Now I reckon the ghost of Leslie Banks would be spinning in his grave were he to see this really poor remake of what was originally quite a dark and menacing story. That role here is taken by Casper Van Dien who ostensibly comes to the rescue of a man and his son who are shipwrecked onto his island. Thing is, his charity isn't quite all it is cracked up to be and this becomes clear when the father and son "Marcus" (Judd Nelson) and "Sanger" (Chris Tamburello) find themselves out and about in this paradise. Not as tourists, but as prey for a lethal manhunt. Sadly, this really has very little to redeem it. It's adequately enough produced, but unfortunately the range of on-screen talent presented here is all well past it's use by date. Van Dien got away with it when he was young and fit; Judd Nelson when he was young with attitude and I'm never quite sure why Bruce Dern ever got away with it - but here they just take a seriously mediocre script and offer us a sterile and really quite uninteresting take on a story of life and death. It's an adaptation of a short story and, to be fair, they can be difficult to string out for ninety minutes. Also, still being fair, director Justin Lee had little idea how to do that imaginatively when he started, so maybe he just should't have bothered.
**_Writer/director Justin Lee’s version of Richard Connell’s 1924 short story_**
He switches the location of Ship-Trap Island from the Caribbean to the Aleutian Islands and wisely adds a few extra individuals for human interest. Nevertheless, the tale still revolves around the three core characters of Cossack General Zaroff, played here by Caspar Van Dien as German Baron Von Wolf, his right-hand deaf-mute giant Ivan, and the visitor to the isle, Sanger Rainsford, played by Chris 'C.T.' Tamburello. Brunette Elissa Dowling is added to the cast as Mary for dramatic effect. Bruce Dern and Tom Berenger also show up in peripheral roles.
The timeline of the story is changed from around 1924 to the post-WW2 years, presumably 10-15 years after the war, and possibly as many as 20 years. The exact year is never noted, but Sanger Rainsford’s age offers an estimation, not to mention the Baron’s age.
Lee’s moviemaking expertise is twofold: He has the ability to write quality dialogues, including mundane ones (similar to Tarantino), not to mention get his cast to give convincing performances. He’s also proficient at shooting drama/action/adventure in the wilderness, often the Great Northwest. This can be observed in his Westerns “Any Bullet Will Do” and “A Tale of Two Guns,” as well as his later “Hunting Games.” His coastal road movie “Swell” is another example. These strengths are front and center here.
Keep in mind that Lee doesn’t do blockbuster movies, but rather low-budget quickies. He delivers the goods with quality writing, scenic cinematography and effective performances on a small budget. This one reportedly only cost about $220,000, which is amazing when you see the movie. Dern and Berenger must’ve flown in for one day of shooting.
Sure, it’s a comic book adventure, but so was Connell’s original story at heart. Sure, Van Dien hams it up a bit, but that fits the megalomaniac character of Zaroff.
It runs 1h 34m and was shot in Nov 2021 at the Koenig Pictures backlot in Eagle Creek, Oregon, which is located a dozen miles southeast of Portland in the northwest region of the state. The few scenic coastal shots were done in either Oregon or Washington.
GRADE: B+
