This remake of the classic Universal horror starring Lon Chaney Jr as the Wolf Man (1941) owes more to the gothic horrors of Hammer Studios and the graphic violence of An American Werewolf in London in style than it does to it's predecessor.
This version is handsomely produced, well designed, nicely shot and competently directed by Joe Johnston who meticulously recreates the 19th century with plenty of atmosphere set in eerie stately homes as he tells the story of Lawrence Talbot who discovers a terrifying family secret when he returns from America to his Father's estate in England and gets forever cursed after getting bitten by a werewolf.
Benicio del Toro does an ok job in the lead but it's the supporting cast of Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt, Hugo Weaving, Art Malik, Geraldine Chaplin and a number of familiar British character actors that gives it the period authenticity and sinister overtone, however it does tend to drag in places and is not as engaging as the original.
I wanted to empathise more with del Toro's character but the script is somewhat lacking and we don't care as much for his plight as we should so it all becomes a bit superficial and shallow. Johnston ensures the visuals look fantastic and it's good to see make-up effects artist Rick Baker returning to a werewolf movie after winning an Oscar for his ground breaking effects in An American Werewolf in London (1981). CGI effects take over the transformation scenes here which are effective but the overall effect of the werewolf is diminished when we see it run around in unrealistic ways and at exaggerated speeds, typical of relying on too much CGI that unless vastly refined rarely looks natural.
The Wolfman is an under appreciated movie and is not a bad as some would have you believe. I enjoyed the visual delights, the atmosphere and the cast in this remake that comes some 70 years after the original, but for a more engaging storytelling experience at a lean 70 minutes you can't beat Universal's classic The Wolf Man.
This version is handsomely produced, well designed, nicely shot and competently directed by Joe Johnston who meticulously recreates the 19th century with plenty of atmosphere set in eerie stately homes as he tells the story of Lawrence Talbot who discovers a terrifying family secret when he returns from America to his Father's estate in England and gets forever cursed after getting bitten by a werewolf.
Benicio del Toro does an ok job in the lead but it's the supporting cast of Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt, Hugo Weaving, Art Malik, Geraldine Chaplin and a number of familiar British character actors that gives it the period authenticity and sinister overtone, however it does tend to drag in places and is not as engaging as the original.
I wanted to empathise more with del Toro's character but the script is somewhat lacking and we don't care as much for his plight as we should so it all becomes a bit superficial and shallow. Johnston ensures the visuals look fantastic and it's good to see make-up effects artist Rick Baker returning to a werewolf movie after winning an Oscar for his ground breaking effects in An American Werewolf in London (1981). CGI effects take over the transformation scenes here which are effective but the overall effect of the werewolf is diminished when we see it run around in unrealistic ways and at exaggerated speeds, typical of relying on too much CGI that unless vastly refined rarely looks natural.
The Wolfman is an under appreciated movie and is not a bad as some would have you believe. I enjoyed the visual delights, the atmosphere and the cast in this remake that comes some 70 years after the original, but for a more engaging storytelling experience at a lean 70 minutes you can't beat Universal's classic The Wolf Man.
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