Warning: This text incorporates main spoilers for “Wolf Man.”
Simply name Leigh Whannell the monster whisperer. There have been few situations the place a studio has struggled so mightily (or so publicly) in attempting to get audiences interested by their crown jewel of an IP — on this case, the basic secure of Common Monsters. By the identical token, nevertheless, the turnaround has been simply as sudden and convincing. Since 2020, the 12 months that Whannell’s “The Invisible Man” launched and promptly blew everybody’s minds, the franchise has loved a marked enchancment throughout the board. Not coincidentally, this additionally coincided with the decision-makers lastly giving up on their grand goals for some shared universe that would rival the likes of DC and Marvel. As a substitute of a world the place Dr. Jekyll performs the Nick Fury function of assembling monsters to combat, uh, different monsters (I suppose?), we have been handled to numerous standalone movies spanning a number of completely different genres and every telling their very own distinctive tales.
And, sure, Whannell was the pioneer who helped set this refreshing new tone within the first place, which makes ” Wolf Man” (as I reviewed for /Movie right here) such an fascinating evolution of this pattern. Though clearly a really completely different title character than the one from “The Invisible Man,” Whannell approaches this much more animalistic creature in related methods. Each set the motion within the current day, each delve deep into the psychology of their respective villains, and each reinterpret the unique motion pictures to deeply stunning — however all the time devoted — outcomes. It is that final level specifically that followers of “The Invisible Man” could find yourself appreciating most about “Wolf Man,” as Whannell takes the prototypical notion of a werewolf “curse” and, as he did together with his 2020 movie, spins it right into a extra relatable allegory for contemporary audiences.
Like The Invisible Man, Wolf Man is about what actually makes a monster
Within the arms of lesser filmmakers — and the movie gods know that there have been many — numerous makes an attempt to adapt the character evocatively referred to as the Wolf Man (or Wolfman, in years previous) have made one of some deadly errors. Both they get slowed down by continuity and crossover fever, which 1943’s “Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man” proves is hardly a latest phenomenon, or the dreaded state of affairs of getting too many cooks within the kitchen rears its ugly head, as director Joe Johnston (and previously-attached director Mark Romanek) came upon the exhausting approach with 2010’s “The Wolfman.” Add the truth that the character itself is a very powerful nut to crack, contemplating simply how ingrained the lore and stereotypes of werewolves have turn into in popular culture, and it is easy to see why the deck has remained stacked towards the Wolf Man.
Luckily, Leigh Whannell’s previous expertise with “The Invisible Man” clearly got here in useful as he took the reins on “Wolf Man.” When he first dove into the deep finish of the Common Monsters swimming pool, he determined to take that monster in a radical course. The place the unique 1933 film tells the tragic story of a prankster’s descent into insanity and homicide on a mass scale, Whannell’s tackle the fabric reimagines the title character in an much more sinister and all-too-real gentle. Although as unrepentant a villain as he is ever been, this model of the Invisible Man embarks on a gaslighting marketing campaign meant to torture only one sufferer specifically — a former lover (Elisabeth Moss) who had the gall to go away her abusive scenario. Deftly avoiding previous clichés about mad scientists and schemes of world domination, Whannell as an alternative turned this movie into arguably the horror film that finest encapsulated the #MeToo motion.
Wolf Man makes its villain really feel uncomfortably actual
Granted, the underlying themes behind “Wolf Man” do not precisely lend itself to the very same interpretation as what Whannell did with “The Invisible Man,” however the acclaimed author/director pulls off an identical trick. Historically talking, the monstrous Wolf Man and his grisly transformation within the gentle of the total moon has represented the concept of succumbing to our basest and most animalistic urges. Whether or not or not it’s the fears of sexual inhibition in a puritanical society (boy, that sounds acquainted) or a extra broader grappling of humankind’s means to oppress these we understand as “lesser” (additionally sadly related!), the wolfish monster on the heart of the story has lent itself to all kinds of compelling interpretations. In Whannell’s new movie, he takes that to an much more fascinating place.
Though I’ve my quibbles with how “Wolf Man” handles the extra emotional aspect of the narrative, I cannot deny simply how intelligent it was for Whannell and co-writer Corbett Tuck to make your entire film about generational trauma and escaping cycles of abuse. The film begins with an prolonged prologue following younger Blake Lovell (Zac Chandler) and his distant, demanding father Grady (Sam Jaeger) throughout an early encounter with the Wolf Man. However greater than establishing the primary risk of the movie, this sequence neatly establishes Blake’s best worry when he grows up and has a household of his personal: turning into his personal abusive father. Extra hardcore followers could also be disenchanted by a script that leans far, distant from any supernatural explanations (the Wolf Man syndrome is defined early on as a “hill fever”), however the best way it subtly incorporates the standard werewolf “curse” deserves reward. Somewhat than pointing the blame on the occult, “Wolf Man” finds a way more relatable goal. The last-minute reveal that the creature attacking Blake and his household is definitely his presumed-dead father places a advantageous level on it: the sins of the daddy can be visited upon the son. It is as much as us, then, to search out our personal technique of escape and spare our family members from dwelling our worst nightmares.
“Wolf Man” is now taking part in in theaters.
