Backcountry

[amoergosum]

Amazon Instant Video link >>> click


Don't watch the trailer. It gives away too much.

[MikeScott]

Watched this last night. It was great. Really well-done.

Reviews agree: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/backcountry/

[amoergosum]

I just saw that the Blu-ray.com movie review is up >>> 8/10

There are several spoilers in the review. What's the point in giving so much away in a review with no spoiler warning?
Here's the Blu-ray.com review with hidden spoilers:

“Backcountry” doesn’t break new ground in the man vs. nature subgenre, but it does play up the finer points of fear so well, it’s easy to forgive its familiarity. It’s a survival story, and a deceptively simple one at that, using the marketable aspect of a bear attack to mask numerous stages of panic that crowd the picture, allowing the movie to achieve a remarkable level of suspense. “Backcountry” marks the directorial debut for Adam MacDonald, and I hope he’s got a few more horror stories in him, as his way with scares emerges with a wonderfully primal sense of urgency, infusing the work with secure grasp on anxiety.

In a longstanding relationship, Alex (Jeff Roop) is eager to show off the playground of his youth to girlfriend Jenn (Missy Peregrym), taking his love to a camping site for a special weekend of hiking. Discovering that his special trail is closed, Alex is determined to keep to his original plan

[Show spoiler], leading Jenn into the wild from memory, refusing direction from a map. While prepared with supplies and common sense, Alex and Jenn encounter a special threat from Brad (Eric Balfour), a roving Irishman who takes a special liking to the couple, flirting with Jenn and dismissing Alex. Looking to keep their distance from the vaguely menacing stranger, the couple find themselves lost in the dense forest, with Alex unable to recall the way back to civilization.

Adding to an especially troubling trip, a black bear is on the prowl, tracking the duo as they fight to survive.

What makes “Backcountry” special isn’t the enticing bear-attack element of the plot, but the way MacDonald splits the story into three areas of concern.

[Show spoiler]It’s enough for Jenn and Alex to fear for their lives inside the thin, nylon walls of their tent, hoping for the bear to move on to other pursuits in the forest, but there’s also Brad, who comes across the couple after illegally fishing in a nearby lake. Purporting to be guide for private tour groups, Brad is forward, openly flirting with Jenn while the three prepare a meal together. He also calls out Alex on his initial private protest with his girlfriend, challenging him to share doubts about his character to his face. Brad is an eerie guy, with his true nature carefully hidden from view, allowing the audience to process clues and speed of temper, which adds to the haunting aura of “Backcountry.”

Also contributing to the vice-like tension of “Backcountry” is the universal fear of being lost.

[Show spoiler]Once Alex admits he’s made a grave mistake, leading the couple into an area of the forest he doesn’t know how to get out of, the picture blooms with panic beautifully, capturing the immediate blood loss of helplessness with precision. Forget the bear and Brad,

the sensation of survival is exactly where “Backcountry” locates its most crushing sequences, showcasing the prolonged process of nervous hiking, the finger-snap shortening of tempers, and the weight of guilt as Alex attempts to reconcile with Jenn as things go from bad to worse. There are a few additional concerns for the pair, but MacDonald is most successful highlighting that rush of dismissal and doubt, paying off respectable characterizations that allow the film to land its emotional punches.

Bear troubles do arrive in a big way, and “Backcountry” gets violent and grim, achieving authentic scares during furious moments of attack and hasty decision-making. If there’s one obvious complaint to be made about the movie, it’s that MacDonald doesn’t completely trust the moment, ordering up intrusive shaky-cam to sell urgency. The cast is more than capable of summoning alarm, leaving showy efforts to artificially create visual chaos wholly unwelcome. However, it’s a small criticism in a film that’s exceptionally put together and sharply paced (smart enough to remain under 90 minutes), acquiring a unique level of efficiency for the genre, while reviving man vs. nature formula with a stimulating rush of human vulnerability.

Source:
https://www.blu-ray.com/Backcountry/436156/#Preview

[chipsnyder]

I saw this movie the other day and loved it. Missy Peregrym did a fantastic job. I loved how the suspense built throughout the film. I highly recommend it.

[amoergosum]

Interview with director Adam MacDonald:

[the cat video at 5:30...awesome... ]

Adam MacDonald Talks 'Backcountry', Storyboarding with Cats and More - YouTube

At 19:42 >>>
"It's a trilogy. I wanna make a trilogy of women surviving circumstances...extreme circumstances."

[L.J.]

This looks interesting.

[amoergosum]

@backcountryfilm mentioned on Twitter that Backcountry will be released on Blu-ray.

[Todd Tomorrow]

The first drama film I've seen which managed to make bears scary. Very tense and effective for what is a rather modest film.

[wonkavision]

Rented this and really enjoyed it...nicely shot too!

Reminds me of the time I was camping and a bear came to visit....the only thing it did was take a huge bear poop by my friends tent then took off into the night.

[jacobsever]

This movie is coming out in a local theater Friday. Can't wait to see it...with my first multiple-night backpacking trip a few weeks later.

[amoergosum]

The DE Blu-ray edition has been announced.

Link:
https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=261953