I liked The Pack. Even while watching it, I knew I probably shouldn’t have, but I did. The Pack isn’t consistently great, and it never earns praise for originality. Instead, it drags towards the end credits, reminding everyone of much better movies. I wanted a bit more impressive gore and better pacing. Yet, when I pondered on these arguments for too long, I remembered one thing; they don’t matter.
Charlotte (Emilie Dequenne) has been driving until she stumbles upon Max (Benjamin Biolay) and her mix of CDs are no use to her. Max disappears shortly after Charlotte shows his her CDs because she’s about to get into some trouble. That does not matter, what does matter is the horrifying reality that surrounds her, which seems to be splattered with her blood, and gives life to horrifying monsters which rise from the ground. Nobody can oversee this plot better than the old lady (Yolande Moreau) who has watched over a shed filled with the blood of many.
All of this is very generic and has been done multiple times. A woman is in danger, and she tries to hitchhike, but to no avail. As she struggles, a man who has experienced this place before tries to help her. The Pack does not seem interesting anymore, and features an antagonistic biker gang and a cop who is on to something (Philippe Nahon), but this takes away any mystery. If you are expecting something innovative, I am afraid, you are out of luck.
We owe thanks to Franck Richard for bringing together such an excellent cast, giving great dialogue, and directing of which elevated the film beyond expectations. Cast members and Matthias Schoenaerts and Ian Fonteyn, as well as Dequenne, Biolay, and Moreau, were amazing. They immersed themselves in the character, so much so, that as a viewer, whether the character was good or bad, you found them very engaging.
Another major advantage which the film boasts of, is the visual style. Every scene perfectly blends grime, blood and style. The design of the sets is well done and “the pack” as well. The pack had some shots with action and bloodshed that were unexpectedly beautiful and heartbreaking during the big finale.
My sentiments about The Pack could have gone both ways, I suspect. It is not something that I would recommend to a lot of horror fans but I would wish that some people take the risk of watching it and are pleasantly surprised like I was. It has a particular quality, a certain something, that elevates it above mediocre. And believe me, if I could pinpoint what that was then I would have written a much better review, which would convince everyone to watch the movie. As it is, give it a shot, but remember that you may very well end up disliking it for the very things I ended up enjoying.
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