Into The Forest

By: Kathryn Trammell

If computer generated blockbuster catastrophes and gruff action heroes-turned-saviors of the universe are a necessity for your post-apocalyptic film enjoyment, then Into the Forest is not for you. If instead you prefer a more realistic tale in which hope and the resiliency of the mind are the only ways to defeat the kind of threats that slowly encroach on the modern world you once knew, then Into the Forest is a film you will certainly not want to miss.

It seemed apparent from the very first shot that this film was going to be an immersive experience, the camera doing for director Patricia Rozema what the pen did for author Jean Hegland in 1996. Few filmmakers are able to glean every ounce of beauty from a page of literature and translate it onto the screen the way Rozema did with Into the Forest, which is why I can honestly say that it is one of those rare films in which the movie actually gives the novel the justice its original writing deserves. Mixing a soundtrack as dramatic as Rozema’s cinematography with the convincing portrayals that Ellen Page and Evan Rachel Wood would literally lay their lives on the line to protect each other, Into the Forest gives its audience plenty of theme and substance to appreciate. It will also surely confuse fans of the genre who aren’t used to seeing such a cerebral and introspective version of the typical post-apocalyptic tale.

To be more specific, the primary antagonist in this story does not immediately present itself, the slow and suffocating encroachment of nature on modernity needing time to become a threat. We are also never quite clear as to what or who causes the power outage that throws the world into disarray or how widespread the power outage is yet given all the ambiguity regarding the antagonist (which is essential for the genre’s primary conflicts) critics are sure to call this movie “slow” or even “pointless.” They will also struggle to identify with the films two protagonists who are a far cry from the archetypical male heroes we traditionally see at the forefront of these films.

In the beginning, the power outage is only a nuisance, both Nell (Ellen Page) and Eva (Evan Rachel Wood) reluctantly adapting to the loss of electricity that seemed to be the very life support of their thoroughly modern household. After a few weeks pass by, the reality that the outage is not temporary sets in, but both girls are able to cope largely because their father does everything within his power to keep them safe and to keep their spirits lifted.

When he dies – the moment both Nell and Eva lay by their father’s side telling him he will live because they can’t imagine being orphaned during an apocalypse – is a moment that makes heroes out of protagonists. But unlike your typical apocalyptic film which insists its male leads simply move past their grief so that they can defend their loved ones from next slew of rabid zombies or the next wave of a plague, Into the Forest allows us to witness the power and strength that can be born from the process of grieving. When the girls wake up beside the body of their father, bury him where he lies so that wild hogs can’t eat his remains and return to their powerless home to wash their blistered, bloodied hands and tired bodies, we never once feel at any moment during these scenes. This give sproof to the power and poetry of allowing oneself to feel pain, that either girl has been made weaker because of this experience. On the contrary, that they could embrace this tragedy and still retain their hope is the greatest of any strengths they could acquire.

But that isn’t to say that mental fortitude is the only strength they demonstrate. In scenes that for female characters are otherwise treated as sidenotes for meager “character development,” we actually get to witness Nell and Eva physically doing the tasks that will help them survive the apocalypse. We see both characters learn about, forage for and prepare plants for food and medicine. We see Nell hunt, dress, clean, cook and preserve a wild boar. We see them chop wood and repair their home. We see them struggle to decide the worth of one gallon of gasoline that could either fill a generator and give them moments of comfort and morale or fill a gas tank and give them a trip into town. But what we don’t see is the perpetuation of a world-in-ruin that exists devoid of issues related to gender politics, which is what makes this film so important compared to other films of the same genre.

Being the primary conflict to the sisters’ survival, nature exists on two basic levels: the forest that surrounds their home and human nature. It’s the latter that Rozema doesn’t allow to be glossed over in her film. Whereas other films might feature gender politics in a way that creates some heroic goal or inspiration for the protagonist (i.e. Theo Faron protecting the first pregnant woman in 18 years from attacks, Max exacting lawless revenge on the men who killed his wife and child, etc.), Into the Forest prioritizes this theme by placing it front and center when a man wanders in from the forest invading the sisters’ property and attacking one of them. But just as we saw when they lost their father, Nell and Eva don’t ignore this new tragedy and neither does Rozema, showing an audience that rarely has the opportunity to see heroes struggle in this way that characters can grow and thrive not despite their struggles, but because they embrace them.

Much of the power and meaning that resounds in these scenes are due largely to Wood and Page’s acting. So real is the grief both actresses give to their characters and so convincing is their portrayal of the losses that binds them as sisters, that I couldn’t help but be reminded of times in my life when I have cried the same way, held my sisters the same way, and allowed myself to be the strongest I could’ve ever been simply because I was embracing my grief the same way Eva and Nell did. It takes a different kind of strength to shape a character into a heroine, and that this strength is allowed to exist at all in a film is revolutionary for me and so many other mothers, daughters, and sisters who rarely get to see their power so beautifully exposed in cinema.

That being said, I highly recommend this film to any fan of the genre who is willing to see the forest through the trees – to look beyond a lack of high-throttle threats and typical action movie heroes and see instead the beautiful and profound exploration into themes that other post-apocalyptic films address but never prioritize. Eva and Nell are worthy heroines, there journey made more believable by the exceptional performances of both Evan Rachel Wood and Ellen Page. Filled with gritty realism and immersive cinematography, Into the Forest is the kind of film that critics and fans of the genre might not fully appreciate, but it is a film that it worthy of respect nonetheless.

Into the Forest is showing in limited movie theaters across the country and is also available for download on iTunes.