Review: Killer Film.com
http://www.killerfilm.com/film_reviews/read/Donny_Broussard_Reviews_Ro gue_DVD-445
The Flickshare
I'm not sure why Greg Mclean's "Rogue" got pushed out of a theatrical release spot and into a direct-to-DVD position after his first flick "Wolf Creek" was such a success, but I can say that as a horror fan I would have loved to have peeped this killer croc masterpiece on the big screen. I hope this flick can find an audience on DVD because it definitely deserves to be seen by any self respecting horror fan, make that any self respecting movie fan. Lately moviegoers have been treated to mindless drivel revolving around one-dimensional characters, and the horror genre especially has been sucking giant monkey balls on the big screen. "Rogue" on the other hand doesn't suck giant monkey balls, and it also doesn't suffer from one-dimensional character syndrome, but it does kick good old fashioned giant-animal-in-the-water gonna eat you ass!
The premise is a simple one, a group of people set out to enjoy a boat tour of Australia's Northern Territory when a flare is spotted in the distance. The boat's driver/tour guide, the extremely sexy (in that cute-as-hell sorta way) Kate Ryan (Radha Mitchell) decides that it is her duty to check out the source of the flare, which takes them off of the tour route and into waters that are considered off limits. Once the group reaches the spot that they think is the source of the flare, all they find is a overturned boat. But suddenly something big hits the bottom of their boat causing it to take on water and forcing Kate to drive the boat onto a really small island (think of an island the size of a large back yard). Right away they realize that they are being looked at as an all you can eat buffet by a giant croc, and to make the situation worse they are trapped on a tidal island, meaning, the tide will eventually engulf the entire island. That's when journalist Pete McKell (Michael Vartan) takes matters into his own hands and devises a plan to get the group off of the island and away from the threat lurking in the water that surrounds them.
Director, Greg Mclean knows how to pick a location. I can't think of a more claustrophobic place, and the fact that the island is right out in the open and part of a vast, yet beautiful landscape makes it that much more frightening. Mclean also knows how to build characters that aren't just food for the beast. I cared about these characters, even the stupid ones had personality. Also, waiting until the last quarter of the flick to reveal the corc created more suspense and terror, making the beast more menacing.
I cared about these characters, sure I wanted to watch some of them get eaten, but I felt for them after they got chomped. The corc was scary and never seemed plastic, the gore was minimal but very effective, the location was perfect, and it was evident that the director not only loves the horror genre, he understands the genre. With that said I would recommend this flick to any and all horror fans, and ask that you immediately buy or rent this flick, hell rent it more than once. Because it's time that as fans we send a message to the suits in Hollywood, and let them know that we don't want to see crap like "The Eye," or "Prom Night," but the flicks that they evidently don't think we want to see, films like "Rogue," and "The Midnight Meat Train" are exactly what needs to be on the big screen. I'm not sure if this review will ever be read by Mr. Mclean, but just in case I'd like to say that I finally feel like there's a director out there batting in the big leagues, that not only understands what horror fans want to see, he delivers the goods and makes killer films.