Endangered Species (2021) Review

Director: MJ Bassett

Starring: Rebecca Romijn, Philip Winchester, Isabel Bassett, Michael Johnston, Chris Fisher and Jerry O’Connell

Synopsis: Starring Rebecca Romijn (X-Men) and Jerry O’Connell (Showtime’s “Billions”) this gripping adventure tale unfolds beneath a brutal African sun. Jack Halsey takes his wife (Romijn), their adult kids, and a friend for a dream vacation in Kenya. But as they venture off alone into a wilderness park, their safari van is flipped over by an angry rhino, leaving them injured and desperate. Then, as two of them go in search of rescue, a bloody, vicious encounter with a leopard and a clan of hyenas incites a desperate fight for survival.

Review: Talented director, M.J. Bassett, brings us another action thriller and animal feature — Endangered Species — following the success of her action, mercenary movie, Rogue (2020).

Endangered Species features actor, Philip Winchester (from Rogue 2020, and Strike Back, the drama series), and actress, Rebecca Romijin (from X-men trilogy), as a husband and wife, who take their family on a Safari trip. Naturally, in the movie world, their trip encounters some problems, and things go from bad to worse. Winchester, contrary to his usual character roles, doesn’t play the strong, stoic type; he is instead, an arrogant, pompous schmuck that takes a while to warm to. Rebecca Romijin’s character is more refreshing — she plays an exact opposite role to Winchester. As actors, and characters, this duo bounce off each other marvelously, and deliver a great performance. The supporting cast is really likeable, too.

The film focuses, almost entirely, on the family and their survival against a pack of hyenas — although, we do also get a cool side-story, involving one of Africa’s largest native cats (and the fastest in the world!), the cheetah.The only let down is, like Rogue, there is some very dodgy CG effects, which takes away from the suspense. The third act of the film shifts the focus and delves into the action-zone (although, it still keeps the survival aspect as the key theme).

M.J. Bassett makes fun feature films, contingent on issues close to her heart – in this case, endangered animals. Personally speaking, it is a great way to use her platform as an influencer in the media world, and I highly commend her for it.

All-in-all, Endangered Species is a frantic and frenzied movie, featuring some fine acting from the main cast, but the suspense is sometimes squashed due to the poor CG effects.