Review of The Grey (2012) by Knownothing — 31 Jan 2012

I'm curious why the wolf "experts" went to see this movie in the first place. Hadn't they seen the trailer in which Neeson is shown taping a knife and small broken bottles to his hands in preparation for hand-to-paw combat with a wolf? Wasn't that enough of a clue to indicate that, er, it's a movie? You know, the type of mass media where entertainment usually takes precedent over fact? Not for a minute did I believe what I was seeing was an accurate representation of wolf behavior, nor did I leave the theater hating wolves.

On the contrary, I left the theater feeling highly entertained, and with a heightened curiosity about natural wolf behavior. Subsequently I learned that although there are recorded incidents of wolves attacking humans, they are negligible.

Wolves are naturally shy of humans. But I didn't go to the theater thinking I was about to see a National Geographic special either. Neeson was terrific playing a very sympathetic character trying to deal with the great sadness in his life.

The slow unraveling of the truth behind his deep sadness is one of the strengths of the movie. But what I loved best about this movie was the fact that it did not turn out to be the kind of macho guys' movie the trailer led you to believe.

There are some very moving scenes in the movie. Neeson helping a victim of the plane crash deal with the inevitable result of his horrific injuries was for me was quite moving. And the plane crash itself was all too realistic.

Yeah, it was pretty riveting. And you'll be surprised to learn of the significance of the scene in which Neeson faces off with the wolf. Finally, don't stay for the extra scene you get after the credits roll.

That extra scene, which lasts only several-seconds, is an unnecessary smear on a perfectly finished movie canvas.