Review of The Grey (2012) by Habee S — 10 Sep 2013

From the outside 'The Grey' bears all the trappings of an action film. It's not. After the first few acts, you may think you're watching a survival story, a celebration of human perseverance in the face of almost insurmountable odds. You're not. 'The Grey' is many things, but "punching wolves" is pretty low down on its list of priorities; celebrating the triumph of man over nature doesn't even make the list. It's not until deep into the movie that the nub of this story becomes clear; this film is actually about a group of flawed and frail people dealing with the realisation that they are facing the certainty of their own deaths; it's about how each of those individuals will ultimately choose how to face their final moments.

It sounds bleak - and it is - but there is nevertheless something uplifting about 'The Grey'; it has a humanistic undertow that really got its hooks into me. The film does not shirk from showing us the ugliness of human nature - the anger, the fear, the brutality - but it never succumbs to cynicism; the overall feeling I was left with was a film of compassion and empathy. It shows us that as human beings - rational, thinking creatures - we have the potential to master the terror and despair that walks hand-in-hand with the knowledge of our inevitable end. It shows us that we can refuse to surrender to our primordial instincts when faced with that most primal of fears - non-existence, oblivion. With courage we can retain our dignity in the face of our own extinction.

Highly recommended.