''The Barrens'' is a 2012 American

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...

written and directed by

Darren Lynn Bousman Darren Lynn Bousman (; born January 11, 1979) is an American film director and screenwriter, best known for his work in horror films. He has directed four of the ''Saw'' films: ''Saw II'', ''Saw III'', ''Saw IV'', and '' Spiral''. He also direct ...

and starring

Stephen Moyer Stephen Moyer (born Stephen John Emery; 11 October 1969) is an English film and television actor who is best known as vampire Bill Compton in the HBO series ''True Blood''. His first television role was in 1993 as Philip Masefield in the TV ad ...

and

Mia Kirshner Mia Kirshner (born January 25, 1975) is a Canadian actress, writer and social activist. She is known for television roles as Mandy in '' 24'' (2001–2005), as Jenny Schecter in ''The L Word'' (2004–2009), as Amanda Grayson in '' Star Trek: D ...

. The film was released under different titles in several European territories: e.g., as ''Jersey Devil'' in the German-speaking countries, as ''The Forest'' in Belgium and France, and as ''Devil in the Woods'' in the United Kingdom, when shown on The Horror Channel in January 2015.

Plot

Two young campers walk together through the woods, commenting that there are no animals or birds around. They discover a pile of mutilated

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...

carcass Carcass or Carcase (both pronounced ) may refer to: *Dressed carcass, the body of a livestock animal ready for butchery, after removal of skin, visceral organs, head, feet etc. *Carrion, the decaying dead body of an animal or human being *The str ...

es left on the trail and then are chased by a mutilated deer that drops dead in front of them. Something sounding like a large swarm of birds is heard approaching. Richard Vineyard, his wife Cynthia, his daughter Sadie, and his young son Danny leave their suburban home for a camping trip. They want to leave civilization behind and bond as a family in the

Pine Barrens Pine barrens, pine plains, sand plains, or pineland areas occur throughout the U.S. from Florida to Maine (see Atlantic coastal pine barrens) as well as the Midwest, West, and Canada and parts of Eurasia. Perhaps the most well known pine-barre ...

, a forest in southern

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. On the way to the campsite, they see a mutilated deer crossing the road. They stay in a crowded commercial campsite full of obnoxious campers who are not inclined to abandon civilization: cell phones and loud music abound. While setting up his tent, Richard has a flashback to a traumatic event from his childhood that occurred in the Barrens. Later that evening, when a fellow camper tells a story of the

Jersey Devil In South Jersey and Philadelphia folklore in the United States, the Jersey Devil (also known as the Leeds Devil) is a legendary creature said to inhabit the forest of Pine Barrens in South Jersey. The creature is often described as a flying bipe ...

, the campers pull a prank that scares the Vineyard family. Richard overreacts, much to the embarrassment of the rest of the family. That night, Richard has a nightmare in which he is being chased through a field by something unseen. He is awakened by Cynthia in the middle of the forest, having actually run from their tent while asleep. He accuses his wife of

infidelity Infidelity (synonyms include cheating, straying, adultery, being unfaithful, two-timing, or having an affair) is a violation of a couple's emotional and/or sexual exclusivity that commonly results in feelings of anger, sexual jealousy, and riva ...

; she doesn't understand his suspicion and tries to reassure him. Richard apologizes. Cynthia returns to the tent, and Richard goes for a walk. He sees a deer carcass fall from a tree. Several facts are revealed in conversation the next day. Richard is taking pain medication for a wound received before they left home. Cynthia is his second wife after the loss of Sadie's mother a decade prior. One of the campers involved in the prank the previous night is missing. Richard, who appears weakened by illness, leads his family deeper into the forest, away from the trails, to a new campsite. While resting, Danny finds the

disembowel Disembowelment or evisceration is the removal of some or all of the organs of the gastrointestinal tract (the bowels, or viscera), usually through a horizontal incision made across the abdominal area. Disembowelment may result from an accident ...

ed corpse of the missing camper but says nothing. Richard begins

hallucinating A hallucination is a perception in the absence of an external stimulus that has the qualities of a real perception. Hallucinations are vivid, substantial, and are perceived to be located in external objective space. Hallucination is a combinatio ...

and becomes irritable. They find a campsite containing a decomposed dog, a shredded tent, and furs hanging to dry, but no people. They decide to set up camp there. Richard disposes of the dog, and discovers that another camper, Ryan, has been following them and is communicating secretly with Sadie by cell phone. Richard returns to the campsite and tries to take Sadie's cell phone away. Cynthia announces that they are going home the next day. That night, Sadie searches for Ryan and is frightened by something in the woods. It is revealed in conversation that Richard killed the family's

rabid dog Rabies is a viral zoonotic neuroinvasive disease which causes inflammation in the brain and is usually fatal. Rabies, caused by the rabies virus, primarily infects mammals. In the laboratory it has been found that birds can be infected, as well ...

before they left home, because the dog bit him. Richard's mental state deteriorates. Richard sleepwalks again, and awakens surrounded by mist. The

appears behind him. Cynthia gathers the family and they leave immediately, but Danny and Richard get ahead and disappear. Cynthia calls the police, and she and Sadie discover Ryan's disemboweled corpse; Richard's knife is next to the body. They find Danny face down in the river, but are able to

resuscitate Resuscitation is the process of correcting physiological disorders (such as lack of breathing or heartbeat) in an acutely ill patient. It is an important part of intensive care medicine, anesthesiology, trauma surgery and emergency medicine. W ...

him. Richard returns but has a

seizure An epileptic seizure, informally known as a seizure, is a period of symptoms due to abnormally excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain. Outward effects vary from uncontrolled shaking movements involving much of the body with los ...

. He attacks Cynthia and breaks her leg. Sadie knocks him unconscious and ties him up. Sadie and Danny leave to find help, leaving the severely injured Cynthia with her hysterical husband. Cynthia passes out from the pain. Richard sees the Jersey Devil again. He breaks free of his bonds. Cynthia knocks her husband out with a rock, but when she checks on him a few minutes later, he has vanished. Cynthia screams as she is suddenly attacked by something unseen. Sadie and Danny encounter a

cougar The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mamm ...

but are rescued by a hunter. The police find the bodies of the missing campers. The hunter, Sadie, and Danny find Richard and Cynthia. Richard attacks the hunter and acquires his rifle. Richard seemingly turns on his family with the rifle. He sees the Jersey Devil behind them. For the first time, the others see it as well. Richard attempts to shoot it, but he is instead shot by the sheriff who thinks that he is aiming at Sadie. The Jersey Devil attacks, kills the sheriff, and then turns on the Vineyards. A

forest ranger A ranger, park ranger, park warden, or forest ranger is a law enforcement person entrusted with protecting and preserving parklands – national, state, provincial, or local parks. Description "Parks" may be broadly defined by some systems in thi ...

witnesses the monster's attack and flees. Sometime later, Sadie is being interviewed by the authorities before being reunited with her brother. Her story of what she and her brother saw is dismissed as psychological trauma. Afterwards, Sadie joins the ranger and a group of hunters, with the intent on hunting the

down.

Cast

Production

penned the script shortly after finishing ''

Saw II ''Saw II'' is a 2005 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman and written by Leigh Whannell and Bousman. It is the sequel to 2004's ''Saw'' and the second installment in the ''Saw'' film series. The film stars Donnie Wahlberg, Franky G, Gl ...

''. Bousman originally intended to shoot the film in the actual

of New Jersey, but filming eventually took place in the

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

area for budgetary reasons with the cast and crew mainly staying in the town of Caledon. Three different forests were used for the woods. The film was planned to be shot in 20 days. However, two days were lost due to severe rainfall. As some of the actors and crew members had other commitments immediately afterward, it had to be filmed in 18 days instead. All the daylight scenes at the campsite were filmed on a single day.

Home media

''The Barrens'' was released on Blu-ray, DVD, and digital download on October 9, 2012. Included on the Blu-ray and DVD releases is an audio commentary with director Darren Lynn Bousman and cinematographer Joseph White, as well as a deleted scene which serves as an alternative ending. In this ending, it is revealed that Sadie and Danny survived the attack by the

. As winter sets in, Sadie, Ranger Bob, and several others set off into the barrens, armed to the teeth, to hunt the Jersey Devil. Director Bousman considers this ending not to be

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western can ...

, joking that those scenes will be "saved for the sequel".

Reception

Brett Gallman from ''Oh, the Horror.com'' called the film "a missed opportunity", criticizing the film's uneven focus, and misleading marketing centering on the Jersey Devil, which was barely acknowledged in the film. In his review of the film, Gallman wrote, "''The Barrens'' is an unfortunate bait and switch that bungles its intriguing setup and degenerates into a muddled, predictable routine."

Dread Central Dread Central is an American website founded in 2006 that is dedicated to horror news, interviews, and reviews. It covers horror films, comics, novels, and toys. Dread Central has won the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award for Best Website f ...

awarded the film a score of two and a half out of five. The reviewer wrote, "Overall, while I have my issues with ''The Barrens'', I can't quite warn anyone away from watching it. It's certainly well made and well acted. And the story is an interesting one, full of twists and turns this reviewer wasn't expecting. If you’re a fan of Bousman's work, this may be worth a look for you, so long as you keep your expectations somewhat low."

References

External links

* *
Movie & TV Projects: The Barrens at AllStephenMoyer.com

The Barrens on Facebook
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barrens 2012 films Films directed by Darren Lynn Bousman 2012 horror films American monster movies 2010s monster movies 2010s English-language films Films set in New Jersey Films based on urban legends Films about cryptids Jersey Devil in fiction 2010s psychological horror films Backwoods slasher films Films shot in Toronto 2010s American films