Movie: 3.5/5

The Grey was marketed as something different to what it turns out to be. Most people will be expecting an adrenaline pumped action infested movie long fight involving the punching of wolves, which isn’t what you’re getting, because if they marketed it as what it really was, I don’t think it would make as much money.

The messages in the movie, and what it’s really all about is the acceptance of death, faith or lack of faith in god, and remembering what you have, and why it’s worth fighting for.
In saying that… this movie features some of the scariest scenes and concepts I’ve personally ever experienced. The Grey isn’t marketed as a horror film, but different things get to different people. This to me was terrifying, with a great story.

We meet Neeson’s character, a heartbroken loner named John Ottway, on the verge of suicide and thinking back, obsessively, to the woman who got away. His demons temporarily quelled, Ottway boards a small plane with his fellow refinery workers and in one of the most nerve-racking flights ever put on film, the aircraft runs afoul of bad weather and crashes (for a turbulence worry wart like me, this had my palms sweating, and my muscles tensed up) 

There’s a particular piece of untitled poetry that was originally written by John Ottway’s father, which was framed on the wall and read to him as a child, which I found extremely powerful when spoken through Neesons lips at the most appropriate times.

“Once more into the fray
Into the last good fight I’ll ever know
Live and die on this day
Live and die on this day”

The movie is pretty equally made up of both extremely slow moments, frightening moments. None of the slower moments are boring, they’re all involving, meaningful and every minute serves a purpose to the overall film and the characters are fleshed out nicely during these scenes. If what you’re looking for is a straight laced action flick with wolf punching, then you’ll probably dislike the how suprisingly philosophical The Grey is.

This didn’t really fit in anywhere, but I have to mention how seriously awesome Liam Neeson is. I’m convinced that he always will be, and if anything is just getting cooler as he gets older.