Review: Wilderness (2006)

Directed by: Michael J. Bassett | 90 minutes | horror | Actors: Sean Pertwee, Alex Reid, Toby Kebbell, Stephen Wight, Luke Neal, Ben McKay, Lenora Crichlow, Karly Greene, Adam Deacon, Richie Campbell, Stephen Don, John Travers

As in many other horror / slasher films, a group of people is bloody murdered one by one. This story is about a group of juvenile delinquents, two of whom are the cause of the suicide of a fellow prisoner. Because no one wants to tell what exactly happened, the whole group of boys, together with their guide, have to go to a desert island, to a kind of re-education camp. Once on the island they turn out not to be completely alone. In addition to three women camping there, a hunter appears to be present with bloodthirsty German shepherds.

“Wilderness” is a thirteen in a dozen horror film. A film that is more about the ways someone ends up than about the characters or the story itself. It is a film that has little more to offer than this. The characters have little depth, they are all stereotypes, such as the loser, the bully or cool murderer, the novice and the womanizer, in this case a woman rapist. No types to feel sorry for as a viewer when hunted like game by a man with a crossbow and dangerous German shepherds. Whoever gives up life will therefore not interest the viewer.

After all, “Wilderness” is all about the murders and the amount of blood that flows. That’s okay in this film, although it takes a while before something really happens. When the dogs attack one of them is completely devoured. Unfortunately, the makers do not manage to convey certain scenes realistically, which makes them unintentionally laughable and predictable. The viewer can quickly guess who is behind the murders, mainly because of the weak story. The ending will therefore come as no surprise to anyone. “Wilderness” is a horror film that, as said, has little to offer. It is therefore a simple but entertaining horror film. One to watch when there is nothing better to do on television.