[The Forgotten Ones]
Plot:After a devastating boat crash, a group of friends are stranded on an uncharted island where they encounter an ancient tribe of humanoid creatures.

Cast:Marc Bacher, Justin Baldoni, Nikki Griffin, Kellan Lutz, Jewel Staite.

My Thoughts:Well it's a good thing they're remaking this!

Review:So two years ago, there was a film announced called "The Tribe". The movie would have a group of young people on their way to engage in some sun, fun, and sex...unexpectedly crashing their boat onto an uncharted island. While there, they encounter vicious humanoid creatures which kill in packs similar to wolves or ferals. Then not much was heard about the film, until last year sometime when it was revealed that the finished product was so awful, the producers decided to scrap the movie, and make a much better version called "The Lost Tribe". "Tribe" Director Jorg Ihle was taken off the project, and replaced in the new "The Lost Tribe", by Roel Reine.

The original "Tribe" movie cast consisted of Marc Bacher, Justin Baldoni, Nikki Griffin, Kellan Lutz, and Jewel Staite. However Lutz, Griffin, Baldoni, and Staite won't be appearing in "The Lost Tribe". Bacher is the only person confirmed to return in the new version, we'll call for now -- version 2. Nick Mennell, Lance Henriksen, and Brianna Brown are the new films top three cast names. But despite these mayhemic conditions surrounding both movies, both films are still set for a release this year.

After Dark Films was supposed to release "The Lost Tribe" (version 2), into theaters this January as part of Horrorfest 3. But it never happened. Meanwhile, Voltage Pictures will send "The Tribe" to DVD later this year. But to take the confusion out of the mix, since the new film is being called "The Lost Tribe", "The Tribe" version 1, is now going under the title of "The Forgotten Ones"...which is what this review consists of, a review of "The Forgotten Ones".

Just wanted to get that out of the way first. Now onto the movie, the films only real stars consist of Jewel Staite, who appeared in "Serenity", and Kellan Lutz, who appeared in "Prom Night" (2008), and "Twilight". But both play characters on opposite sides of the spectrum. Staite's character Liz, is in a relationship with a guy who pretty much treats her like crap, while Lutz's character Jake has been kicked to the curb by his woman, and replaced with a much chubbier (yet nicer) guy named Ira. The interchangeable parts are all explained and fleshed out as the group of youngsters first set sail.

Of course being the idiots that they are (who drinks while sailing?), they end up crashing on an island and become stranded. Now from the moment they arrive at this island, they call up their friend for some assistance. But he's too busy getting his "groove" on with some chicks at their intended destination, to be bothered to come rescue them. But he eventually and grudgingly, decides to be a pal and come anyways. However the kids are in much more danger than they realize, as it's made abudantly clear early on that "something" is lurking on the island. Something inhuman, hungry, and angry.

This is where the film shows some promise, keeping the creatures hidden, but giving the viewer many scare moments to let them know the monsters are "around". And the film gets even better when the kids go to sleep for the night, and one of them wakes up deep in the jungle with no clue how he got there, which causes the others to have to go inside and look for him. Just as the creatures had planned all along...*insert evil laughter*.

These events make the film reach another high rung on the excitement ladder, and things are looking up really quickly for a film that started off boring as hell. But then the movie comes back down to reality, and what was once a film on it's way to possibly being a diamond in the rough, breaks apart like a cheap glass diamond instead. For starters, the characters make some of the dumbest decisions ever, such as wasting bullets trying to shoot at quickly moving targets, and leaving each other to go chase down one of their stolen group members.

It was hard to tell if the creatures were smart, or if the kids were just really dumb...which made the creatures look smarter than they were. But when one of the characters gets caught in a rope snare, it does indeed add an element of cleverness to the monsters, which are basically just humanoid-furries of some sort. Think the creatures from the "Watchers" movies, only alot more stealth and sleek. They were however very lame, as all they do really is chase people, and then eat them alive off screen.

And of course they have an easy time with these kids because it's only four of them, with one being slightly over-weight. But where the movie really gets crazy is when the final act arrives, and the last remaining human has a Dutch moment, similar to that of "Ahnold's" character from "Predator". And without any explanation behind how the character comes into this transformation from scared rabbit, to brave soul, it just comes off as ridiculous and cheaply thought up. Add to that the ending of the movie really offers no resolution to anything and seems unfinished and out of place. So in conclusion, it's a good thing this movie is being redone. "The Forgotten Ones" should stay...forgotten.

Positives:Once the kids enter the jungle to search for their missing friend, the movie has a small 15 to 20 minute patch where it gets really good.

Negatives:Beyond the 15-20 minute spot in the middle, the movie is a waste. The characters aren't very interesting, the deaths are all off-screen, and the decision-making by the characters reeks of stupid slasher movie logic.

Overall:One star out of four.





( Talk about it in the Forums!)



( Back to the main page)