Adam Brody's River Wild Is Bringing White Water Horror Back To Life On Netflix
One of the latest thrillers to hit the ever-changing digital carousel over on Netflix is a new take on an old classic called "River Wild." Currently one of the most viewed releases on the streamer, the adventure film sends viewers hurtling down treacherous whitewater rapids in a fairly straightforward story of survivalist horror. Inspired by director Curtis Hanson's "The River Wild" starring Meryl Streep and Kevin Bacon, this most recent version mostly jettisons the character dynamics of the original 1994 film in favor of the slightly more campy teens-in-peril trope.
Unless you consider "Deliverance" to be horror adjacent (and there are plenty of reasons why that's justifiable), there is a serious drought in the number of genre films offering up high stake thrills taking place on a whitewater rafting trip gone horribly awry. "River Wild" may not necessarily live up to the original, but it does offer up another chance to go back to the rapids for another trip down the river.
The new version stars "Saturday Night Live" alumnus Taran Killam as a seasoned outdoorsman and expert river guide named Gray ready to take his sister, Joey (Leighton Meester), on a life-changing whitewater rafting adventure so the two can have some much-needed bonding time out in the unforgiving wilderness. Their somewhat unstable childhood friend Trevor (Adam Brody) joins the trip as well, along with some incredibly unlucky European tourists. Before they can popcorn off of a few rocks and race down some Class 4 rapids, things already start to go a little sideways when Trevor starts showing signs of unpredictable behavior and violent tendencies. From then on, "River Wild" hits a breakneck pace and, thankfully, doesn't let up until the credits roll.
What River Wild gets right by sticking to a formula
By reimagining the 1994 original, director and co-writer Ben Katai understands that the premise alone is compelling enough for an action horror thriller. Anyone who has been whitewater rafting before knows how crucial it is for everyone to be on the same page and work together. When that energy is thrown off and communication goes south, an extreme adventure can quickly become perilous. Add old friendships and past trauma into the mix, and suddenly the raft you're in seems a lot smaller. That's the dynamic taking shape in "River Wild" that starts to become more and more worrisome to Gray and Joey as Trevor becomes more unhinged. Without complicating things too much out on the water, dark secrets from the past start to bubble up to the surface, which offers up just enough mystery to keep "River Wild" from sinking.
By sticking to a strictly basic action formula, there's a little more attention paid to the relationships between the characters that continue to deteriorate as their situation becomes even more desperate. Although Meester gets saddled with a mostly predictable arc, casting Brody and Killam against type injects a lot more energy into their performances. Both actors are clearly having a blast trying to outdo each other's best tough guy impression.
It's also obvious that no one here is trying to do a straight-up remake of a '90s thriller that, for most moviegoers, has fallen into relative obscurity. Netflix's "River Wild" is a solid backwoods thriller, to be sure, and hopefully it will drive some people to discover the joys of seeing Meryl Streep in one of the very few action roles she's ever taken on.
Why the original is superior
The late, great director Curtis Hanson was already coming off the surprise hit of "The Hand That Rocks The Cradle" when he set out to make "The River Wild" in the rough, unforgiving waters of Montana's Kootenai River. Clearly, he knew how to make a satisfying thriller, whether it was set in the suburbs or not. Hanson assembled a dream cast featuring Streep, Kevin Bacon, David Strathairn, John C. Reilly, and child actor Joseph Mazzello (a year after starring in "Jurassic Park"). That call sheet alone is enough of a reason to seek the original out.
There's also a lot more going on under the surface in Hanson's version. Streep plays Gail, an expert guide who knows every swell and strangle point of the river. Strathairn is her sweet but meek husband Tom, who has to find some inner courage to protect his wife and young son when they encounter Bacon and Reilly trying to navigate the raging rapids alone. There's an immediate flirtation between Gail and Bacon's bad boy character, Wade, that immediately adds another layer to "The River Wild." It's an adventure film with real consequences that will have a massive ripple effect on the lives of this family for years to come if they manage to survive.
Pitting two separate groups against each other creates so many opportunities for drama, as Gail tries to manage and subdue Wade until she can use her knowledge of the river to their advantage. "The River Wild" creates a meaningful clash between Wade and Tom as well, where the antagonist actually winds up making the protagonist a better, stronger person than they were before. Any excuse to see Bacon as a villain is always a treat, and the actor is definitely drawing upon his experience as a maniacal backpacker in 1987's "White Water Summer" starring Sean Astin as a young camper in way over his head.
"River Wild" is currently streaming on Netflix, and the 1994 version is currently available for rent on most major platforms.