Stephen Fingleton's grim, minimalist dystopian drama-cum-thriller (filmed in Northern Ireland) is fairly dialogue-lite. With a backstory about the starvation-collapse of civilization that is confined to an opening graphic, the narrative focuses tightly on a nameless man (Martin McCann) subsisting in the forest on a small farm but besieged by occasional marauders, who he summarily kills, despite being desperately low on shotgun shells. An aged mother (Olwen Fouéré) and her nubile daughter (Mia Goth) barter their way into dwelling with the survivalist, and naturally he looks to the girl for sex. The visitors seem to be awakening a dormant humanity in the man, but these two seemingly defenseless women are also capable of deadly plotting. Long, moody shots, coupled with foreboding silences and nature sounds accentuate this tense, fatalistic narrative set in a brute environment of diminishing resources. Recommended. (C. Cassady)
The Survivalist
Shout! Factory, 104 min., not rated, DVD: $16.99, Blu-ray/DVD Combo: $22.99, Oct. 3 Volume 33, Issue 1
The Survivalist
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