Dark Nature

I remember as a young boy how i used to spend a lot of time in the forest with relatives in a smaller city called Charlottenberg. They owned an old cabin that lied in the forest and not far from their path lied a beautiful lake as well. If we didn´t stand fishing on the mountain by the lake we would go look for mushrooms or blueberries in the forest. We also picked up dead smaller trees to make fires by the lake, in case we captured some fish we could cook it right away. Of course on a hot day we would jump in the lake to go for a swim and lie on the mountain to dry up and get a tan. I have wonderful memories from Charlottenberg and they still have the same cabin to this day. I think it is good to let children experience both the forest and being around a lake because they can learn a lot of things that might help them learn about survival. How to fish or what kind of mushrooms you can eat, there are several good things that might be useful to know in ordinary day life. When it comes to films that takes place in the forest we have so many movies to choose between, and it also dependes what kind of genre you enjoy. One of my personal favourite films that takes place in different forest locations ( and other outdoor places as well ) is the 2007 drama film Into The Wild. Directed by legendary actor Sean Penn, this film is based on the book of the same name ny author Jon Krakauer. If you have not read the book it tells the true story of Christopher McCandless, a man who hiked across North America into the Alaskan wilderness in the early 1990s. He was found dead inside an abandoned bus out in the Alaskan wilderness by a hunter. Christopher have documented his journey writing down a lot on his journey, so before his death you could learn from his personal experiences going on this journey. In the film actor Emile Hirsch playes the role of Christopher McCandless and this is honestly his best acting performance ever. The film Into The Wild is also one of the most beautiful films i have seen that takes place in the Alaskan Wilderness. Sean Penn did an excellent job directing this film and you should definetely see Into The Wild, no matter if you choose streaming or physical copy. Late this spring this year i was hearing some buzz about a horror film that takes place in nature called Dark Nature. I decided to pick up a blu ray copy of the film from distribution company Epic Pictures to see if this film would be any good. Is this a nature horror film perfect for a cozy autumn evening or is this a film you might as well skip and watch something else instead?

Joy ( Hannah Emily Anderson ) is struggling with her past where her boyfriend Derek ( Daniel Arnold ) who physically and mentally abused her as well as killing her dog. Six months later Joy´s friend Carmen ( Madison Walsh ) believe she has the solution to help her friend. She convinces her to join her with a group of women led by Dr. Dunnely ( Kyra Harper ) where each woman have gone through trauma in different ways. This is meant to help the women deal with their past being out in nature together and helping each other out. At first it seems to be going well, but the further they go on this journey something doesn´t seem quite right.

If you think Dark Nature is just another horror release you are definetely wrong. This film really brings up the subject of how damaged a woman can be from domestic violence and the trauma that follows when you live with someone who mentally and physically abuse you. This is a very important subject that needs to be talked about, and the fact that this film tries to show a group of women who are all dealing with a rough past is a very good idea for a horror story. Especially since this film takes place out in the wilderness to help the women deal with their past by exploring nature and the harmony that surrounds it. Not every woman in the group have been a victim of abuse but experienced other kinds of trauma that damaged their past. The fact that the film completely turn things around later in the film is a different story, but let´s talk about the acting for a bit. Lead actress Hannah Emily Anderson ( who did a wonderful performance in the independent film What Keep You Alive, worth checking out ) as the character Joy show the reality of domestic abuse. There are some scenes where Hannah actually manage to show the panic you can have as a victim, knowing that you are in danger. So she definetely nailed this performance in a realistic way and the scenes where you see her struggling with trauma feels realistic as well. Actress Madison Walsh as Joy´s friend Carmen is a great character for the story, who not only tries to support her friend but the other women as well. When the film suddenly change plot and become like a combination of a Sasquatch horror film with The Descent influences, we are suddenly in a horror film with a mysterious beast included. Some people might not like that Dark Nature jump in such a different direction but i actually don´t mind that. The beast may not look fantastic but is at least created by practical make up effects and that is something we need more of in horror films. Overall i feel that Dark Nature do please me for trying a different approach in a film about dealing with trauma. Director Berkley Brady have made a beautiful looking nature film with some effective horror elements included. If you love practical horror make up effects and films about dealing with the past, this is the film you are looking for.

Rating: DDD

You can find the Blu Ray release of Dark Nature here on the following link of Epic Pictures:

https://epic-pictures.com/merchandise/dark-nature-blu-ray