Wilderness isn't a great modern horror film, but it does a good job of taking old ideas and rehashing them into a fresh and exciting plot line. The influences to the film are clear, with the much-copied classic 'The Most Dangerous Game' being fused with more modern films such as 'Battle Royale'. The basic plot line isn't too far removed from your common slasher film, but director Michael J. Bassett gives him film an extra edge by putting the focus on the struggle as the protagonists battle with the wilderness (naturally),the main threat and even each other. The plot focuses on a group of juvenile delinquents who are sent to an uninhabited island when a young lad staying in their home is found to have committed suicide. However, the island doesn't turn out to be uninhabited at all, as aside from a local hermit; there's also a group of girls there with the same idea - and some mad psycho with a crossbow and a group of bloodthirsty German Shepherds, who is seemingly hell bent on not letting any of them off the island alive!

The director seems more bothered about atmosphere and tension than characters; as while some of the people inhabiting the film are well defined, their actions are often questionable and none of them are particularly interesting. But even so, this isn't a problem; as the film is constantly suspenseful and the fact that there is an unseen psycho in the woods bodes well with the atmosphere on display. Michael J. Bassett seems keen to go against the clichés of the horror genre, as there is no mystery to the killer's identity after the first half of the film and the crossbow weapon works well. There's a fair amount of gore on display, although the film never matches the initial death sequence in the wilderness in terms of gore. The acting isn't terrible, but the 'thick' British accents sound really phoney to an actual Brit like me. Sean Pertwee is the only recognised name on the cast list, but the rest of the cast; which is made up of mostly British television stars, provide adequate performances. Overall, Wilderness is certainly a good horror film and comes recommended.

A bunch of teenage delinquents are taken to a remote British island in order to 'build character', but are picked off by an unseen assailant in a variety of gruesome ways.

Wilderness, a violent British made survivalist horror, is another clunker from director Michael J. Bassett, the man who gave us the decidedly lame WW1 chiller Deathwatch. Once again, Bassett presents us with another poorly thought out movie saddled with a ridiculous conceit, a poor cast (when Sean Pertwee is the best actor on the bill, something is definitely up),and a very bad script.

Even if a large picturesque island paradise off the coast of the UK actually existed, the idea that it could possibly remain totally uninhabited is unbelievably daft. The thought that it would be reserved solely for the use of correctional facilities is absurd. And the notion that a group of violent offenders would be taken to said island accompanied by a single supervisor is totally moronic.

And with the majority of the movie's characters being juvenile scumbags and unlikable thugs, it is impossible to feel any sympathy for most of those who die. In fact, I was quite happy to see these miserable excuses for human beings get their comeuppance.

In an attempt to distract his audience from all of these shortcomings, Bassett piles on the gore, with maulings by savage dogs, crossbow attacks, dismemberment and immolation. But even a high level of impressively realistic bloodletting doesn't stop one from noticing that the film is basically a bit of a stinker.

Hot on the heels of the horror comedy SEVERANCE comes WILDERNESS, a similarly-themed low-budget British movie about a bunch of people on a remote Scottish island who are being picked off one by one by a camouflaged maniac. Bearing many similarities to DOG SOLDIERS in terms of dialogue, gore effects, and the always-welcome presence of Sean Pertwee, despite its predictability and lack of originality, WILDERNESS rocks! An engaging script, plenty of action, and some creepy isolated locales make this flick a winner, and it's also a genuinely exciting film with people fighting for their lives against an unknown oppressor.

The movie benefits from the usual clichés that arise when people are stranded somewhere remote; it's all about group dynamics, and watching the characters fall apart or become leaders is always engaging. The acting from the young cast is surprisingly decent, with lots of stand out performances with Toby Kebbell's mad hero taking the honours. And, of course, with this being a modern horror film, it's very gory stuff despite a 15 certificate. Legs and heads are severed, there's a pack of vicious dogs that tear people to shreds (Sean Pertwee never has much luck, does he?) and things culminate with a nasty knife vs. axe fight which makes for really vicious viewing. Lean, pared down, and offering all the splattering you could ever want from an intense horror outing, WILDERNESS does just what it says on the tin – and for that it deserves top marks.