‘Hold the Dark’ Review

July 25, 2020 Gabriel

It is difficult to talk about Jeremy Saulnier movies without ruining them because their ability to surprise and deliver the unexpected is such a core part of their identity. It is also difficult to talk about Jeremy Saulnier movies outside the context of his other movies because, as a director, he occupies a subgenre entirely unto itself.

In his latest effort, Hold the Dark, Saulnier has a bigger budget, more well-known actors, and a larger dramatic and narrative scope to match. Turning away from the uncomfortably intimate, wall-to-wall white-knuckle intensity of his earlier thrillers Blue Ruin and Green Room, Hold the Dark favors a slower pace, less direct and more allusive story-telling, and (surprisingly) an even bleaker tone. The film still carries Saulnier’s signature gritty style, matter of fact depictions of sudden violence, and quality visuals.

The basic premise is a well-known author on the subject of wolves (Jeffrey Wright) comes to Alaska to track down the wolf who killed Medora Slone’s (Riley Keough) son before her mentally unstable husband (Alexander Skaarsgaard) returns from Iraq. Needless to say, this premise covers the first 20 minutes of the film after which it continually morphs into something new as twists arrive and new information comes to light. Much of the story is left unsaid or unseen and for the viewer to guess at which becomes difficult unless you’re paying attention to all the very on-the-nose wolf metaphors that get thrown around throughout the film. The performances are solid, and the story artfully told, but the characters are fairly thin and hard to care about or get invested in and the narrative is ultimately pretty unsatisfying. The script has a great deal more thematic depth than a lot of movies out there, but the film’s discussion of parenthood, family, social decay, and self-destruction falls somewhat flat given the lackluster story.

It wouldn’t be much of a problem if there was something else to grasp on to, but there really isn’t. The narrative of Blue Ruin isn’t particularly great either, but it’s so fucking intense and thrilling from beginning to end that the story really isn’t the main event anyway. Hold the Dark lacks the visceral thrill needed to mask over the story’s shortcomings. While the technical elements of the movie are well done, they are not unique or inventive enough to help the film stand out.

There’s nothing particularly bad about this film, but nothing particularly great about it either. It’s worth watching if you’re a Saulnier fan or if you’re bored. It’s very well made and thematically more interesting than many films out there, but it all leaves one asking “Who cares?”.