Hostile

This was definitely not what I was expecting, it was actually much better, and deeper. I'm sure this movie, like most with flashbacks, will get panned by some reviewers because of it. However, after watching it through, the movie is actually more in the flashbacks than the "present" storyline. It has a really cool and moving symmetry at the beginning and end, using the gunshot. I actually let the movie begin to play over again at the end, which is where I really noticed it, and by rerunning is where you catch all the foreshadowing that you may not have caught. One of the first scenes, in the art gallery, with the "look past the ugliness" explanation of the Bacon artwork, is the basis of the story. I think you'll enjoy the movie as long as you're not looking for it to be the typical, gory, zombie-like post apocalyptic movie. Also understand that one flashback doesn't pick up exactly where the other left off (this threw me off at first and is why I enjoyed watching it a second time after understanding). The flashbacks are linear, but time passes (weeks to months) between them. This was a pleasant surprise, since I sit through quite a few bad movies when I look for free movies to stream.

This post-apocalyptic love story could have been very good, even great, had it not been for the jarring back-and-forth jumping between two different timelines.

The main plot-line finds our heroine injured and alone in a barren, zombie-infested no-man's land, hunted by a spindly creature with a bad skin condition. This situation could have been a nerve-wracking viewing experience, had the director not decided to splice scenes of her "life before" throughout the full run-time of the movie. This breaks the tension EVERY TIME, in both narratives.

If you want to tell a backstory, just tell it and get it over with!

The acting, music and cinematography was adequate.

It stands out in the overused zombie genre with its combination of horror (a bit?) and drama. Pace is slow with the amount of flashbacks but it pays off in the end. Don't expect to get a lot of explanation behind the apocalypse though.

No lie...I was really enjoying this movie right up until the ending. The post apocalyptic movie genre has always intrigued me mainly because I like to judge the decision making processes (or lack thereof) of the protagonists as they dart from one sticky situation to the next. The one common denominator in nearly every single one of these flicks is "OMG! Did you really think going into the dilapidated farm house by yourself and without a weapon or flashlight was going to turn out well?" This movie was no different. Our protagonist played by Brittany Ashworth immediately hit the right notes by coming off as capable, confident, and extremely self sufficient in the desolate landscape she was forced to survive in...and then she rolled her "Mad Max" Battlewagon when a "pre-end of the world photo" she obviously treasured blew out the window, and got a compound leg fracture in addition to an upside down hunk of useless metal, AND was stranded alone. Of course she'd be alone! But to her credit she did a good job fighting off the "things" you'd expect in a world gone to Hades. Then there was that ending. Oh boy. Up until then, not a bad run and I think most people would like it. Grade: B.

The apocalypse happened. "How" morphs itself into "What Now?"

Behind a plethora of sweeping landscape shots depicting the years following an apocalyptic event, Mathieu Turi's feature debut Hostile gives us the story of Juliette (Brittany Ashworth) and her struggle to survive.

Sounds cliche, right?

Wrong. It took a while to digest this film as initially I had written it off as "just another post-apocalyptic film." Let's face it, there are so many in this genre.

The film centers around Juliette and her struggle to stay alive following a debilitating car accident while on a scavenging mission. She must not only survive the barrenness of nature while badly injured, but a threat far more sinister.

We're offered abbreviated glimpses into her life pre-apocalypse as she longs for the days before everything went sideways. During these sequences is when Ashworth really gives a believable depth to her character. There's a palpable honesty in her interaction with the people in her previous life's sphere - most notably the sophisticated and charming Jack (Gregory Fitoussi).

Juliette's memories throughout the film not only to provide a contrast to her current situation but also provide a good break in the inescapable dread of being surrounded by unknown dangers.

The tension in the film is abundant and while the idea of the damsel Juliette needing to be saved borders on tongue-in-cheek, the climactic confrontation is equal parts tense and emotional.