Middling Backwoods Survival Mercy Falls (2023) Has a Few Tricks Up Its Sleeve

Title: Mercy Falls

First Non-Festival Release: May 14, 2023 (Digital/Streaming Platforms)

Director: Ryan Hendrick

Writer: Meliá Grasska, Ryan Hendrick

Runtime: 103 Minutes

Starring: Lauren Lyle, Nicolette McKeown, James Watterson

Where to Watch: Check out where to find it here

Rhona (Lauren Lyle) is anxious to take the trek into the woods to find the cabin her late father left her, but she feels supported by her friends who have tagged along to help her with the journey. Joining the group is the mysterious Carla (Nicolette McKeown) who helped Rhona’s best friend Heather (Layla Kirk) the night before with a wardrobe malfunction and then impressed the group with her knowledge of the wilderness. All goes well until one moment changes the trajectory of the trip, and subsequently, everyone’s life. 

Middling survival horror Mercy Falls introduces some interesting ideas but fails to stick its landing.

The setup of Mercy Falls makes the audience believe a different film is about to unfurl which makes the ensuing action more intriguing. Backwards horror films have a typical formula to them that is easy to predict if you've seen enough of them. In the beginning, Mercy Falls looks like it will take the usual approach to wilderness survival but instead evolves into something more akin to a traditional slasher. In fact, Mercy Falls blends together the tropes and motivations of several different blueprints within the slasher subgenre which makes it a unique offering.

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As the hapless explorers race across the woodlands to avoid slaughter, many questions are posed about the will to survive against the suffering of life before Mercy Falls blurs the lines on empathy. About halfway through the film, the true horror begins when Scott pushes Andy into a tree branch that fatally punctures his leg. Carla takes this opportunity to put him out of his misery by slitting his throat since there is no way help would arrive in time. She did this so he wouldn’t needlessly suffer a prolonged, painful death. They decide to cover up the death, proceed with their trip, and go their separate ways once they reach Rhona’s cabin.

This is where the group begins to fracture, as they realize the implications of Carla’s actions. They debate whether her intentions were pure when she ended Andy's life, but all discussion is cut short when a burned newspaper clipping shows her dishonorable discharge from the military and the reasons behind it. Breaking away from Carla becomes the priority. Once the cast is whittled down to Rhona and Carla, the two face off, representing different sides of the argument of mercy killings.

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Bland character work leads to some of this messaging getting muddled in the process of the film as it reaches its bloody conclusion. Despite some interesting back stories for the leading women, not much depth is ultimately given to either as they represent two different reactions to trauma. The rest of the cast is given rather mundane arguments to have while inhabiting various shades of two dimensionality. Their squabbles, while realistic, are ultimately uninteresting and provide little depth to the themes presented in Mercy Falls.

Perhaps the biggest downfall of the film is its sluggish pacing in disregard for effective tension building. All its narrative problems could be overlooked if Mercy Falls was more exciting. As soon as the story gets violent, there is a tendency to hold back and show restraint when suspense should be built. The death scenes and confrontations are forgettable, lacking in emotion and tension as little build up is done to satisfactorily lead up to the kill. A few moments towards the end show that director Ryan Hendrick can craft some exciting scenes, but it doesn’t come to fruition in the journey leading up to it.

Mercy Falls is a frustrating film only because it is so close to achieving its goals. Unconvincing character development and sluggish pacing brings the film down before its uneven finale sinks it further. It poses some interesting questions on the morality of suffering, but this gets lost once it fully commits to its slasher roots. Some fans may dig it, others may not, but Mercy Falls is an adequate survival horror that gets enough right to be an easy watch on a Saturday afternoon.

Overall Score? 5/10