In need of a shave

It’s a cold and dark night in Britain.  Something is lurking in the shadows.  He has long, grizzly fur, sharp talon-like nails, teeth that resemble razors, yellow eyes and a late 1800’s dress code; and of course he howls at the moon.  You guessed it, it’s the Wolfman.

Sometimes it’s a good idea to break away from tradition and this film would have been a good place to start.  The dedication to old school lycanthrope (technical term for werewolf) horror was respectable but at the same time the same reason the movie fell flat.

I can appreciate the homage paid to the roots of the original Wolfman films that have existed for almost a century.  However, The Wolfman desperately needs a makeover. 

Almost every horror movie genre has been revamped in order to cater to the more attention deficit disorder world we’ve become.  Zombies no longer stumble and stall, they run like hell.  Vampires are fashionable and now infect our high schools (thanks, Twilight).

I feel it’s about time the Wolfman got a shave and maybe even some bling-bling for himself.  Breaking the mold and joining the 21st century would be a good idea for all those who are considering making a lycanthrope movie from this point forward.

Aside from the redundancy that’s become the werewolf horror genre, I feel this film had subpar acting.  I enjoy Anthony Hopkins’ films but I just didn’t believe him.  Also, Benicio Del Toro was not the right person for the main role.  He just seemed too weak to become the force he was.

The high school level of acting may have resulted from the high school level script that was written for  The Wolfman.  Overused and cliché are the two words that kept coming to mind.  There were way too many phrases and sayings being used in the film I’ve heard in other movies and even regular sitcoms. 

One aspect the movie did get right was the imagery.  The dark, eerie and brooding environment was very fitting in every scene.  The forests were hauntingly beautiful and some of the more mind-tripping schizophrenic scenes were well-enhanced by a morbid visionary direction. 

Unfortunately, the imagery was undermined by the kill scenes.  The ways that people died throughout the movie looked like something that was stolen straight out of the Mortal Kombat video game series.  They were kind of silly and over-the-top and that really only works in the video game community. 

I may just be biased because I always felt the Wolfman was the weakest out of Dracula, Frankenstein, and Wolfman trifecta.  This movie would have been good 50 years ago.  It’s just not what works today though.

I give this hairy cinematic two out of five full moons.