Movie Review: "The Grey"

There are few movies that I'd say are purely for guys, and The Grey is one of them.  Directed by Joe Carnahan, The Grey is a tense survival tale, and a contemplative piece about the fear and certainty of death.  When a plane carrying oil riggers crashes in the snowy Alaskan wilderness, they are isolated with no sign of help, and are being hunted by wolves.  Their only hope for survival is a wolf hunter, played by Liam Neeson. 

Chalk this one up as another Liam Neeson-starrer where he plays the awesome middle aged man with mean skills and superb attitude.  While not a write home performance, Neeson, and the rest of the cast, for that matter, all do their jobs admirably.  While the script is nimble, often not fleshing out the supporting characters beyond stock facades, The Grey is really about one thing, Liam Neeson, killing wolves, and survival.  The tale is so harrowing, so tense, so gripping, you cannot turn your eyes away.   Even in the quiet moments, you are tense, because you do not know how far behind the wolves are, this is a testament to the superb direction from Carnahan, who is proving himself to be one of the better directors of his generation.

I give The Grey an A-