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This was just ok. The best part was the acting. At times the story was a bit unbelievable and unrealistic. I mean why not light a fire if you have matches? Come on. This is a movie about desperate people trying to get rich or die trying, literally.

Is it just me, or has there been an abundance of "frozen wilderness" movies in recent years? I'm getting tired of watching people get frostbite and hypothermia. The title of this movie should have been _Numbskulls_. If the love of money is the root of all evil, here, it's the root of all stupidity. Two hapless couples go traipsing through the frozen Canadian wilderness to cop a stash of buried gold. They take no survival gear, no supplies, no nothing. They forget that four people can't carry $4 million in gold coins. Needless to say, people die and / or freeze to death. They could have dressed warmer and rented some snowmobiles and done this, no problem......But then,, of course, there would be no movie. Don't waste your time on this insipid crap.

"Numb" is physical proof a movie can revolve entirely around unlikeable, selfish ninnies who do nothing but stupid things, and still succeed as a visceral, edge-of-your-seat thriller.

Financially-strapped couple Will and Dawn travel to what is apparently the frigid Canadian North (it's never stated) for his new job.

They pick up secretive brother and sister hitchhikers Lee and Cheryl, and almost immediately happen upon a dying old man who carries clues to a buried fortune in gold coins. So they all decide to go on a treasure hunt.

After this really compelling setup, everything gets stupid right away.

The four set off on a hike through the frozen wilderness wearing nothing but light winter jackets, and bearing nothing but - seriously - a crowbar from the trunk of the car.

No hats, no snowshoes, no gloves, no scarves, no provisions... not even a shovel to dig up the damn gold, should they find it.

They bicker. They argue. They threaten each other, especially whenever one of them exhibits a glimmer of wisdom and suggests turning back.

These are four garbage humans. Really, you'll be rooting for the winter with this film.

And that's a good thing. What a terrific job this movie does in portraying the frozen North. "The Blair Witch Project" has nothing on the fantastic "lost in the woods" scenario this movie offers, and how it takes a physical and mental toll on these four people.

And its scenes of the actual Northern wilderness are almost indistinguishable from studio sets that would be obvious in a lesser picture. There's one scene in which a character is submerged in a river, and you'll go, "How the hell did they do that?"

While the four main characters lack in, geez, any iota of good sense, the performances and direction are almost unbelievably top notch.

The four lead characters are all ninnies, to be sure. But their actors bring to them real life and depth.

Aleks Paunovic was particularly effective as sensitive ex-con Lee. He really sells his character's tragically flawed Zen approach to life.

As the weather turns colder and their characters suffer the devastating effects of hypothermia, the actors, combined with realistic makeup effects and creative framing, really convince the viewer of the desperate nature of their situation.

"Numb," unfortunately, falls apart in the end, as all good movie ideas do when they're not fully thought out.

But it's a helluva ride getting there, and you'll be glad you invested 90 minutes of your time with it.

Briefly, the movie is way better than I expected. Not a masterpiece, nothing special but worth watching. I have no deeper analysis. Period.

Except one 'detail' bothering me. I know it bothers very few of us, so please don't take me too seriously, just because I could not take the movie seriously. I happen to be a Finn, who has survived in frosty forests for the most of his miserable life.

The sub-zero conditions are hilariously unrealistic in the movie. There has to be a reason for this, right? There must be cold somewhere in Canada in winters. Maybe the production was late or something. I don't mean movies should always be realistic, but come on...

It is obviously very cold season, if not exceptionally cold winter. Characters get severe injuries of cold. Kind of damage not being possible without roughly -20°C (or -4°F) and strong wind. But as there is seemingly not that windy, it would be -40°C (or the same in °F) if not even under that. Without proper clothing you go NUMB in that environment. Then it knocks you out for good. Quickly. Before you become a half-frozen zombie.

Eyebrows seem to collect heavy ice layer, but breathing is hardly visible in most of the scenes. The ice layer usually builds up of moisture of your own breathe. Snowing looks like a rain. Because it is so warm it is practically raining.

The structure of snow around looks like it is wet and melting. Winterly rays of sun are too weak to have any effect on ice. The forest looks more like how it could look like in June in Finland... It must be around +5...10°C.

In Finland we call that summer. We go out and celebrate those rare moments of warmth, preferably naked. Well... just being honest, just paid attention to these facts, relevant or not :)

And that may not be a compliment.

As I have indicated in other reviews, it is hard to review Canadian films entirely on their own merits. Frankly,if you did, they would not fare especially well. Because the Canadian film industry is one of those odd businesses which does not have to survive entirely on its own merits. Because of tax breaks, dollar exchanges, and geographical placement, the Canunk film machine is a lot like the president of a company that got the job not on talent but because he was the nephew or son in law of the Chairman of the Board. He can do the job. But there are also many others who can do it better.

Typical of the genre, we have a minimalist cast, largely unknown (although Bamber could pass for an international leading man) and a story which (heavy sigh) is a re-imagining of something older and wiser, (in this case Treasure of Sierra Madre, more or less.) Where the film gets props it is for the attempt (and I am choosing my words carefully) to turn the Canadian climate into a natural horror backdrop. This is somewhat clever and works somewhat well. To the point where you almost expect to see in the closing credits a SFX nod to "Mother Nature."

That said, the script is not especially sharp, nor is the acting. The brilliant and unappreciated TV series Fortitude did a much better job of making a natural climate seem menacing and scary. (Recommended if you missed it.)

Plus, (again heavy sigh) the film suffers from the standards "tells" one sees in most Canadian indies. The cinematography, the lighting, is perfect. Literally perfect. You get the feeling that the Director refused to shoot on any day that was overcast or had bad weather. Because in 40 years of trying, Canadian film-makers have never quite grasped that sometimes imperfection makes a story more credible. Even the outfits worn by the actors (until the final 15 minutes) look like they were replaced each morning, brand new, from the local Walmart.

Other IMDb members have commented on the fake reviews (a true failing in the IMDb system, especially with obscure films that get few reviews) so we will not go there.

And yes the film did win awards but (you guessed it) from a Canadian Award group. Essentially a group that had to find SOMEONE to give the awards to each year -- a paradox within a conundrum. Within an industry created by accountants.

I read the plot and i thought this looked interesting, it reminded me of the movie a simple plan but that movie was way more interesting than this.

While i watch it i could think of way better movies with the same theme that i could be watching, i don't hate it but nothing got me hooked to it.

I mean its not bad but there's nothing there that hasn't been done before in more interesting ways. The characters were boring and forgettable with

very used situations on way they are looking for the gold. Ill give thumbs up to the make up it look pretty good, either than that the movie is flat and its something to watch a Sunday afternoon and i doubt you will remember ever watching it afterwards.

Sadly this movie has a lot of "good reviews" or should i say payed reviews making it a thrilling master piece, I dare you to watch it and give it a 10 out of 10

It's not as bad as some would have you to believe. Beautiful scenery, acting is fair. It's worth the watch if it's free.

Four disposable a-holes go for a whiny stroll in the woods. These under-attired dopes are searching for treasure, but forget to bring equipment, have never seen a GPS, and can't read a map. Success is all but assured.

Do they get the gold? Do they kill one another in the process? Do they ever fricken shut up?

Who cares.

Three stars for the scenery.

My favorite genre is survival wilderness thrillers. I don't come across good ones very often. Numb was one of the good ones. It ended up being nothing like what I thought it was going to be. Overall, a good watch

Two couples that meet up end up running into a distressed man in the middle of the road that was frozen. He has GPS cords to a hidden treasure of gold. One of the men is a guy that works out in the elements in an oil field. So what does the foursome do? They traipse off into the back woods dressed like they are going to a shopping mall. Every dumb thing happens of course to the so called survival outdoors guy. It is just a waste of time and really dumb - dumb enough to make you numb.

Buyer beware: I wouldn't trust anyones review whose ONLY activity is related to the movie they're reviewing,

Are these "fake" people? No. Are they all associated with the production of the movie? No Did they come to this page organically to review a movie of their own choosing? No.

I've been to movie premiers where they ask you to review them favorably on IMDb.

I politely decline, and so should you if you weren't planning on reviewing it before.

The movie is not bad.

My rating is objective.

I only watched Numb because of my deep love for Jamie Bamber. He has been in some good productions, such as Law & Order UK.

This wasn't one of them.

Numb is like a fourth rate Treasure of the Sierra Madre but with snow. And no expense was spared to show how freezing it was.

A down and out couple pick up two hitchhikers and a nearly frozen man who dies. He has the GPS coordinates for stolen gold on his person. The four decide to find it.

The only problem is they're idiots. They are not dressed for the weather, nor do they have the proper tools and supplies for such an endeavor. And does anyone think gee, if we find $4 million in gold, how do we carry it?

The acting is just fine but this movie is such a downer, though for me it's a fitting way to end the year. Tomorrow I'll watch A Night at the Opera and cheer myself up.

Great movie ! Not a huge fan of dramas but this one had my throughout (:

This film was so bad that I just feel compelled to leave a revue. All the fake reviews from people whose home is Canada (coincidentally where the film was shot) giving it a 10 are so obvious. Read the 'real' reviews before you watch this pile of garbage. By three-quarters of the way through, I was laughing so much, I was convinced that it had been misrepresented as a thriller and that it was actually a comedy. The acting was so bad and the storyline so unbelievable that I just had to keep watching, even though I nearly gave up on it before it was halfway through. For those fellow English viewers of a certain age, you will have to ask yourself why Mrs. Overall was staggering through the woods at one stage. Thank you,directors and producers, for the funniest comedy I have seen in ages.

Had a few moments but everything in the story was not believable and I'm really easy on storylines. The movie might at least got a 5 but the horrible ending made making to the end a 1. Ok acting and ok cinematography that's about it.