I am a Werewolf fanatic, especially Werewolf movies. Which in the last decade, there has been a disparity, lackluster number of Werewolf movies. The forgotten, promising genre of cinema. So this review is going to be through an unbiased, yet critiquing scope, in hopes that people don’t lose hope that Werewolf movies can once again, recreate that fear that such myths use to convey.
POSITIVES:
Many Werewolf movies nowadays rely on CGI effects with minimal use of practical effects, which isn’t a bad thing, as long as it looks good. But it’s very respectable when a company commits to creating authentic, practical werewolves. The design for the werewolves may look silly and off, but the fact that the textures and fur look lifelike, should be commended and appreciated. And the cage scene with the Werewolves transforming is the best part of the movie. The CGI transformations mixed with the rising tension is a staple of how good Werewolf movies could be.
NEGATIVES:
Sadly, everything else is sub par. The movie has a sad run time of 1 hour and 30 minutes, and unfortunately, for a movie like this, there’s no time for decent character development. I won’t bother with the details because obviously the writers didn’t either. The story concept is actually intriguing, and with a higher budget and better vision, it could have soared to new heights for the genre. The budget for the movie hasn’t been released, but this story was obviously way too ambitious to be pulled off in its current state.
CONCLUSION:
Is this movie an absolute terrible time? No. People have sat through much worse. But is there room for potential? MOST DEFINITELY. This movie was obviously always going to be a C-tier cheesy movie. But that’s because Hollywood doesn’t believe that Werewolf movies can be a bankable, innovative genre. All audiences need however, is a great Werewolf movie that puts the genre back on the map. The Wolfman releases on January 17th and I hope more than anything that it is received well, financially and critically. If not, this could very well be the last time any Werewolf or cryptic movie grazes the big screen.