The Grey (2011)

After their plane crashes in Alaska, six oil workers are led by a skilled huntsman to survival, but a pack of merciless wolves haunts their every step.

Director:

Joe Carnahan

Writers:

Joe Carnahan (screenplay), Ian Mackenzie Jeffers (screenplay)

Stars:

Liam Neeson, Dermot Mulroney, Frank Grillo

2 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Liam Neeson	...	Ottway
Frank Grillo	...	Diaz
Dermot Mulroney	...	Talget
Dallas Roberts	...	Henrick
Joe Anderson	...	Flannery
Nonso Anozie	...	Burke
James Badge Dale	...	Lewenden
Ben Hernandez Bray	...	Hernandez (as Ben Hernandez)
Anne Openshaw	...	Ottway's Wife
Peter Girges	...	Company Clerk
Jonathan Bitonti	...	Ottway (5 years old) (as Jonathan James Bitonti)
James Bitonti	...	Ottway's Father
Ella Kosor	...	Talget's Little Girl
Jacob Blair	...	Cimoski
Lani Gelera	...	Flight Attendant

Storyline

In Alaska, a team of oil workers board a flight home; however, they cross a storm and the airplane crashes. Only seven workers survive in the wilderness and John Ottway, who is a huntsman that kills wolves to protect the workers, assumes leadership of the group. Shortly after they learn that they are surrounded by a pack of wolves and Ottway advises that they should seek protection in the woods. But while they walk through the heavy snow, they are chased and attacked by the carnivorous mammals.

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Plot Keywords:

snow | survival | wolf | alcohol | howling | 

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Taglines:

Live or Die on This Day

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence/disturbing content including bloody images, and for pervasive language

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the last moments of the firewood-search scene, Diaz holds up a book and makes a quip about it being a bestseller. This line of dialogue was added to the film in post-production.

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Goofs

Late in the movie, Ottway unfolds the letter, which then shows a large yellowish stain. Still later, he partially unfolds it before folding it into his wallet, and the stain is gone.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Ottway: A job at the end of the world. A salaried killer for a big petroleum company. I don't know why I did half the things I've done, but I know this is where I belong, surrounded by my own. Ex-cons, fugitives, drifters, assholes. Men unfit for mankind.

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Crazy Credits

There's a scene after the end credits.

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Connections

Featured in Maltin on Movies: Man on a Ledge (2012)

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Soundtracks

Running A.D. Part 2
Songwriter Mark Kevin Wilson
Produced by Vintage Masters Music
Performed by Lucian Blaque
Courtesy of Fervor Records Vintage Masters, a division of Wild Whirled Music

User Reviews

The Grey, such an underrated film.

This is not another mindless action thriller starring Liam Neeson. Nor is it a documentary about wolves, or a survival guide. It is a thought provoking, well paced, yet intense story about man's survival instincts.

Set in the Alaskan north, Liam Neeson plays a wolf hunter who works for an oil company, by protecting the members of a drilling team. He and other members of the team are left stranded in the middle of nowhere after a plane crash. We follow these men as they struggle to survive in extreme conditions.

The story is centered around Liam Neesons, brilliantly played character, who, troubled by his past, is suicidal before the crash, and then determined to survive afterwards. An original character with a dual nature, embodying life's struggles.

The landscape is that of the vast and snowy plains of Alaska which is beautifully framed. The film balances light and dark shots/scenes very well throughout, reflecting the duality of the protagonist. The director manages to balance the vastness and the beauty of setting, with the intensity and fear of the people who's story we follow.

I really enjoyed this film. I found it to be intense yet it remains human. Of course, it is not without its faults. Mainly the excessive amount of flashbacks to his past. As well as the poorly done CG wolves. There's also some problems with logic throughout the film. But if you look past its minor amount of flaws, you will find a great film, brilliantly directed and acted.

I would definitely recommend this film despite the surprising amount of negative, and unjust reviews.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

27 January 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Grey

Filming Locations:

Smithers, British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$19,665,101, 29 January 2012

Gross USA:

$51,580,236

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$79,781,695

Company Credits

Production Co:

Open Road Films (II), Inferno Distribution, LD Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Datasat Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1