The Ranger (2018).
The Stage.
After stabbing a police officer, a group of asshole punk musicians hole up in an old cabin in a national park, a park that’s protected by a sadistic park ranger who takes all offenses very seriously.
The Review.
The Ranger is a competently made film. Jenn Wexler clearly knows what she’s doing behind the camera - shots are framed nicely, the colors and lighting are striking, and the small amounts of gore are well done. It’s not a good film, however, and this all comes down to one thing - the script. Wexler and Giaco Furino co-wrote the film, and in my opinion, it fails on two fundamental levels.
First, slasher films hinge on the audience liking either the victims OR the killer. In this film, you’ll like neither. The Ranger, our killer, just isn’t chewing the screen enough to attach the audience to him. It’s like Jeremy Holm (House of Cards, Mr. Robot) is having just enough fun that his character doesn’t come across as serious, but not enough fun to elevate him into the pantheon of amazing slasher antagonists. His motivation for killing - keeping the park clean - is hilarious in theory, but we don’t get enough kills to make it seem as funny as it should be. Some kills involving people outside of the band would have gone a long way.
Speaking of the band, they’re all absolutely awful. The main character, Chelsea, a pink haired deer in headlights, is the most likeable of the bunch, but that’s not saying much. The fact that she’s even with the band is the most confusing part of the film. She has a history with the mountain that is supposed to seem important but never feels that way. The other three bandmates, led by her boyfriend Garth (a poor man’s Dave Franco), are complete shitheels. Whether they’re lighting illegal fires, spray painting trees, or stealing from stores, there’s not one redeemable quality between them. They steal a van that’s painted and decorated like that kid we all knew in middle school who was inspired to use white out to decorate his sneakers the day after he discovered the Sex Pistols. There’s one other person in the mix, a hopeless drug addict who was asleep in the back of the van when they stole it. The character of Garth is so unlikable and so disrespectful to his girlfriend that it’s baffling as to why someone like Chelsea would be with him in the first place.
Another big problem with the script is that the third act includes a bunch of moments that just make no sense. There’s a pivotal moment for our final girl that comes across as so stupid that it’s almost unbelievable. It’s the equivalent of Michael Myers cornering Laurie Strode, but instead of lopping her head off, she asks Michael to let her do it herself. Michael hands the knife over to her, which she then sticks into Michael’s neck. You want her to get away, that’s fine - but think of a more creative way to make it happen. In another scene, our Ranger, who had previously made an allegory to animals being boxed into a corner, traps himself in a corner by going up into a tower while being chased with a gun. For a seasoned ranger, it made zero sense for the character. You want him up there, that’s fine, but think of a more creative way to get him up there.
The End.
There are promising things about the Ranger. Like I said, the film is well directed and stylish. I’m interested in seeing Jenn Wexler’s next film, Sacrifice Game, which also features Chloe Levine, because she’s clearly talented, but the Ranger is a poorly written film and there’s no amount of talent behind the camera that can make up for a bad script.
