Hold the Dark 2018

5.395 / 10   913 vote(s)
Thriller Mystery Crime

In the grim Alaskan winter, a naturalist hunts for wolves blamed for killing a local boy, but he soon finds himself swept into a chilling mystery.

Release Date 2018-09-22
Runtime 2h 6m
Directors Jeremy Saulnier, Magnus Nordenhof Jønck, Adam Druxman, Reid A. Dunlop, Bryant Marshall, Joel Tobman
Producers Ben Browning, Anish Savjani, Neil Kopp, Vincent Savino, Russell Ackerman, Eva Maria Daniels, Uwe Feuersenger, Driss Tahri, John Schoenfelder, Luc Etienne, Riva Marker, Katherine Soares, Chris Healer, Jamie McIntyre, Blaine Cone, Bob Lowery, Hilary Jacobs
Writers Macon Blair, William Giraldi

I have... No idea what I just watched... But that bit in the middle was like something straight out of a Payday 2 heist, so I'm cool.

Final rating:★★★ - I liked it. Would personally recommend you give it a go.

Gimly

Unpredictable bleak Alaskan adventure, mystery, thriller

An author and wolf expert (Jeffrey Wright) arrives at a remote village in Alaska to help rid the town of a wolf problem that has resulted in a few dead children. Riley Keough plays the troubled mother and Alexander Skarsgård her taciturn husband coming home from Iraq. James Badge Dale appears as the local sheriff while Julian Black Antelope is on hand as a curious AmerIndian named Cheeon.

"Hold the Dark" (2018) is a combination mystery/drama/adventure/thriller/horror. It’s original, unpredictable and dead serious with elements of movies like “The Grey” (2011), “Runaway Train” (1985), “Wendigo” (2001), “The Frozen Ground” (2013), “The North Star” (1996), “Joyride” (1977) and “The Edge” (1997), not to mention a “Apocalypse Now” (or Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness) and even a little from the “Friday the 13th” franchise, albeit without the goofiness. Imagine if the band Agalloch made a movie and that’s pretty much “Hold the Dark” (there’s even a snippet from an Agalloch-like band in the movie).

It’s based on the book by William Giraldi and some viewers have complained that key revelations weren’t obvious enough in the film. Well, I never read the book and wasn’t able to figure out these revelations, but this didn’t prevent me from appreciating this artistic nigh masterpiece. Afterward, I looked-up the revelations and they put the pieces of the puzzle together; yet the clues are all there (in the movie) if you watch closely. My wife watched the film separately and WAS able to glean these revelations. But, again, not being able to figure out every detail did NOT prevent me from valuing this great movie.

The film runs 2 hours, 5 minutes and was shot in Alberta, Canada (Lethbridge & Calgary), and Morocco.

GRADE: A-/A

Wuchak