Animal-loving organizations are protesting on the film's portrayal of wolves as bloodthirsty animals, fearing that human will hunt them out of misunderstanding.
- January 29, 2012
AceShowbiz -
While "The Grey" is scaring moviegoers in the U.S., animal rights activists are fighting for its boycott. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is one of the organizations who thought that there's a misinterpretation on the portrayal of wolves as aggressive and bloodthirsty animal.
"The writers paint a pack of wolves living in the Alaskan wilderness as bloodthirsty monsters, intent on killing every survivor of a plane crash by tearing each person limb from limb," PETA said in a statement, referring to the scene where Liam Neeson's character fend off the wolves after his plane crashes.
Meanwhile, The Wolf Conservation Center wanted to clarify the nature of wolves. "In reality, wild wolves are shy and elusive," the center's website said. "A person in wolf country has a greater chance of being hit by lightning ...than being injured by a wolf." Experts also said that wolves tend to fear human and would avoid interaction at all costs.
Director Joe Carnahan has responded with an explanation that the film is about a man's journey to find his survival instincts. "I never intended [the wolves] to be the aggressor; I look at them as the defenders. I think these guys are in a very territorially sensitive place. [The humans] were trespassing and intruders," he said.
WolfWatcher.org is urging animal activists out there to hand out flier about the nature of wolves at local movie theaters that screen "The Grey". The organization said on its site, "This film comes out at the worst of times, when wolves are literally fighting for their lives."
The movie opened Friday, January 27 and is expected to hit number one in the Box Office this weekend with $12 million in prediction.
