Tonight I watched The Wolfman on Blu-Ray. This 2010 film is a remake of the 1941 Universal horror classic. The film opens with the classic line chiseled in stone.
Even a man who is pure of heart
and says his prayers by night
may become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms
and the autumn moon is bright.
And then proceeds to follow the myth of the werewolf; foggy moors, silver bullets and canes, full moons and terrible transformations. The film is fairly faithful to the original until about half way through, then it deviates from the original and the action moves to London. The story returns to Talbot Hall and the moors for the finale. It is not a very suspenseful film and there are only a few "make you jump" moments. But what the film lacks in suspense it makes up for in gore.
Benicio Del Toro plays Lawrence Talbot, who returns to Talbot Hall after the death of his brother. He learns there have been other deaths and he is soon witness to a monstrous attack at a gypsy camp where he is injured by the strange beast. Anthony Hopkins plays his father who seems to know more than he says. Art Malik is on hand a Singh, the father's right hand man and protector. He too knows more than he says, because he loads his shotgun with silver bullets. Emily Blunt is Gwen the dead brother's fiancee who seems doomed to fall in love with the men from this cursed family. Hugo Weaving is on hand as Scotland Yard Inspector Aberline, who is determined to catch the monster.
Benicio Del Toro plays Lawrence Talbot, who returns to Talbot Hall after the death of his brother. He learns there have been other deaths and he is soon witness to a monstrous attack at a gypsy camp where he is injured by the strange beast. Anthony Hopkins plays his father who seems to know more than he says. Art Malik is on hand a Singh, the father's right hand man and protector. He too knows more than he says, because he loads his shotgun with silver bullets. Emily Blunt is Gwen the dead brother's fiancee who seems doomed to fall in love with the men from this cursed family. Hugo Weaving is on hand as Scotland Yard Inspector Aberline, who is determined to catch the monster.
For the most part the special effects serve the film well, especially in the transformation scenes. The blood, guts and gore splattered across the screen is quite realistic too. There is a final scene where the effects underperform, that plus the lack of suspense and the choppy story telling in the beginning, leave the film less than it could have been. Universal ordered the film cut because it was slower paced than other movies such as Underworld, and they wanted to get to the first transformation scene quicker. The blu-ray came with a director's cut which has 17 minutes added and some day I will watch that and see if it is any better. I enjoyed the movie but it missed the mark of being a true Gothic horror.
At The Movie House rating **1/2 stars
At The Movie House rating **1/2 stars
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