In theory, Apex, the latest film from director Baltasar Kormákur (whose CV includes the enjoyably silly 2022 Idris Elba vs CGI lions thriller Beast) doesn’t seem to have a lot going for it. Its survivalist tale of a plucky vacationer being stalked and hunted down through dangerous, unfamiliar territory by a baying psychopath is the stuff of countless straight-to-streaming low-budget features.
However, the presence of A-listers Charlize Theron and Taron Egerton immediately elevates Apex into a different league, and indeed the film has a few more tricks up its sleeve and a deeper story to tell than most in a sub-genre that stretches back decades.
Adrenaline junkie Sasha (Theron) and her husband Tommy (Eric Bana) are scaling Norway’s fearsome storm-lashed Troll Wall. Tragedy strikes, and a few months later, we find Sasha driving to Australia’s formidable Wanderra Park, where a local ranger tells her that there have been numerous unexplained disappearances recently. Sasha clashes with some local hunters, but Ben (Egerton) befriends her and gives her directions to Blackwater Bay so she can indulge in some whitewater kayaking.
When her bag disappears from her camp overnight, she finds Ben camped nearby, and she soon discovers that he isn’t as benevolent as he’d previously appeared. A tense, taut cat-and-mouse game of survival ensues, with the raging Ben chasing Sasha through the wilderness. While it’s clear he’s utterly insane (and responsible for the recent disappearances), Sasha is strong, determined, resourceful, and cut from a different cloth than the terrified, clueless victims usually portrayed in similar life-or-death adventures.
Apex is essentially a two-hander, but superb and often vertiginous cinematography, a handful of nail-biting set pieces, and terrific performances from Egerton and Theron combine to deliver an exciting, hugely enjoyable cut-above “Netflix Original Movie.” Put Apex at the top of your ‘must watch’ list.
APEX is streaming now on Netflix.
