Film Junk Poll: What is the Best Wilderness Survival Thriller?

With Joe Carnahan’s The Grey hitting theatres this weekend, it’s time to reflect on the return of a genre that we don’t see in theatres often enough: the wilderness survival thriller. I’m not sure that there is a common consensus on what exactly constitutes a survival thriller, but usually it is a movie where the main characters are battling nature in some way (although they could also be battling each other as well). Often they are based on true stories, but this doesn’t always have to be the case. There is also the question of whether or not the characters actually have to survive in order to qualify (personally, I would say no). With that in mind, I put together a poll with some noteworthy movies that could potentially be considered survival thrillers, although I’m sure I missed more than a few. Which one is your favourite? Cast your vote in this week’s poll and then sound off in the comments below!






















Comments (12)
Cast Away starring Spalding Gray
Posted by Colin on January 27th, 2012The Edge just because Surviving the Game and Benji The Hunted are somehow missing from this list.
Posted by Rusty on January 27th, 2012The Edge, but Jeremiah Johnson is right up there. What other movie teaches you how to build a house?
Posted by Nat Almirall on January 27th, 2012First Blood should be on there but maybe that isn’t fair to the other films because Rambo can ignore pain and eat things that would make a billie goat puke.
Posted by Xidor on January 27th, 2012Into the Wild in the lead. Not sure if voters are being ironic or forgot the definition of survival …
Posted by coldpizzabetter on January 27th, 2012touching the void takes it by a distance for me
Posted by rob on January 27th, 2012my vote goes to touching the void but the edge is a close second!
Posted by Niklas on January 27th, 2012I have watched The Edge so many times, and it never gets old. “I’m going to kill the bear!”
Posted by Mason on January 27th, 2012If “The Perfect Storm” and “Open Water” count as wilderness survival, where’s “Poseidon Adventure” and “Titanic”? “River Wild” would have made more sense than either of those probably, as it doesn’t take place in the middle of the ocean. These poll choices are goofy. With “Friday the 13th Part 6: Jason Lives” not being included, I just can’t take this poll seriously…
Posted by PlanBFromOuterSpace on January 27th, 2012Deliverance by a country mile…Touching the void is awesome though, love the edge as well.
Posted by Cassius Clay on January 27th, 2012Shoot to Kill is another classic with Tom Berenger, Sydney Poitier, and the thin Kirstie Alley.
Making fire from ice is some of Baldwin’s best acting so I voted for The Edge.
It is also good that First Blood isn’t on the list so we don’t have to order a whole bunch of body bags.
Posted by Xidor on January 28th, 2012lots of good films to choose from this time. i went with touching the void.
Posted by anton on January 29th, 2012Leave a Reply