The Colony [Blu-ray]

Director: Jeff Renfroe Jeff Renfroe

Overview

The desperate survivors of a new Ice Age contend with sickness and infighting while attempting to contact the inhabitants of another outpost that's gone mysteriously silent in this claustrophobic thriller from writer/director Jeff Renfroe (One Point O, Civic Duty). Mother Nature has cast an icy spell over the Earth once again, driving the few remaining pockets of humanity deep underground. Under the leadership of Briggs (Laurence Fishburne), the inhabitants of Colony 7 have managed to endure against all odds. They've been maintaining close contact with Colony 5, the only other dominion known to have weathered the chilling winds above, when their radios go mysteriously silent. Determined to find out exactly what happened in Colony 5, Briggs ignores the objections of his vocal rival Mason (Bill Paxton), assembles a team, and ventures out to investigate. By the time Briggs and his crew discover exactly what they're dealing with at Colony 5, however, their own base may have already been compromised.

Product Details

Release Date:	10/15/2013
UPC:	0014381859751
Original Release:	2013
Rating:	NR
Source:	RLJ ENTERTAINMENT, INC
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Language:	English
Time:	1:34:00
Sales rank:	18,982

Special Features

Behind-the-scenes; Interviews with the cast and crew

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Laurence Fishburne	Briggs
Bill Paxton	Mason
Kevin Zegers	Sam
Charlotte Sullivan	Kai
Atticus Mitchell	Graydon,Actor
Dru Viergever	Actor
Lisa Berry	Actor
Kimberly-Sue Murray	Actor
Michael Mando	Actor
Lucius Hoyos	Actor
Romano Orzari	Actor
John Healy	Actor
Kristin Shepherd	Actor
Sten Eirik	Hal
Julian Richings	Leland
Alex Paxton-Beesley	Terrified Woman
Eric Murdoch	Terrified Man
Mitchell Nye	Young Sam
Earl Pastko	Scientist
Jeff Danna	Composer

Technical Credits

Jeff Renfroe

Patrick Tarr

Pascal Trottier

Svet Rouskov

Jeff Renfroe	Director,Screenwriter
Patrick Tarr	Screenwriter
Pascal Trottier	Screenwriter
Svet Rouskov	Screenwriter
Matthew Cervi	Producer
Pierre Even	Producer
Marie-Claude Poulin	Producer
Paul Barkin	Producer
Noah Segal	Executive Producer,Producer
Mark Slone	Executive Producer,Producer
Marc Schaberg	Executive Producer,Producer
Jason Knight	Casting
Sherry Thomas	Casting
John Buchan	Casting
Sharon Bialy	Casting
Pierre-Jules Audet	Sound Effects
Peter Graham	Executive Producer

Editorial Reviews

Originality might be as scarce as seeds are in director Jeff Renfroe's icy postapocalyptic thriller The Colony, but stylish direction and urgent pacing help elevate the clichéd screenwriting slightly above Syfy Original Movie territory in this story about a desperate group of survivors fighting for their lives against a terrifying, all-consuming threat. Mother Nature has cast an icy spell over the Earth once again, driving the few remaining pockets of humanity deep underground. Under the leadership of Briggs (Laurence Fishburne), the inhabitants of Colony 7 have managed to endure against all odds. They've been maintaining close contact with Colony 5, the only other community known to have weathered the chilling winds above, but eventually their neighbors' radios go mysteriously silent. Determined to find out exactly what happened in Colony 5, Briggs ignores the objections of his vocal rival Mason (Bill Paxton) and ventures out to investigate with Sam (Kevin Zegers) and Graydon (Atticus Mitchell). By the time Briggs and his crew discover exactly what they're dealing with at Colony 5, however, their own base may have been compromised. A rainy-day movie if ever there was one, Renfroe's efficient little thriller benefits enormously from the director's talent at creating a believably bleak future on a limited budget. Of course, it doesn't hurt to have names like Fishburne and Paxton headlining the cast, but Renfroe grabs our attention early on with an effective setup, subjecting us to the same claustrophobia as his isolated protagonists through atmospheric camerawork and desperate dialogue. Though the screenplay, written by Renfroe in collaboration with Patrick Tarr, Pascal Trottier, and Svet Rouskov, echoes a number of influential sci-fi thrillers, it's the execution that holds our attention -- even once we realize that the writers aren't expanding on those influences in any discernible way. Like a snowbound version of Douglas Aarniokoski's 2011 thriller The Day, The Colony is a film that's simply content to play within the well-defined parameters of the postapocalyptic genre. As a result, your enjoyment will hinge on your willingness to accept the archetypes and familiar scenarios at face value rather than lament the lack of innovation. Make no mistake -- if you're looking for flaws here, you're sure to find them. That said, Renfroe's modest budget affords him the opportunity to create a future that isn't out of the realm of possibility. Add to that a good eye for detail, a fair amount of talent in front of the camera, and a memorably fierce villain, and you've got all of the ingredients for an indie effort with teeth (and sharpened ones at that). True, The Colony will be seen as a failure by smug viewers who measure their love for cinema by their ability to stay one step ahead of the storyteller, but for those just in the mood for some simple escapist fare, this competent genre yarn delivers enough chills and thrills to entertain right up to the bitter end.