impossible to like any of these characters; heck, I didn't even like the dogs, and I'm the biggest animal lover you're likely to find. It says something for Michael J. Basset's directorial skills that I liked this film as much as I did - it can't be easy to make a good movie when none of your characters has any redeeming qualities whatsoever.
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12 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
There is gore but where is the suspence and horror?, 15 Dec 2006
British Cinema has given us a few good horror movies in the last years, 28 Days Later, Dog Soldiers, The Descent but I should have know better than to order this film, since I didn't like Michael J. Bassett's Deathwatch much either, that wasn't bad but it had little idea of where it is going.
Here it is the same story again, there is plenty of stuff there, strong characters - and mind you young offenders can make for very strong characters. There is plenty of gore, a few jokes and cool scenes, it even has a dash of Lord of the flies. But it is missing horror and suspence. And that is missing a lot for a horror movie! Then the director doesn't seem to be sure where he is taking the film so he takes it in every direction without focus.
One major concern is that I could not sympathise with the young offenders and the movie is predictable. The scenes with the dogs are well carried out but add little or nothing to movie culture. I laughed several times but never once was I scared or frightened. Alex Reid puts in a nice preformance and the acting for the most part is good but can do little for a movie that simply lacks the essentials for a good horror movie. And as everyone knows good acting isn't essential to a horror movie.
I should point out that I am 36 and can imagine that teenagers might get more of a thrill but not me. Far from boring, it is no masterpiece and it isn't a movie I feel compelled ever to watch again. Sad since I bought it.
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