The Wolfman

Starring: Benecio Del Toro, Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt, Hugo Weaving
Directed by: Joe Johnston
Rating: R
Genre: Horror, Thriller
2010

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Lawrence Talbot (Benecio Del Toro) visits his home in England to help find his missing brother. He searches with his brother's fiancee (Emily Blunt) and their father (Anthony Hopkins). When his brother's mauled body is found, the villagers suspect it was the work of a werewolf. Although Lawrence does not believe it, he soon confronts evidence impossible to ignore.

Review:

Tim: In principle, I like the idea of Universal resurrecting their Wolfman movies. Stories about werewolves are always interesting, and Universal has some of the most classic of all time in their history. However, I have to admit I was somewhat less than excited about this movie. It just never looked all that appealing. It looked like a lackluster attempt, and in truth, it turned out to be exactly that. There isn't anything inherently wrong with this movie. It is a decent film, but it never really reaches anywhere near the heights that it could have. I did not hate this movie, but I didn't exactly love it, either.

Director Joe Johnston does a pretty good job of assembling an impressive cast. For some reason, Benecio Del Toro as the Wolfman just makes perfect sense to me- almost as if he was always supposed to play this role. I have to admit I did enjoy this casting. I also always love seeing Anthony Hopkins. He has a meaty role here, and he plays it with his typical greatness. There are a few moments where he is just superb. I enjoyed his interactions with the rest of the cast. Emily Blunt was a fairly inspired choice as well. She is a talented actress, and I enjoyed her here. Most of the film requires her to be pretty glum, but she has a few fantastic moments as well. I absolutely loved her rock skipping scene. She was brilliant in those moments there. Finally, Hugo Weaving was such a welcome presence. I just love the guy, and I was so excited he got one scene where no one else in the world could have pulled it off like he does. The scene is when the bartender confronts him about not being out hunting the werewolf. It is one of those classic Hugo Weaving moments, and one of my favorite of the entire film. The cast is all quite good here.

The story is interesting, but doesn't really offer anything new. The story of the wolfman is centuries old, and it often feels like we're watching something we've seen dozens and dozens of times before. I am all for 19th century horror movies, but I wish this movie didn't feel like something so familiar and predictable. Sure, there are a few interesting twists and turns, but for the most part, this movie is exactly what we expect. I wish director Joe Johnston could have given us something a bit more intriguing.

The special effects are pretty good. The movie limited the use of CGI to the transformation scenes, and relying on makeup for the rest of the effects. I thought this approach was fine, and I did enjoy the visuals of a human being transforming into a wolfman. These scenes were pretty grotesque, but fitting and appropriate.

While I enjoyed aspects of this movie, I never really got into the story or the characters. There was almost no emotional connection for me in this film. I was interested, but not engaged. The movie never presented me with a reason to care or to invest myself in the plot. In this regard, the movie was a bit weak. It felt like a lackluster effort- an attempt to make a decent wolfman movie, instead of trying to do something really special. For that lack of ambition, this movie manages to hit that lowered expectation. That is too bad, because The Wolfman never feels exciting or important for a single moment. That is a shame.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Wolf Man, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Van Helsing