Tooth & Nail

I hesitated for a long time between two and three stars, in the end I went for the more generous option because from the 20th minute or so forward there’s always something happening and you never get bored (something I really appreciate). The film is set in a post-apocalyptic future where a group of heroes defend themselves against cannibals. Despite the not too optimistic premise, they never manage to convincingly convey a feeling of hopelessness (forget about any thick and raw depressive atmosphere) and this is mainly due to the sterile looking locations and sets (they try to make things look dirty and run-down, but it doesn’t work at all, you can see it’s fake) and the lack of any memorable villains (that was a big shame, if it had at least one, Tooth & Nail could have easily been above-par horror). What’s worth praise, on the other hand, is the fairly original ending (not the what but the how) that convinced me of a (weak) three-star rating. (03/14/2008)