David O'ConnellRogue
April 15th 2009 02:28
Perhaps it was a lazy, derivative backward step for director Greg Mclean after the astonishing international breakthrough of Wolf Creek; though tapping into the arousal of primal fears again, he’s content to unleash a CGI juggernaut on an unsuspecting crew instead of honing in on the depravity of another human monster. Though his 2007 follow-up fails on some levels, it isn’t squandered entirely with some neatly-staged thrills and tense set-pieces.
Bringing the Northern Territory to life with gorgeous cinematography which showcases the lush surrounds was the easy part; it’s a subtle manipulation too, lulling the audience into a false sense of security, for what fears could possibly be evoked from such serene perfection?
Kate Ryan (Radha Mitchell) has never left the place; she’s content with her life, happily chartering tourists through the tropical terrain on her boat. Her latest tour group, replete with sketchily-drawn stereotypes - including a gloomy American travel writer, Pete McKell (Michael Vartan), and almost unrecognisable John Jarrett - strikes trouble after a flare warning is fired just as they’re about to head back to base. Obligated to investigate, she heads off - grumbling tourists forced to tag along - in search of the flare’s source.
Just when the coast seems clear, a false alarm assumed, the boat is rocked from beneath and nearly overturned by a gigantic force. To their horror it seems they’ve stumbled upon the stomping ground of an angry and very territorial giant croc that has them “tagged”. With the boat disabled and all the passengers stranded on a soon-to-be-flooded swatch of dry land, panic sets in, visions of their suddenly lowly status on the food chain now tingling like bloody reveries in their imaginations.
Naturally, victims are picked off one by one as tensions are ratcheted up to breaking point; feeble attempts to claw themselves to safety only offer certain demises for the weak or unlucky amongst the group. After initially suggestive, fleeting glances at what they’re up against, the enormity of their opponent becomes apparent. A monstrosity it is – even if only of the CGI kind for the most part, and with belief suspended we hunker down for the expected wave of carnage.
Mclean has worked limited magic with an old-fashioned formula, setting an unpredictable and formidable monster upon a floundering, diminishing number of unprepared opponents. Addressing weaknesses whilst finding means of overcoming their foe with intelligence and cunning is never a smooth operation, and this familiar scenario provides no exception.
Kate, with her accentuated local twang, isn’t fit to stand in the shadow of Ellen Ripley or Sarah Conner but she does have the advantage of local knowledge and a sweet disposition – neither of which is much use, of course, in combating the primitive motivations of the biggest croc the effects designers could possibly conjure from their computer screens. Mitchell staves off the stupidity of her tourists for only so long however and though her resolute toughness wins her points, the odds of her outlasting any of them begin to thin in proportion to the amount of time remaining to conjure a solution.
With the stoic Vartan providing a stable, semi-heroic counterpoint, at least one survivor is guaranteed; a hardened local on the other hand, Neil (Sam Worthington), seems doomed by his heroics, behaviour which nearly always ensures a swift comeuppance, so fine is the line between valour and stupidity.
Mclean’s film is an entertaining ride, both unpretentious and unambitious it must be said, and surprisingly bloodless as well. The final showdown with the idling croc in its underground lair is nicely handled with silence and the weight of anticipation skillfully punctuating the prolonged tension. It's aided immeasurably by Francois Tetaz’s score which skillfully shifts gears from the evocative, melodic opening sequences to the pounding moments of terror; there’s a pulsing, ominous motif for the croc too, cleverly sidestepping John Williams’ Jaws, though not by much.
Bringing the Northern Territory to life with gorgeous cinematography which showcases the lush surrounds was the easy part; it’s a subtle manipulation too, lulling the audience into a false sense of security, for what fears could possibly be evoked from such serene perfection?
Kate Ryan (Radha Mitchell) has never left the place; she’s content with her life, happily chartering tourists through the tropical terrain on her boat. Her latest tour group, replete with sketchily-drawn stereotypes - including a gloomy American travel writer, Pete McKell (Michael Vartan), and almost unrecognisable John Jarrett - strikes trouble after a flare warning is fired just as they’re about to head back to base. Obligated to investigate, she heads off - grumbling tourists forced to tag along - in search of the flare’s source.
Radha Mitchell as Kate
Just when the coast seems clear, a false alarm assumed, the boat is rocked from beneath and nearly overturned by a gigantic force. To their horror it seems they’ve stumbled upon the stomping ground of an angry and very territorial giant croc that has them “tagged”. With the boat disabled and all the passengers stranded on a soon-to-be-flooded swatch of dry land, panic sets in, visions of their suddenly lowly status on the food chain now tingling like bloody reveries in their imaginations.
Naturally, victims are picked off one by one as tensions are ratcheted up to breaking point; feeble attempts to claw themselves to safety only offer certain demises for the weak or unlucky amongst the group. After initially suggestive, fleeting glances at what they’re up against, the enormity of their opponent becomes apparent. A monstrosity it is – even if only of the CGI kind for the most part, and with belief suspended we hunker down for the expected wave of carnage.
Mclean has worked limited magic with an old-fashioned formula, setting an unpredictable and formidable monster upon a floundering, diminishing number of unprepared opponents. Addressing weaknesses whilst finding means of overcoming their foe with intelligence and cunning is never a smooth operation, and this familiar scenario provides no exception.
Michael Vartan with Barry Otto during his cameo
Kate, with her accentuated local twang, isn’t fit to stand in the shadow of Ellen Ripley or Sarah Conner but she does have the advantage of local knowledge and a sweet disposition – neither of which is much use, of course, in combating the primitive motivations of the biggest croc the effects designers could possibly conjure from their computer screens. Mitchell staves off the stupidity of her tourists for only so long however and though her resolute toughness wins her points, the odds of her outlasting any of them begin to thin in proportion to the amount of time remaining to conjure a solution.
With the stoic Vartan providing a stable, semi-heroic counterpoint, at least one survivor is guaranteed; a hardened local on the other hand, Neil (Sam Worthington), seems doomed by his heroics, behaviour which nearly always ensures a swift comeuppance, so fine is the line between valour and stupidity.
Mclean’s film is an entertaining ride, both unpretentious and unambitious it must be said, and surprisingly bloodless as well. The final showdown with the idling croc in its underground lair is nicely handled with silence and the weight of anticipation skillfully punctuating the prolonged tension. It's aided immeasurably by Francois Tetaz’s score which skillfully shifts gears from the evocative, melodic opening sequences to the pounding moments of terror; there’s a pulsing, ominous motif for the croc too, cleverly sidestepping John Williams’ Jaws, though not by much.
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Comment by Lady Henrietta Muddling
Potter in a Harry
But his whole bent on film is, it's all about making money, and producing commercial trash.
I never entered the film industry to just make money. I entered it to write films. Well, he did as good a job of butchering mine as he could. But he's quite a nice guy. He didn't do it deliberately. He just doesn't know how to read a script. I got sick of explaining every scene to him.
Comment by Michelle Sweeney
Competition Queen
Always Learning
Cinema Voyage
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
Comment by Cibbuano
Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak
CGI, though... why? Why not a mechanical croc? Please!
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
Look forward to reading your review Michelle, just don't expect a masterpiece of the genre!
Matt, I agree it's somewhat of a missed opportunity but by the same token I don't dislike the film at all. I found it thoroughly entertaining for the most part.
Cibby, they made the croc so damn big! Perhaps it would have been impossible for it to have enough impact to make it work as a mechanical beast in scenes where it swiftly snatches victims for example. Even as a CGI monster it's pretty good value in a couple of scenes.
Comment by Natalina
My Life My Muse
Beta Girl Blog
I haven't seen this film, but I really enjoyed the movie "Primeval". Did you see it? I just loved the way it took a "monster" movie, but tied it into social commentary about war and genocide. Very surprising film.
This one sounds like good old fashioned fun.
Comment by Lady Henrietta Muddling
Potter in a Harry
I mean these guys are just like the characters in Altman's The Player. A film has to be like Rocky meets Mad Max on a crocodie farm before they'll take a risk on it.
From the screenwriting to post production, it's take a bit from this film, a bit from that, rip off a bit of music from somewhere along the way, and we're on a commercial winner.
Give me original films like Love Serenade any day.
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
Hey Natalina, Rogue is worth a look despite its flaws. I agree that CGI should be avoided at all costs too, but most filmmakers these days - especially the lazy ones - seem to adopt the exact opposite approach.
I've heard of Primeval but haven't got around to seeing it yet, thanks for the tip Natalina!
Comment by Bryn
Horrorphile
It's a good old fashioned monster movie, and Mclean and his editors do a fantastic job. This is a movie where CGI works, because trying to use a mechanical croc would've failed for the most part. I thought the croc effects was very impressively handled, especially during the lair sequence. They got the sense of weight and movement bang on. More blood and gore would've been nice, but that's just me. A few classic jump scares, and excellent extended jeopardy. The acting was solid. It's not quite as impressive on a second viewing on the small screen, and overall it doesn't nearly the same visceral and atmospheric intensity of Wolf Creek, but then Mclean played the Ace of Spades with that, so any follow up was gonna be a tall order.
If anyone's interested my complete review from when it came out is here
Comment by JohnDoe
Film & TV on DVD
i had fun with this film for what it was...shame it didn't have a scene where a hot female jumps in a swimming pool to open jaws of an Alligator that's in wait...oh that's already been done
Comment by Bryn
Horrorphile
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic