I wasn't expecting much when I rented "Grizzly Park." I'm not a fan of horror movies and only rented this due to the presence of Glenn Morshower as Ranger Bob. After reading a lot of reviews I was expecting a total mess of a film; it wasn't quite that bad.
The idea of characters getting killed as punishment for their misdeeds isn't a new one in horror, or even in mystery (see "And Then There Were None"), but I liked the idea of this group of offenders being given a chance to repent their misdeeds. Needless to say, they don't. "Grizzly Park" is also beautiful to look at, as it was filmed on location in a couple of state parks (quibble: the movie is supposed to be set in a California state park, but the vegetation is clearly Eastern, witness all the deciduous trees changing color. It obviously isn't California). Some horror film aficionados may have downgraded the film due to its lack of sex and minimal violence - for a horror film. There are a couple of fairly graphic deaths for those who enjoy that sort of thing.
Glenn Morshower turns in a great performance and I think his presence is reason enough to rent the film. It actually would have benefited from being longer, as we really don't get to know the characters very well. One of the extras on the disc includes interviews with the actors describing their characters as "deep" and "troubled." I'd call them "sketchy" myself.
The so-called twist ending really didn't come as a surprise, but it was very rushed; not enough time was spent on it for it to be believable and it really felt tacked on. A couple more minutes would have been better here. Overall, if you're a fan of Mr Morshower and cheesy movies I think this is worth your time on a slow evening. I've certainly seen worse.
The idea of characters getting killed as punishment for their misdeeds isn't a new one in horror, or even in mystery (see "And Then There Were None"), but I liked the idea of this group of offenders being given a chance to repent their misdeeds. Needless to say, they don't. "Grizzly Park" is also beautiful to look at, as it was filmed on location in a couple of state parks (quibble: the movie is supposed to be set in a California state park, but the vegetation is clearly Eastern, witness all the deciduous trees changing color. It obviously isn't California). Some horror film aficionados may have downgraded the film due to its lack of sex and minimal violence - for a horror film. There are a couple of fairly graphic deaths for those who enjoy that sort of thing.
Glenn Morshower turns in a great performance and I think his presence is reason enough to rent the film. It actually would have benefited from being longer, as we really don't get to know the characters very well. One of the extras on the disc includes interviews with the actors describing their characters as "deep" and "troubled." I'd call them "sketchy" myself.
The so-called twist ending really didn't come as a surprise, but it was very rushed; not enough time was spent on it for it to be believable and it really felt tacked on. A couple more minutes would have been better here. Overall, if you're a fan of Mr Morshower and cheesy movies I think this is worth your time on a slow evening. I've certainly seen worse.