Killing Ground

Well, I for one, quite enjoyed this movie. It was an unexpected pleasure. I didn't go in with high hopes and was pleasantly surprised. I think that what I enjoyed most about it was the fact that it wasn't full of Hollywood schlock. There were some intense scenes that I never would expect to see in a big-budget Hollywood film. I say kudos for straying beyond the norm in this regard. I've seen quite a few reviews that complain about the non-linear storytelling and use of flashbacks. I'm not sure what the big deal is. Lots of movies do this. It wasn't too difficult to understand what was happening. As for the ambiguous ending, I'm completely okay with it. It seems like some of those people that complain about open-ended endings and non-linear storytelling insist on having their entertainment spoon-fed to them. Personally, I like that I was made to think a bit about what might have been. I'm kind of hoping for a sequel; Killing Ground II: The Adventures of Ollie and Banjo. This one, of course, would be a family film about a toddler and a dog who travel around solving mysteries.

The moment that guy threw the baby on the ground I immediately hated the movie. I also hate how we never see the outcome of what happens to the child. I'm a total horror fanatic, but when it comes to toddlers and babies...there's a line to be drawn in horror films.

Killing Grounds was, at first, a tough watch for me. Seeing how much realism and detail was added to the scenes made me truly feel bad for the victims. One of my favorite parts about this film was their use of the past and present families and showing the stories connect with one another. On top of this, props to the creators not using cheesy jump scares to try and score a cheap shot with the audience. Instead they help develop all of the characters so you feel for each one, good and bad. Overall, a great twisted horror film that will keep you engaged at all parts, with a bit of a lack luster ending. 7/10

I give this a six because honestly I had planned on giving it an eight. That is up until the end. I won't give it away, of course, but simply saying here it is the reason for a two point drop in rating pretty much says I feel it seriously damaged the film. Now this may be my opinion only. May be my pet peeve, actually. Back when IMDb had a forum I would rant often about the current trend in movies to have such endings as this, and thankfully found I was not alone in my dislike. What about the rest? Very suspenseful film making with a unique twist to what would otherwise be another "Deliverance" meets "Wolf Creek" psychos in the wilderness tale. The time anomalies were at first hard to grasp but once grasped became compelling (two time lines between two sets of characters yet you are not aware of the time disparity till, well, you become obviously aware that these people are not in the same time though are in the same place). Once everything catches up and the story is happening in the same time frame the film continues to be hectic, surprising, and nerve racking. The performances all around were good. No sour notes or bad actors among them. So what bothered me? Well... like I said, the end. There wasn't one. Not a proper one anyway. The fate of one character is never addressed, just left hanging, and the two main characters never have that conversation that they so desperately needed to have and share with us! The film simply went to a blackout. And so like the fate of that hanging character, we the audience are left hanging. At least I was. The lack of proper denouement in current film is to me a sign that writers and directors simply have no idea how to end their projects; and so they don't, chalking it all up to "art". It isn't art it is laziness. That or poor education. This film could have been a classic.

Aaron Pederson came off Mystery Road and Goldstone for....this? He should be hitting Hollywood with his talent, but instead he'll settle for a script with little originality or imagination, and fellow great actors wasting their talents. Harriet Dyer is a terrific performer and has shown her charisma on the shows No Activity and The Other Guy, but is only required to be frightened wife captured by a maniac here, big boost into cinema that one is. Aaron Glenane is a convincing psychopath, but his and Pederson's characters are given no motivation or explanation for killing, they just do it for a laugh it seems. The only praise this deserves is for its beautiful cinematography, given the proper cinematic look with a proper film camera and lenses, rather than the grainy fly on the wall style that outstayed its welcome years back. Shows off the amazing countryside but then again does little with it but put in a hackneyed story and boring characters. Another miss for Aussie film. Except for people who love watching people get shot in the head.

Great acting and full of tension.. though some of it might be too much for some. But the ending was the only thing that bothered me. What happened to Ollie??