This should have been perfect. “Dark” is even in the title. It looked atmospheric, with a great cast including Jeffrey Wright and Alexander Skarsgård.
But what made me most excited to see it was that it was directed by Jeremy Saulnier, who brought us two great indie films: Blue Ruin and Green Room.
What happened?
I thought this might be the beginning of something great, like what you did with Maniac. The let’s-create-lots-of-crap-because-the-audience-is-stupid act was over. You were back to the glory days of showing HBO you could do the same, if not better. Well …
What is it?
Hold the Dark is a tale shrouded in grit, gore, cold, and, well, darkness. It’s about … I’ll let the internet provide a concise description:
Summoned to a remote Alaskan village to search for the wolves that killed three children, a wolf expert soon finds himself unravelling a harrowing mystery.
Sounds cool, huh? I thought so, too, and even sat through its two-hour running time because there had to be something there. With that director and that cast? Had to be. I wish there had been.
Why you shouldn’t watch it
The film gives us a thin plot that isn’t all that interesting and plays its cards early and to no real effect. Once we’re given a good enough (albeit confusing) idea of what’s going on, the plot devolves into random acts of violence that seem unfounded and have zero payoff. Which is a shame. The director knows what great films are. The only other two he’s made are great. He put a unique spin on the revenge story with Blue Ruin and created a compelling narrative with a bunch of kids thrown into some weird Nazi rock concert in the woods with Green Room. Character is the heart of any good story. Not visual effects. Not action. Not star power. Saulnier knows this. So, how did he let this happen? Hell, even his good buddy Macon Blair, who starred in Blue ruin–and has a bit part here–penned the thing. Maybe that was the problem. Maybe Netflix micromanaged any kind of vision he had. Maybe it was both of these things plus everything else that happens when good ideas turn to shit. I don’t know.
How long will it take?
It maybe took me about an hour to realize I didn’t like this film. I am fine with slow burns, accepting of experimental story structure, and just loved the look of the thing. The midpoint of a story is usually when things flip, shit hits the fan, we learn what everything is really about, and it sucks us in and spits us out just in time for a cathartic ending. I guess that’s why I waited until then. If you hate deliberate pacing or are confused without a title crawl full of exposition, you will most likely stop much sooner.
It can’t be all bad, can it?
Of course not. The acting is solid across the board. The cinematography isn’t amazing, but better than serviceable. You can tell there was care put into almost every element of this film, other than the story. Sometimes I wonder how something can go so far before someone realizes that something feels off, that something isn’t working. Maybe there is a better edit out there that solves all the issues I had. Who knows. The film is based on a novel by the same name. I haven’t read it, but a part of me is curious to see what Netflix saw in it. I’ll let you know if I do. If you want to check it out, you can pick it up on Amazon by clicking the pic.
Check out the trailer.
Were you as let down by this film or do you disagree with me completely? Tell me in the comments below.