Jeremy Saulnier goes to Alaska

Netflix premiered "Hold the Dark" recently, and being a fan of Jeremy Saulnier's other works (Murder Party, Blue Ruin, Green Room), I had to see it. So what is it, anyway?

Hold the Dark starts off with a bang, as a mother's son disappears, and the local Alaskan wolves are to blame. She hires a tracker (Jeffrey Wright) to find her son, or at least the wolves, and that's what this movie is about. But wait! Alexander Skarsgard is in the movie too, as the dead boy's father. He's off fighting in "the war" overseas, but eventually finds his way into the current Alaska setting to get involved in the shit. There are a few scenes during the war, in the middle east somewhere, and it's fucked up, but also badass.

Some of the movie feels like a war movie, too. It gets tense, like you're out on the battlefield, but ol' Jeremy knows how to craft some decent suspense and tension. He's a really good director, in my opinion, and he's not afraid to go dark. The movie starts off a bit slow, and I don't exactly get the ending yet, but I was pretty captivated throughout the whole movie either way. If you like this director and have Netflix, then get on it.

I like a well crafted bleak movie, and that's what this dude is all about. The movie was also based on a novel, but I might watch it again to try to understand some of the subtext.