The Survivalist - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

The Survivalist

Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score: ​

​

Movie
Usually when I see that IFC Midnight productions is working with Shout Factory my first inclination is that it is a low budget foreign horror movie, as that is what Shout/Scream and IFC Midnight tend to put out together, but the tag line on the front of the movie “Mad Max in the Countryside” had me cocking an eyebrow and deciding to check it out. In all honesty, The Survivalist is neither a horror movie nor a rambunctious action movie like Mad Max either. It’s a very slow burning post apocalyptic thriller that deals more in visuals and the gritty truths of having to survive rather than either of the two before mentioned genres. That being said, the movie sometimes is a bit TOO extreme with the gritty nature of the movie, and comes off as a slightly less interesting version of The Road with Viggo Mortenson. That being said, it’s a very competent thriller that starts out a bit slow bend starts to pick up steam In the second half, ending with a very good (although slightly obtuse) ending.

A graph at the beginning of the film shows us that over the years oil production and human population were on the upswing together, but after a while the oil production just about stopped. At the same time the human population began to drop setting us up for what we have here. A world that is without power and a society that has fallen into disarray after the “grid” went down. An unnamed survivalist (Martin McCann) is living out in the middle of nowhere, complete with his shotgun and little one man farm when he is set upon by an aging mother named Kathryn (Olwen Fouere) and her daughter Milja (Mia Goth). The pair of women are starving, but the survivalist refuses to share with them as you can tell he’s been set up and preyed upon before. However, after a little bit of an exchange where Milja sleeps with the survivalist there comes a sort of understanding. He allows them to stay, while Milja and Kathryn plot to take over the farm for themselves.

However, things change when Milja starts to develop an emotional connection with the survivalist, and things get worse when a group of men stumble upon their little cabin in the woods. Now the trio have to form an uneasy alliance in order to survive the intruders, as well as figure out a way to get enough food to survive the coming winter.

The Survivalist is a dark and gritty thriller, and is one of those films that you just have to let wash over you instead of listen to a bunch of exposition. Much of the character motivations and emotions are only understood by watching body language and a few glimpses at photographs and the like. Instead of listening to narration or over explaining, Director Stephen Fingleton lets you watch the action and slowly piece together the story bit by bit, along with some very minor dialog. The tension varies throughout the film, as there are whole sections that is just listening to breathing and watching someone dig up soil, but other portions are intensely intoxicating as you’re almost sitting on the edge of your seat quietly transfixed, holding your breath. There’s a scene part way through the movie where Milja gets kidnaps that completely blindsides the viewer as its built up around Milja and Kathryn getting ready to kill the survivalist only to have that come out of left field.

Sadly the movie isn’t able to keep that tension level, and sometimes the mean and lean thriller is just a tad boring. It also interjects and uses a decent amount of heavy nudity, although I was fascinated to see that while a little bit of it WAS sexual, almost none of it was meant to be titillating in any way. It was more just the cold reality of living out in the wild where you had to make your own sanitary feminine products out of whatever you had, or the cold hard reality that there isn’t a hospital to help the survivalist recover from a bullet wound and body heat is required to calm his fever.

McCann is a good actor, and his character does really well here, although I noticed he seems to be better when he is alone vs. being with with Fouere and Mia Goth present. Goth is the real weak spot in the film as she feels odd and out of place. Her saving grace is the odd look that she is known for, as it lends itself well the worn out and downtrodden nature of her character. Fingleton does a great job at making all involved neither trustworthy or safe, but allows them to connect in a way that forms bonds of usefulness in a dire situation.




Rating:

Not Rated by the MPAA




Video:

The Survivalist comes to Blu-ray with a fairly standard looking post apocalyptic texture. The Shout Factory Blu-ray is clean and clear of most imperfections, with the film itself wallowing in shadows and dimly lit camp fire scenes. The outdoor world that the unnamed survivalist lives in is overflowing with lush greens of the forest, combined with the deep and dank earth colors of moist farming soil. The interior of his little hut is dull and flat, with candle flames flickering off the edges of the wall giving it a rather somber appearance. Brighter colors like blood red and the flash of clothing pops at appropriate levels, and the detail levels are exquisite for the most part. You can see every bit of peach fuzz on the mother's face, as well as the dirt and grime that speckles the survivalist's face. Leaves are well detailed and the forest exterior looks so lifelike you almost feel like you can touch it. There’s some mild banding and light hazy look in the interior shots, but outdoors is much more crisp and clean, with the rough hewn face of our hero, or the baggy eyed starving Milja that makes her home there. Blacks can be a teensy bit murky, but show plenty of detail nonetheless. The only thing that kept me from giving this a 4.5/5 was due to the fact that certain shots can look extremely noisy (look at the shot near the end by the fire, that sort of roughness is jarring compared to the excellent detail and clarity shown elsewhere).






Audio:

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA track is satisfactory, with a very laid back mix that relies more on ambient forest noises, and the rustling of background movement than wild spurts of action and music. In fact much of the film is completely devoid of any sound save for the movement of the characters on screen, or the soft breathing of the survivalist as he sleeps. There are some more action oriented scenes in the second half, and those kick the LFE channels and surrounds up a good bit, however the mild ambiance creates a very subtle sense of immersion that is commendable for the low key track. The limited dialog is well placed in the center of the screen and free of any artifacts or imbalances, leaving me to give it a solid thumbs up.





Extras:

• Making of Featurette
• Short Films
• Theatrical Trailer

Final Score: ​

The Survivalist is very much a slow burn post-apocalyptic thriller that NEARLY accomplishes all of its goals. The steady sense of tension is fantastic from the get go, and by the first thirty minutes I was really getting into it as you watch the seemingly hostile takeover of the farm unfold. However, the second half and some of the center leaves you feeling a bit too bored at times. There’s a scene with a Rabbit in a trap and Milja doing her business out in the woods that is incredibly tense and powerful, but not all of the movie can keep that level of intensity, which leaves me with a few qualms. Overall a decent slow burn thriller, and the great audio and video scores have me give this a single thumbs up. Worth a watch.




Technical Specifications:

Starring: Martin McCann, Barry Ward, Mia Goth
Directed by: Stephen Fingleton
Written by: Stephen Fingleton
Aspect Ratio: 2.39.1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1, English DD 2.0
Studio: Shout Factory
Rated: NR
Runtime: 104 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: October 3rd, 2017

Image

• Michael Scott
• May 11, 2017

Recommendation: Solid Watch

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. I will try and catch this on amazon prime or netflix.