Stupid Contrived Survival Stories

[u/MammothPenguin69]

1. 12 Feet Deep - Two idiots decide they absolutely positively MUST go swimming in a pool after it's closed. An incredibly contrived sequence of events happens so they get stuck in a pool. So the movie can happen.

2. Frozen (not that one) - Three idiots decide they absolutely positively MUST get on a ski-lift after it's closed. To the point of bribing the operator who for some stupid reason doesn't say anything. Do the movie can happen. Also, Wolves are not that aggressive. They are typically shy and avoid humans.

3. 47 Meters Down- Arguably the most believable scenario on this list. It's still really stupid.

4. Fall- Two idiots decide to climb an abandoned radio tower without proper equipment that would make escaping their predicament trivially easy. Stop me if you've heard this one before

so the movie can happen.

[u/TrueSithMastermind]

As I recall, in “Frozen,” the chair lift was being shut off early due to inclement weather. The operator was relieved and told their replacement three people were still on the lift. The latter mistakes three other skiers for the main trio and shuts down the lift without doing their due diligence.

Also, while certainly more rare than say bear attacks, wolf attacks on humans aren’t unheard of, either, especially when the latter are wounded and bleeding as was this case in this movie. They’re more likely to go after someone in the latter scenario.

While admittedly the whole plot is a bit contrived on paper, it could definitely happen in real life.

[u/Sewere → u/TrueSithMastermind]

Except for the part where they can use the cable to climb to a tower and then down, which they do, but for a non-existent contrived reason it makes heavy cuts to their hand and they start bleeding heavily.

[u/Sewere → u/[deleted]]

They had skiing gloves

[u/honeyroastedcig → u/Sewere]

Having rappeled and fast-roped for my previous career I can guarantee you would never say that again if you only wore normal skiing gloves without multiple layers or gloves made specifically for rappeling/fast-roping.

[u/meepmarpalarp → u/TrueSithMastermind]

Wolf attacks are extremely rare. There have only been two fatal wolf attacks in the US in the past hundred years. In one case, the wolf was rabid and in the other, it was a wolf/dog hybrid. And both of those incidents were in Alaska, not the lower 48.

[u/DyingSunSeverian → u/meepmarpalarp]

They are but that’s because wolves are generally terrified of humans.

But in the film, the character in question jumps off the ski lift to try and find help, but he’s just way too high up, the snow isn’t nearly as soft as he may have been expecting (I don’t know what he expected), and he absolutely obliterates his legs, bones sticking out and everything.

So the wolves are dealing with a lone mangled and immobile human there. It’s at least more likely for a predatory attack.

[u/Inevitable-Omelet → u/meepmarpalarp]

According to this wikipedia article, that's not true and there have been 7 fatal wolf attacks in the last 100 years. But your point is correct, it's rare.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wolf_attacks_in_North_America

3 predatory attacks - Candice Berner in 2010, Kenton Carnegie in 2005 (dumb to get that close to wild wolves), and a child named Marc Leblond in 1963. Candice and Kenton were in Alaska, Marc was in Quebec.

2 captive wolf attacks - Patricia Wyman in 1996 and Alyshia Berczyk in 1989

2 rabid wolf attacks reported in Alaska without names (1943 and 1942)

[u/CryptidGrimnoir → u/Inevitable-Omelet]

Wasn't Kenton in Saskatchewan?

[u/mmmarkm → u/CryptidGrimnoir]

Yes

[u/mmmarkm → u/Inevitable-Omelet]

I think you’re conflating “North America” with the “US.” Including Canada as part of the US will change the stats on wolf deaths in the US.

The other commenter is still wrong about their stats however you are also wrong. No judgement; just facts.

[u/BattleHall → u/meepmarpalarp]

That’s because wolves were largely eradicated from most populated areas in the US. They didn’t even start recovery until the 1970’s, and there are still only a couple thousand in the lower 48. Before European colonization, it’s estimated there were hundreds of thousands. FWIW, France documented almost 10,000 fatal attacks in that country between 1200 and 1920. It’s not that wolves won’t kill people, it’s just that people are much better at killing them.

[u/mmmarkm → u/BattleHall]

Please share more about those French stats! Fascinating… 

[u/mmmarkm → u/meepmarpalarp]

There have been four. And one was a healthy adult female jogging who got taken down by healthy wolves:  https://www.adn.com/outdoors/article/wolves-killed-alaska-teacher-2010-state-says/2011/12/07/

That was an infamous case in Alaska that does not meet the conditions of the two cases you are talking about.

[u/TheFatNinjaMaster → u/TrueSithMastermind]

Wild wolf attacks on humans (in the US, anyway) are practically non-existent, with wild wolf attacks only happening in Alaska, less than 1 per year, and only one fatal attack this century. Outside of Alaska every documented wolf attack involved a “domesticated” or captive wolf escaping captivity. US wolves just don’t attack people, especially groups of people.

[u/mmmarkm → u/TheFatNinjaMaster]

  only one fatal attack this century 

Do you mean since 2000 or in the past 100 years?

Cause there is only one fatal attack this past century in Alaska where we have the victim’s name. It is not the only fatal attack recorded in the past 100 years though…

[u/TheFatNinjaMaster → u/mmmarkm]

The current century, since 2000. And there aren’t records all that far back into the last century.