The Grey: Review By kiion

Liam Neeson has been an actor for what seems a very long time. However it is only in recent years that this great actor has become both a house hold name , and a bona fide action superstar. The Grey is a movie that allows for the more action side of Liam Neeson's performances to be used. To say he fits the character he portrays within this movie is an understatement, he is the concrete foundation to this movie. He drives the main plot, much like he drives the survivors of this movie to the ultimate climax. Throughout his career he has thought many things in the sense of making movies exciting, however within this movie he fights not only wolves that are hunting him but also the will to survive both the physical attributes as well as the mental abilities that are needed to survive nature in all its ferocity. It is through these two conflicts that this film's narrative runs, through showing them as the most exciting that they can be has allowed The Grey to become a movie that will have audiences on the edge of their seats throughout. It is sheer adrenaline in movie form, exactly how an action survivor movie should be.

Liam Neeson's character, Ottway, is a hunter that is employed by an oil drilling company, whose job role is to kill the many surrounding wolves that may attack the other employees. On the last day having suffered a lot of depression, Ottway plans on committing suicide. With the rifle in his move, however, he hears the howl of a wolf and stops. Traveling aboard a plane on the journey home, the plane hits turbulence and crash lands in a wilderness. After rescuing all survivors from the carnage, Ottway understands that he must lead the five other survivors to safety. The catch to this plan however, is that the survivors are now being hunted by an extremely hostile pack of wolves adamant on their life's. With this new issue being risen, Ottway must step up all his plans in hopes of surviving long enough to garner help. This is the basic plot line to one of the most exciting films that have been released this year. From the crash onwards the film will keep audiences on tender hooks and the emotional attachments to the small band of survivors will be played on throughout. For such a small group of spoken roles, the screenplay writers have done wonders in keeping this film entertaining throughout. With expertly written lines found throughout, it is to be noted that in the respect to the the small cast this film is possibly one of the best written films ever. The narrative works throughout and although the ending will annoy many people it is a good way to end such a interesting film without dropping any of the momentum that the film had picked up on the way. Liam Neeson is perfect in his role, through the plot and his acting this film is allowed to flow smoothly, audience members are only asked to buckle in and enjoy the ride.

For a movie based around the idea of a group of wolves hunting a band of survivors, it was a highly important element to get right in the way that the hunts were portrayed on the screen. This film does not disappoint. Although all the hunts that are shown are similar in style, each one has a different twist on the way it is handled, as such keeps the deaths found throughout the film to be different and fresh to each another. On more than one occasions it will be expected for the audience to become so engrossed in the life's of the characters that a hunt will take them by surprise, this is a great way to show these elements of the narrative therefore, as it will keep audience members on the edge of their seats throughout and never allows the movies pace to slow down. Throughout the film the wolves always appear menacing. With consistently perfect acting of fear from the main casts, and expertly shot scenes involving the hunters, the scenes that the wolves are shown within always seem correct in what they are trying to achieve

The initial plane crash is shot in such a way, that it is the first major scene of elation that the audience is introduced too. The wreckage is there to be seen by everyone, for this reason this scenario is shown in a highly realistic manner, this just adds quality to the overall feel of the film. It is to be noted that the sound editing used within this movie is done in such a high quality. Audience members should allow themselves to be taken in by the sounds that they can hear. The sound editing within this movie helps to set all the moods that are found throughout. They help highlight all the emotions and feelings that can found within the movie. This in turn will help viewers become engrossed with this movie more. Within this film the sounds that are used are just as beautiful as the sequences that incorporate them. It really is a masterclass.

Although this film is not perfect, as an adrenaline rush it is as close as it can be. Excitement is rarely witnessed on screen in such quantities as it is within this movie. With some gory scenes of death found within this movie, those who do not enjoy such things should probably give this movie a miss. For those who enjoy high octane action fun, the Grey could be seen as the perfect movie for you. Liam Neeson is once again proving people right in the belief that he is a leading man, his portrayal is the strongest element to this film.