Backcountry

Under the limit, but acceptable for being honest!

I watched the entire film without knowing it was based on the real. Only on the later I came to know that and my stance has changed a bit. Because it's not always about the quality of the product, but something revealing truth is most important to me in films. It was honest and not following the blueprint of a similar kind was the advantage. Obviously it was a small budget B movie with unfamiliar cast.

So while watching it, I thought why they (film characters) not doing like this, that. Because entertainment films should do that for its viewers to please, but its notion was not that. It was depicting the actual event. Well, most of the crucial scene with the beast was just acceptable due to the category of film it belongs. Can't afford graphics nor trained animal, but I appreciate the effort.

Story wise, it takes time to come to the point. And then everything happens so fast before the end approach. Initially, the narration teases with a different kind of thriller, but after some developments, it accomplishes its mission. Like I said don't expect something like 'The Revenant'. This film is not for the recommendation, but trying it out on your own is not a bad idea.

5/10

For a movie whose one thing is summed up in the Play School theme, "There's a bear in there", there could have been more bear in there. The intial contact with said ursine is magnificent though.

Final rating:★★½ - Had a lot that appealed to me, didn’t quite work as a whole.

Lost-in-the-woods-and-menaced-by-nature Indie

A young couple from the big city (Jeff Roop & Missy Peregrym) goes hiking & camping at a Provincial Park in the wilderness and find themselves lost and harassed by primal perils, human and animal. Eric Balfour is on hand as a dubious Irish outdoors guide.

Written/directed by Adam MacDonald, “Backcountry” (2014) was inspired by the true story of Mark Jordan & Jacqueline Perry and their encounter with a man-eating bear in the wilds of Missinaibi Lake Provincial Park, North of Chapleau, Ontario, in 2005.

Peregrym is reminiscent of Hilary Swank while Roop brings to mind a younger, less goofy Ray Romano. The movie’s basically a low-rent meshing of survival-in-the-woods flicks like “Deliverance” (1972) and “The Edge” (1997). If you’re in the mood for this kind of flick, “Backcountry” is pretty well done for an Indie. Sometimes the acting by the protagonists is questionable, but it’s all-around serviceable and occasionally very good. The attack sequence & gore are excellent for such a low budget film.

Some viewers have question the inclusion of the suspicious woodsman in the first act, but it corresponds to story structure "rules" in any type of suspense yarn, which is: When things slow down, bring in some kind of conflict, particularly in the first act. In other words, to encourage a viewer to keep watching give him/her something near the beginning: conflict, trouble, fear, violence.

I was honestly bored with the movie up until Brad (the guide) was introduced, which ultimately leads to confrontation. This relatively gripping sequence perked up my attention and encouraged me to keep watching. It's WHY the writer/director included it, along with it being a challenge to Alex’ competency, plus a red herring.

The film runs 1 hour, 32 minutes and was shot at Restoule Provincial Park and nearby Powassan, Ontario (just south of North Bay), as well as Caddy Lake, Manitoba; I’m assuming the city sequence was shot in Toronto.

GRADE: B/B-