I'll be upfront. Sasquatch has always been one of those things that terrify me. Living where I do it's something that stuck with me from a very young age and has always been one of my irrational fears. So, I have both a soft spot and glaring disdain for subject matter that takes it on. One of the first thing I noticed about Primal Rage was it looked like it had a budget. I know that's not the be all end all when it comes to movies, but out of all the films I've seen involving this subject it was one of the better-looking ones. The FXs were fantastic, and I loved the look of the creature. It had a more Ape like appearance to it than many of the traditional descriptions, but in the context of the story, I really liked it. While this isn't a gore fest, there are some awesome moments of gore that will sate diehard gore-hounds. I loved the score and thought It fit the tone of the film well and made it feels much grander than it deserved to. It added an ominous layer to the situation without pulling you out of what was going on.
Where this one stumbles a bit is the story itself. I get plot points and needing to move the story along but there are a few occasions where things felt unnecessary and foreshadowed just a bit too much. While I didn't have any major issues with the acting the main Male character was annoying. It felt like every bad-boy trying to do good trope wrapped into one. I don't even fault that in the performance I think it was more of the way it was written. It isn't too bad throughout the first 1/3rd of the film. In that act there's a good dynamic between him and the lead actress. It loses most of that momentum throughout the last 2/3rds. While it doesn't ruin the film, it is off-putting.
If I had watched this movie when I was 14 or 15 this would have been right in that sweet spot for me. It's very reminiscent of old-school Orion pictures type films, and the higher end B grade movies I enjoyed so much growing up. Despite the issues I had, I enjoyed it. It's got enough good points, ideas and moments to give it a watch. I know I've certainly seen and enjoyed a hell of a lot worse.
My Rating: 6/10
Where this one stumbles a bit is the story itself. I get plot points and needing to move the story along but there are a few occasions where things felt unnecessary and foreshadowed just a bit too much. While I didn't have any major issues with the acting the main Male character was annoying. It felt like every bad-boy trying to do good trope wrapped into one. I don't even fault that in the performance I think it was more of the way it was written. It isn't too bad throughout the first 1/3rd of the film. In that act there's a good dynamic between him and the lead actress. It loses most of that momentum throughout the last 2/3rds. While it doesn't ruin the film, it is off-putting.
If I had watched this movie when I was 14 or 15 this would have been right in that sweet spot for me. It's very reminiscent of old-school Orion pictures type films, and the higher end B grade movies I enjoyed so much growing up. Despite the issues I had, I enjoyed it. It's got enough good points, ideas and moments to give it a watch. I know I've certainly seen and enjoyed a hell of a lot worse.
My Rating: 6/10