Everyone has a creature that they would never want to encounter in the middle of nowhere: bears in the woods, sharks in the ocean, or wolves at the ski resort. Thinking about what one would do in a situation like this can cause anxiety and paranoia, even though going through the actual experience is highly unlikely. Horror filmmakers love creating Creature Feature scenarios that are highly doubtful yet entertaining to watch, such as King Kong (1976, 2005), Open Water (2003), Snakes on a Plane (2006), and Zombeavers (2015), putting people in an unlikely situation and facing them off in a life or death struggle with a deadly force of nature. Dogs are not often the critters that audiences think about when the words “deadly creatures” pop into their head beyond movies such as Cujo (1983), where the huge St. Bernard was rabid, or The Omen (1976), where the canine was the hellish protector of a demon child. A dog is commonly thought of as man’s best friend, but what happens when it never experiences the human world, lives with the freedom of no rules, and only knows running with its pack?
- Still from The Pack
Directed by newcomer Nick Robertson, 2016’s The Packis a Horror Thriller that is sure to take a bite out of the audience with an intense story of one family’s survival against a pack of wild dogs. Michael Robertson (Black Water 2007, The Reef 2010) and Kent Smith (Frames 2004, The Tree 2010) produced this exciting film based off of a screenplay written by Evan Randall Green (Dark Origins 2014, A Night of Horror Volume 1 2015). Tom Schutzinger (Somersault 2004, Caught Inside 2010) composed the intense music used throughout the film. The Pack was filmed in Australia and stars an amazing, fresh cast, including Anna Lise Phillips (The Boys 1998, Animal Kingdom 2010), Jack Campbell (All Saints 1998, Gabriel 2007), Katie Moore, Hamish Phillips (Welcome to Iron Knob 2013) and Charles Mayer (Wineline 2015).
The Pack begins with the Wilsons, a family who run a rural cattle ranch as well as a small pet clinic hotel. Patriarch Adam (Campbell) is struggling to make ends meet as he loses money left and right after the sheep on his farm keep getting horribly mauled to death by some sort of wild animals during the night. The bank manager (Mayer) is threatening to take away the farm due to late mortgage payments and is offering a deal. Campbell is a proud, hard working man though and does not want to uproot his life or give up on his passion. Meanwhile, some of his other family members feel differently and think the best decision may be to start over before they lose everything.
- Still from The Pack
Losing their farm and their way of life would appear to be one of the worse things that could happen to the Wilson family, but that is just the beginning. As the creatures of the night – a pack of wild dogs – get even hungrier and bored with the slaughter of easily captured sheep, they become thirsty for another kind of mammal – humans. When the feral animals finally attack, the family is bewildered by the idea of dogs attacking human beings for what seems like no reason. They must think fast on their feet and come up with a plan. Although the Wilson family is used to working together on their farm, now they must think outside the box to save each other from the hungry creatures. Will any of them survive the night?
- Still from The Pack
The Pack had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival 2015 and is to be released on VOD February 5, 2016 via IFC Midnight. Although killer dog films have been done before, this one is thrilling and exciting as the audience realizes that the wild dog pack has no real physical reason to go on a homo sapiens blood binge, just cold-blooded murder. Check this film out when it finally releases and brave the night with Wilson Family as they fight for their lives in an unlikely, bizarre situation. CrypticRock gives The Pack 4 out of 5 stars.
- IFC Midnight
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