‘Sit, roll over, play dead’
The Pack is a 2015 Australian horror film directed by Nick Robertson from a screenplay by Evan Randall Green. Despite the title, the film is not a remake of the 1977 film of the same name and should not be mistaken for the 2010 French film with the same title. It stars Katie Moore, Anna Lise Phillips, Jack Campbell and Hamish Phillips.
On a remote farm in Southern Australia, hardened farmer Adam Wilson, discovers the last of his livestock have been mauled to death by a pack of wild dogs. His dreams of keeping the family business going are shattered, but nothing can prepare him for what will happen next.
As night falls the feral pack of dogs begin to circle the farmhouse. With a taste for fresh blood, they launch their attack, stopping at nothing to get inside the house…
Reviews:
“Because of how well the animals are presented, first-time director Nick Robertson, aided by the gorgeous cinematography of Benjamin Shirley that emphasizes the lush, engulfing wilderness, is able to deliver a rousing experience that remains grounded enough in reality to deliver tense thrills — along the lines of a home invasion flick like The Strangers.” Mark H. Harris, About Entertainment
Buy: Amazon.co.uk
The dogs are wily and fierce, but they’re aided by a remarkably stupid family — at one point the kids hide in a closet with slatted doors that even a small dog could push open. Surely the bathroom doors lock? Ultimately, these feral dogs pose no danger that couldn’t be solved by staying inside, boarding the windows and barricading the doors.” Rob Staeger, LA Weekly
“ …while Robertson throws in too many cheap jump-scares, he mostly does well by Green’s script, coaxing strong performances from the cast and making sure the viewers feel a sickly dread every time some creature is growling and scratching at the ranch-house door.” Noel Murray, Los Angeles Times
“The script is perfunctory, assuming audiences for horror will put up with any old shit and certainly the bare less-than-minimum we get here. We don’t care about the characters because we are given no reason to. The direction consists of the ‘waving the camera around frenziedly during infrequent animal attacks’ school that makes for poor suspense but massive savings on a budget…” John Llewellyn Probert, House of Mortal Cinema
Buy: Amazon.com
“Written with maximum suspense by Evan Randall Green and directed by Nick Robertson with an economical tension that does not depend on computerized special effects, it’s an effective thriller that sets out to scare the living daylights out of even the most skeptical viewer and delivers in spades.” Rex Reed, New York Observer
Cast and characters:
- Katie Moore as Sophie
- Anna Lise Phillips as Carla Wilson
- Jack Campbell as Adam Wilson
- Hamish Phillips as Henry Wilson
- Kieran Thomas McNamara as the Police Officer
- Charles Mayer as the Bank Manager
Wikipedia | IMDb | Official site
