Black Rock - Überleben ist alles

Three girls decide to go away for a weekend to an island known as Black Rock they visited as children. Once there, they meet three soldiers on a hunting expedition who have been discharged dishonourably from the army...

Black Rock for the most has decent enough acting, and I was drawn to it by a review on one of the horror podcasts I listen to. On there it was described as "a movie you wouldn't want to watch on a Sunday morning with a cup of tea" which of course was the time I chose then to watch it.

Sadly, there's little here that would offend a parish vicar. It's a plot by numbers excursion of girls attacked, girls fight back. And while I wouldn't say it was totally boring, there was little in the way of tension, gore, or thrills watching it. When it comes to "horror" these days (years?) you really have to look to Europe for anything of substance, and it seems ironic that somewhere like mild and cultured France can spit out horror which would give your grandma a heart attack while America gives us something like this PG fare.

Black Rock is really only recommended then if you have 90mins to kill and can't find anything better.

Three childhood friends set aside their personal issues and reunite for a girls' weekend on a remote island off the coast of Maine. One wrong move turns their weekend getaway into a deadly fight for survival.

So, this film was directed by Katie Aselton ("The League"), based on a screenplay by her husband Mark Duplass (also "The League"), and also stars Aselton. This may not be the duo you would expect to make a thriller, but they work together in the genre exceptionally well.

Reviews have been mixed to negative, with people saying the women make poor choices in the film (as if horror characters do not usually make poor choices). The film is better than given credit for, with a decent amount of tension and some incredible dialogue. Whether scripted or ad libbed, the conversations come off as far more natural than the average film -- these could really be three friends on a trip.

Three women around the age of 30 partake of a reunion vacation to a Maine island where they hanged out when they were girls and had a fort. Sarah (Kate Bosworth) masterminds the event with the hope of reconciling the estranged Abby (Katie Aselton) and Lou (Lake Bell). The camping trip starts well enough, but things go awry and it turns into a survival situation.

"Black Rock" (2012) is a life-or-death backwoods drama/adventure/horror in the tradition of "Deliverance" (1972), "The Edge" (1997), "Nightmare at Bittercreek" (1988) and "Backcountry" (2014). While it lacks the budget of the first two, it's at least as good as the latter two.

These types of flicks are about being backed into a corner in the wilderness and finding your instincts to survive at all costs, including your primitive rage to kill if necessary. This one's totally realistic and very well done, not to mention pleasantly streamlined.

The film runs 1 hour, 20 minutes, and was shot around Milbridge, Maine.

GRADE: B+

Sarah (Kate Bosworth) travels with her friend Lou (Lake Bell) to spend the weekend camping in the remote Black Rock Island that was part of their childhood. When they arrive to get their motor boat, Lou sees Abby (Katie Aselton) waiting for Sarah and they decide to give up traveling to the island. Lou and Abby were friends in the past but after an incident with Abby's boyfriends, they have been estranged for many years and do not talk to each other. However, Sarah convinces them to travel with her to Black Rock.

When they are resolving their issues, they meet their former schoolmate Henry (Will Bouvier) that is hunting with his friends from the army Derek (Jay Paulson) and Alex (Anslem Richardson) that worship Henry and Abby invites them to have dinner and drink with them on the beach. Abby gets drunk and she flirts with Henry and he makes a move on her. There is a tragic accident with Henry and his friends decide to revenge him.

"Black Rock" is a movie with a collection of clichés and a history based on moronic decisions. The plot is OK with Sarah trying to make up the situation between Abby and Lou and then the girls inviting Henry and his friends to recall the old times at school. However, Abby's inappropriate behavior and comments, despite she is drunk or not, does not make sense since the guys are strangers and ruins the story. The decision of the deranged Derek and Alex of killing the girls can be accepted, but the two clumsy guys armed with rifles being defeated by unarmed girls, missing or failing the shots is an absurd cliché. My vote is three.

Title (Brazil): "Terror na Ilha" ("Terror in the Island")

I went into this with no expectations and Black Rock is a decent little Indie thriller with some good suspense-filled moments. The story revolves around three long-time friends, two of whom are feuding who camp out on their old stomping ground of Black Rock to reconnect only their party is interrupted by three men who we learn have been dishonorable discharged from the army and aren't exactly friendly.

All hell breaks loose and the three heroines are hunted down. It's nothing we haven't seen before but the poor reviews are surprisingly poor for what seemed like a decent little movie. It has its flaws but character and the suspense are both there and the ladies Aselton(Abby) who also happens to be the director gave it a solid effort. Lake Bell (Lou) with and Kate Bosworth their roles exceptionally well for this story which never goes too over the top and stays believable for the most part.

It won't be winning any major awards but in my books it was a good survival story which had me interested all the way to the end.

6/10 (though rated 7 because it was better than people say it is)