A Glean movie guide
Lost in the Deep: Survival in the Woods
Don't stray from the path.
Gritty man-vs-nature battles and atmospheric wilderness thrillers.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
The Revenant
A visceral, visually stunning epic of endurance and primitive survival against the elements.
In the 1820s, a frontiersman, Hugh Glass, sets out on a path of vengeance against those who left him for dead after a bear mauling.
- 02
The Grey
A bleak and relentless battle for survival against a pack of wolves in the frozen Alaskan wilderness.
Following a grueling five-week shift at an Alaskan oil refinery, workers led by sharpshooter John Ottway are flying home for a much-needed vacation. But a brutal storm causes their plane to crash in the frozen wilderness, and only eight men, including Ottway, survive. As they trek southward toward civilization and safety, Ottway and his companions must battle mortal injuries, the icy elements, and a pack of hungry wolves.
- 03
The Edge
A sharp, psychological thriller where an intellectual and a rival must survive a plane crash and a bear.
The plane carrying wealthy Charles Morse crashes down in the Alaskan wilderness. Together with the two other passengers, photographer Robert and assistant Stephen, Charles devises a plan to help them reach civilization. However, his biggest obstacle might not be the elements, or even the Kodiak bear stalking them -- it could be Robert, whom Charles suspects is having an affair with his wife and would not mind seeing him dead.
- 04
Prey
A masterclass in tactical survival as a Comanche warrior uses the forest to hunt a high-tech alien predator.
When danger threatens her camp, the fierce and highly skilled Comanche warrior Naru sets out to protect her people. But the prey she stalks turns out to be a highly evolved alien predator with a technically advanced arsenal.
- 05
Into the Wild
A haunting, true-life journey of a young man seeking total isolation and self-sufficiency in the Alaskan wild.
After graduating from Emory University in 1992, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandons his possessions, gives his entire $24,000 savings account to charity, and hitchhikes to Alaska to live in the wilderness.
- 06
The Ritual
An atmospheric blend of survival and folk horror set deep within an ancient, menacing Swedish forest.
A group of college friends reunite for a trip to the forest, but encounter a menacing presence in the woods that's stalking them.
- 07
Backcountry
A terrifyingly grounded look at a camping trip gone wrong, featuring one of cinema's most intense bear encounters.
A couple on a deep-wilderness hike become hopelessly lost within an aggressive black bear's territory.
- 08
Leave No Trace
A quiet, deeply moving drama about a father and daughter living off the grid in a vast public forest.
A father and daughter live a perfect but mysterious existence in Forest Park, a beautiful nature reserve near Portland, Oregon, rarely making contact with the world. But when a small mistake tips them off to authorities, they are sent on an increasingly erratic journey in search of a place to call their own.
- 09
Hunt for the Wilderpeople
A charming and adventurous romp through the New Zealand bush that balances humor with survival themes.
Ricky is a defiant young city kid who finds himself on the run with his cantankerous foster uncle in the wild New Zealand bush. A national manhunt ensues, and the two are forced to put aside their differences and work together to survive.
- 10
First Blood
The definitive tactical survival film, showcasing expert-level evasion and trapping in the Washington woods.
When former Green Beret John Rambo is harassed by local law enforcement and arrested for vagrancy, he is forced to flee into the mountains and wage an escalating one-man war against his pursuers.
- 11
Deliverance
A harrowing classic that explores the dangers of the untamed wilderness and the darkness of human nature.
Intent on seeing the Cahulawassee River before it's turned into one huge lake, outdoor fanatic Lewis Medlock takes his friends on a river-rafting trip they'll never forget into the dangerous American back-country.
- 12
Alone
A lean, high-tension thriller about a woman using the Pacific Northwest woods to evade a relentless pursuer.
When an outbreak hits, Aidan barricades himself inside his apartment and starts rationing food. His complex is overrun by infected Screamers, and with the world falling apart into chaos, he is left completely alone fighting for his life.