Wolf Man, directed by Leigh Whannel, takes after similar titles by exploring a man’s painful spiral into becoming a werewolf. Beyond the surface, however, lies a surprisingly emotional tale of the lengths a father and mother will go to to protect their child in dire circumstances.
This emotion—along with other highlights such as the body horror and practical effects—is ultimately hindered by noticeably clunky dialogue and predictable writing, causing Wolf Man to fall somewhere in the middle of the pack of werewolf movies.
The film opens with a prologue describing a hiker’s disappearance in Oregon in 1995 and the legends spun from this story. While locals believed the hiker still wandered the woods infected with a virus called “Hills Fever,” preceding natives called it something else: “Mouth of the Wolf.”
In the following scene, the picture introduces us to our protagonist: a young Blake Lovell (Zac Chandler) and his doomsday-prepper dad Grady Lovell (Sam Jaeger). The two are out hunting, and the tension between the commanding father and his son is palpable, highlighting their strenuous relationship.
The two end up in a stressful encounter with a mysterious creature. Electing to hide in a deer stand, they narrowly avoid the predator while catching a brief first glimpse. The father misses his rifle shot, so Blake and Grady return home.
Grady laments over the radio that he “saw it” and would do anything to protect his family despite his gruff nature. Parents’ role as guardians to their children is a recurring theme throughout the film.
The setting of the film is a perfect choice. The rural Pacific Northwest peppered with dense evergreen forests brings the sense of isolation necessary for horror flicks. It also eases the immersion into the inherently outlandish idea of werewolves, as the cold, dark woods remain mostly unexplored and uninhabited.
We cut to 30 years in the future, meeting the current-day Blake (Christopher Abbott) in San Francisco, along with his wife Charlotte Lovell (Julia Garner) and their daughter Ginger Lovell (Matilda Firth). Blake and Charlotte’s marriage is strained due to her workaholic nature and his closer connection to Ginger. Upon hearing about his father’s declared death after an unknown period of disappearance, Blake takes the opportunity to bring his family to his childhood home to rekindle their relationship.
Now is a good time to mention the dialogue. To put it bluntly: It is bad. Interactions between Blake and his daughter come off as cliche due to overuse. Even worse is when the writers sought to establish the family’s internal conflicts. The dialogue comes off as expository and unnatural as if the intent was never interwoven with the conversation. Thankfully, the dialogue decreases as the movie progresses, but it can easily turn off a viewer.
When the characters are not talking, the acting skill is evident. Abbott and Garner’s use of their eyes within shots sells the sentiments behind their actions.
The scene that finally spurs the action arrives as the family drives along bumpy dirt roads until they get lost and meet Derek (Benedict Hardie). Derek knew Blake’s dad and offered to guide them to Grady’s old residence. Along the way though, a furry humanoid appears along the road haunched on its hind legs, causing Blake to veer out of the way and crash into the woods.
The creature attacks the family, dragging away Derek and injuring Blake, infecting him with what cannot be better described as “werewolf disease.” The family retreats to the house, narrowly escaping the wolf man, and the psychological and body horror elements begin to take root.
Blake’s transformation occupies the majority of the audience’s time with him, the more noticeable external threats simply disappearing as the direction shifts focus. The sound design and choreography throughout the metamorphosis are artfully done, using unnatural, angled, and shaky shots to make the viewers feel queasy.
Notably, the transformation effects were all done practically, helping to ground the film and emphasize the tragedy Blake undergoes.
There is also a shocking quantity of aforementioned thematic depth. Blake undergoes a metaphorical transformation along with a physical one, becoming more blunt and animalistic in his emotions. A focal point of the picture is the emotional scarring a parent can inflict on their child, with Blake taking after his father’s persona despite not wishing to. He loses the ability to protect his family—his entire goal in the first place.
Though the thematic depth is a highlight of the film, another critique arises with the writing. The plot feels incredibly predictable, and though there is arbitrary ambiguity to increase the scare factor, the audience does not feel rewarded for figuring out what will happen half an hour before it comes on screen. The twist is obvious, and a keen reader of this review would have no trouble discerning it.
With that said, Wolf Man still exceeded expectations. Blending physical danger with emotional tension makes the flick an engaging and worthwhile watch. With the necessary broad strokes of a great setting, solid acting, and quality direction only weighed down by poor writing, an audience will find Wolf Man to be time well spent.
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