The Survivalist

Right from the git-go it seemed very rushed, generic formula, made-up at the last moment to fit the current pandemic. Not believable or well-acted. Just watched it yesterday & really can't remember much of it. On the other hand I also watched The Suicide Squad, and it I won't forget.

Beware: this is a B-movie, cheaply made, with black and white (UNimpressive) photography.

I was drawn to this movie by the name of the magnificent actor John Malkovich. Why does he lower himself to these kind of movies? Perhaps he has hit lower ground financially, because such a terrific actor should not lower himself to these kind of cheaply made B-movies.

Everything about this movie looks and feels amateurish. Just watching the first 5 minutes gave me a sinking feeling in my stumach. John Malkovich only appears for a few minutes, so this seems to be that sort of movies some actors (desperately) agree to do out of financial dire straits.

Let's hope John Malkovich can still be given parts that give credit to his wonderfully gifted acting talents.

The story: forget about it. Forget about this movie alltogether...that would be best for everybody involved...

COVID is referenced throughout. Some carriers, some spreaders. Lots of death. A complete failure of leadership. This movie seems like it was made for $1000 over a long weekend. Boring and predictable. No upside.

It's hard to fathom how Jonathan Rhys Meyers ends up in movies like these. He's so damn talented, so handsome, has that "it" factor, and yet time and again he ends up in pure trash. I mean, this guy was the lead in Matchpoint! It's almost like when I see him advertised in a film now, I assume it will be abysmal.

An actor can do a few clunkers without self destructing, but Rhys Meyers seems intent on blowing up what could have been a total A list career.

It's day 592 of Covid-19 Delta and the world has collapsed. Uninfected people were rounded up in camps which ended in disaster. The cities are devastated and bands of pirates are headed out into the country. Aaron (John Malkovich) leads one group searching for a young woman assumed to be immune. She finds a protector in Ben (Jonathan Rhys Meyers).

This is a low budget affair. Somebody found a location with a few buildings. They slap-dashed some stuff. Worst still, they slap-dashed a script. The biggest mistake is using the real world situation. They need to use a fictional virus so that they can create a fictional world. It's more than the worlds not matching. They can't possibly get the science right. They need a fictional virus to create movie-logic of their own. The directing is pretty bad. There are a few good actors here who probably had projects canceled on them and needed the work during the pandemic. Malkovich is trying his best but the camera work is bad. It's all pretty bad except for the professional actors working.