The Pack (2016)

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

I'm a bit of an outlier on this, I guess, but I really liked this movie. It's a short (less than 90 minutes) and taut Australian horror movie about a family trapped in their farmhouse by a vicious pack of wild dogs. It's suspenseful and at times exciting. It's hard to take seriously, of course - but I'm not sure that horror movies are meant to be "taken seriously." The basic point of the movie is made pretty quickly, when a couple on another farm are killed by this pack, and then Adam (Jack Campbell) discovers a whole flock of mutilated sheep on his property. That was our introduction to the family who are the main characters. Mom and Dad (Mom Carla is played by Anna Lise Phillips) are in danger of losing their farm because they can't pay the mortgage and the bank is about to foreclose. Adam's a farmer whose livestock (as we've seen) are being killed by something, and Carla's a veterinarian who doesn't have enough business in this isolated area to make much money. Daughter Sophie (Katie Moore) is actually delighted by the prospect of having to leave, since she desperately wants to live in the city, while her younger brother Henry (Hamish Phillips) has never experienced anything but the farm and can't imagine living anywhere else. So the dynamics of the family are set up pretty well, and the movie moves pretty quickly into the primary story - how is this family going to survive once the attacks begin one night?I did, in fact, really like this. I thought it moved along nicely, the attacks that were shown were just graphic enough without being over the top gory, and director Nick Robertson made what I felt was very effective use of lighting in the film. Lights would flicker on and off because of a previously mentioned problem with the fuse box and that added a sense of drama and mystery and an edginess to the story. So, yes, I am a bit of an outlier on this - but I thought it was a really good and effective horror movie (8/10)

Australian movie about a family who find their farmhouse surrounded by a pack of deadly feral dogs (shades of Night of the Living Dead?) And that's pretty much it, stretched out to 85 minutes. Prosthetic heads aside the dogs used look more cuddly than dangerous. The acting was OK and there are a few bloody attacks, so a little something for gore fans, However I found the film pretty boring and it offers nothing new. It's set at night yet there's light streaming into the house from the windows. I do like Aussie movies but this is a million miles from the likes of Wolf Creek. My only consolation is that I paid £2 for it from the budget section and will be looking to pass the DVD on.

SEE. THIS. FILM. The Pack (2015) is a gem of Australian Horror, the kind of movie that makes wading through all the other dreck worthwhile. When I first saw the cover art, I assumed this was from the cheap-but-occasionally- charming SyFy Channel school of film-making. I was wrong. This is a smartly scripted and acted story. The situation is simple enough. It's about an Australian family in a remote farmhouse who find themselves under siege by wild dogs, a Night of the Living Canines scenario. Tense, frightening, and atmospheric, it's a beautifully crafted movie. Move over, Cujo, I'm declaring it top dog in this category. Unqualified purchase recommendation for lovers of man vs. animal films. (I have the DVD and it's well-mastered, nearly blu-ray quality.)

'The Pack' doesn't have the eye candy 'The Breed' has, nor does it have the same star power as 'The Grey,' but it's an enjoyable, slightly tedious wild animal flick.While it doesn't have the eye candy 'The Breed' has, it's also not nearly as ridiculous, or laughably ignorant either. Unfortunately, it's not going to get the audience that film had, because sex sells - even Taryn Manning. Yuck! The acting (The Pack) is tolerable. The main couple do a fine job, but they lose points for adding the typical, annoying, ignorant teenage daughter, who you hope gets taken out early - but you know she'll be around until the end. Seriously, would the film have been any worse if the married couple had one child? Of course not. Maybe they went for realism? Because, honestly, how many couples are smart enough to stop at one child, right? 'The Pack' isn't on the same level as 'The Grey,' and it doesn't do the horror genre the same justice as 'Cujo,' so I can't see many hardcore horror fans being too impressed. There's only so many ways this film can go, and it ends up dragging on, even at 84 minutes. The dogs even looked bored around the 60 minute mark. But if you need something to watch, and you have to choose between 'Lumberjack Man,' 'The Gallows,' or 'The Pack,' do yourself a favor and choose the latter. Random Ramblings of a Madman: Wild dogs can be frightening, and these dogs do a fine job, but at the end it's just a pack of wild dogs. Now, if it had been a pack of wild Krackoons - the daughter would have been the first to go.