Wolf Man (2010) review

Wolf Man (2010) Review

The remake of the classic Lon Chaney Jr. monster movie is finally here after four different delays and about a hundred different directors. So, with all that, does it live up to the original? Well, of course not, but it still makes for an entertaining movie!

Everyone knows the story of the original, but the new movie decides to change the story a little bit, which leads to more action, more gore, and more screen time for the senior Talbot, played by Anthony Hopkins. After Larry Talbot’s brother is killed, he races home to find out who did it at the request of his brothers future wife. After dodging the questions of an inspector (played brilliantly by Hugo Friggin’ Weaving), he finds that a vicious monster is to blame. After he’s nearly killed, he realizes he is turning into the monster. His only hope is to end this, by stopping his brother’s killer, and to try not to kill the woman he loves.

While the surrounding characters were played really well by Hugo Weaving, Anthony Hopkins and Emily Blunt, the main character, played by Benecio Del Toro seemed flat and just plain boring. It could have been because everyone else seemed to really enjoy themselves on screen and often “chewed up the screen.” I also think the movie took away some of the drama and sadness of this kind man, turning into a monster and replaced it with gore, lots and lots of gore. The end result, however, was a flick that updated things to what the filmmakers thought is what audiences wanted, and for the most part, they were correct. There was action, some drama, great set pieces and a really good looking monster.

Now, the important part, everyone’s first question, “how was the transformation sequence?” Well, in a word, friggin’ gorgeous (yeah, it’s two words, just move on). The transformation didn’t wreak of CGI, and once the wolf man was out, it looked incredible. Truly the makeup department deserves something for their work. They seemed to stay true to the original look of the beast, while updating and improving on everything. In fact, the only part of the movie that didn’t look great was a circus bear, which was CGI for some bizarre reason.

The twist, which I won’t ruin, was kinda lame, and was an attempt and bringing back the drama, but failed simply due to Del Toro’s lack of character. It did involve, however, a really good action scene with a wolf man, and well, another wolf man. I know! Can it get much better?

So, overall, I liked this movie. The filmmakers managed to capture the overall feeling of dread on the landscape, innovated the wolf man and made him a monster for today’s audience, and if del Toro could’ve given a bit more emotion, the film would’ve been incredible. So, overall, I’m going with an 8 out of 10.