Director: Patrick Magee
Year: 2018
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Creature Feature
Plot:
Taking a trip through the Pacific Northwest, a young couple intending to reunite themselves find that an accident which strands them in the wilderness is the least of their worries when they have to contend with a group of locals as well as a vicious killer creature in the woods with them.
Review:
For the most part, this was an exceptionally enjoyable creature feature. Among the better qualities on display is the fact that this one really utilizes the creature feature action to absolutely stellar results here. The accident that propels them into the scenario, hitting the mauled victim on the side of the road and being pelted with rocks while trying to report the incident which throws them into the river and deeper into the forest, is incredibly effective while utilizing a rather overlooked true-to-life account of encounters where the creatures would repel unwanted visitors by throwing rocks at people. This adds a nice bit of realism to the situation which helps to enhance the later action.
This is all enhanced by the times in the forest where they come upon the series of really creepy and chilling confrontations that are featured here. Their river-excursion offers some rather exciting thrills into this, and with the two encountering the hunting party and are forced into going along with them to get to safety this has a lot to like. The creatures’ hunting tactics are put to use in several great scenes of it in the forest springing out of the undergrowth to attack with all manner of tools and special weapons, from long-range bow-and-arrows to hatchets as well as its own intimidating physical presence to rip people to pieces. By letting the creature get plenty of time to showcase this fantastic gore and giving us plenty to like about its appearance, these are what hold this up over its minor flaws.
One of the film’s biggest problems is the fact that it’s way too long. The pacing here is way too off and doesn’t really generate a consistent time here by it constantly changing up what’s going on or turning some rather obscure elements that really didn’t need to be there. There’s no reason for this one to spend as much time as it does with the hunters who prove to be nothing more than one-note inbred hicks intently trying on getting to sexually harass the wife simply because she’s a woman in their vicinity, a distressingly unneeded plot-point that serves this nothing and eats up time with the group continually trying to put it into use and forcing him to defend her honor.
Likewise, the wildly-varying tones in structure make for quite a disjointed feel. The back-and-forth nature of the brutal creature attacks is quite conflicting with the mysticism of the Native American folklore, lending this one some incredibly wonky scenes of people getting their heads hacked off or shot in the neck with arrows and then turning around into scenes of Indian shaman casting spells and other native rituals that introduce a sense of supernatural into the mix. As well, a bizarre centuries-old witch doctor there to help heal their wounds doesn’t really match with what’s happening here, leaving this a rather chaotic effort. Overall, it’s still a lot of fun even with a few minor issues.
Overview: *** 1/2/5
As there are a lot of enjoyable qualities to be found here alongside a few minor issues, there's more than enough to like here that makes this a strong and enjoyable effort overall. Really give this one a shot if you're at all into these Bigfoot/Sasquatch type creature features or are just a genre fan in general, while those that aren't might be inclined to check this out anyway under mild caution.
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