Up River

CinemaSerf

The government have offered folks with a pioneering spirit an opportunity to move into the Canadian wilderness and try to make a go of things. City boy "Jacob" (Morgan Stevens) decides to do just that, but saving for the timely intervention of "Bagshaw" (Jeff Corey) on the boat, he might never have made it there alive. He is most definitely not welcome - and local kingpin "Keeler" (Dale Wilson) and his thuggish henchman "Mungal" (John Curtis) make that all too painfully clear. Undaunted, and soon slightly loved-up, he takes a stand and builds a cabin. Will they be left in peace or is a showdown an inevitability? Stevens is easy enough on the eye, and Corey comes across quite well as the curmudgeonly but decent trapper, but the story itself is all a bit weak and feeble and though the cinematography and scenery are quite effective at illustrating the remoteness of this beautiful environment, the acting and writing are the stuff of a college project. Looks nice, but that's about it.