The Grey (2012) Review

The Grey follows a man named Ottway, played by Liam Neeson. He's a gunman who shoots wolves with a sniper to protect oil diggers at a refinery in cold regions. On his trip back home, his plane crashes due to weather conditions. Only seven men survive the crash, and they all have to work together to survive. They attempt to move as far as they can across the snowy landscape while also attempting to survive constant wolf attacks.



Now, there were a lot of things throwing me off the hype wagon for this movie. The trailer didn't look all that impressive, it was being released in the ungodly cursed month known as January, and it was directed by Joe Carnahan, known less for serious dramas and more for goofy movies like Smokin Aces and The A-Team. However, this is the very first case I can recall where a January release turns out brilliant, and it's by far the best Carnahan film I've seen.


This movie doubles as both a thriller and a character study, allowing the audience to feel the emotions of the characters so that when they're in trouble, we can feel for them. Every character has a conflict that tells them that life isn't worth living, which is why they decided to get into oil digging since they don't really have a better life to live. Though the movie does spend more time with Ottway than anyone else, we know equally as much about every one of the characters, they're all fleshed out, and I personally felt for every one of them. Some of them try to keep their faith up through religious belief, but without giving too much away, that doesn't hold up very well. In the end, they have to take actions of their own to survive and not rely on faith in God.


So, utilizing that emotional conflict, the movie is incredibly thrilling. I cannot recall a time in years when I was as on the edge of my seat as I was with this movie. It's unpredictable, relentless, and hard-nosed. The one thing that really gets to me is that the movie is not afraid of death. A lot of action movies I've seen try to keep most of the characters alive, or at least give them motivation to stay alive. This one basically says "Yeah, they're afraid of death, but if it happens, it'll blow over them!" Since I felt for the characters, I didn't want them to die, but without giving too much away, the movie's not afraid to let them go. That's pretty bold if you ask me.


Do not miss this one, folks. The Grey is the rare January release that works incredibly well.


This movie is worth $20 out of $20.