Vampires seem to get most of the shine in horror films lately, so let’s briefly go over Werewolf 101 – at least in Hollywood terms. Getting bit or scratched by a Werewolf is bad. If either of those scenarios happens to you, a full moon will bestow a painful and animalistic transformation upon you. A silver bullet (or any silver) will do the trick to take them out. Director Steven C. Miller deviates from the script with a combination of inspirations in ‘Werewolves.’ In this story, the causes of transformation are due to a supermoon triggering a biological response in humans. That jumping-off point is somewhat interesting, even if it is reminiscent of a zombie apocalypse.
‘Werewolves’ moves continually, providing action set pieces and gore to the story’s fault. Many elements about this world, its work, and the overall goal don’t add to a cohesive whole. At times, the film plays it too coy with details, so you’ll wonder if the story was meant to be the first installment of many. A year after the disorienting event, the world is on edge ahead of another supermoon. Ahead of this one night, citizens gear up to go into lockdown to protect themselves at the government’s behest. If this is starting to remind you of ‘The Purge,’ that’s precisely what it feels like. From sunset to sunrise, you should stay in the house. I hope you have a great security system.
Frank Grillo in Werewolves/ Photo Credit: Briarcliff Entertainment
While there are wide-ranging implications (there is talk about international countries going into chaos), Matthew Kennedy’s story tries to keep things centered around one family. Wesley Marshall (Frank Grillo) is a molecular biologist trying to balance two heavy burdens. First, the CDC is working on a potential cure for Werewolf-ism called “moonscreen,” which may block the transformations. On the other hand, Wesley is worried about protecting his late brother’s family: sister-in-law Lucy (Ilfenesh Hadera) and niece Emma (Kamdynn Gary). As he makes sure they batten down the hatches (complete with an opening montage of various weaponry), he’s preparing to test out the effectiveness of moonscreen with an experiment led by Dr. Aranda (Lou Diamond Phillips) with volunteers locked in cages for their safety. At first, things seem to work, but then they quickly take a turn for the worse. The “moonscreen” is not as stable as first thought, and werewolves break free to wreak havoc on the outside world.
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“Werewolves” is enjoyable when it sticks to the film’s more high-octane action and horror aspects, but much of the story logic weighs it considerably. It’s not nailed down how long the creme works and is given a floating time frame by a main character. The realization of a possible “cure” doesn’t have the gravitas it needs because there is so little we know about its methods and this space and time. There’s a side story introduced with a character named Cody (James Michael Cummings), a former soldier who is supposed to embody a disconnect among some citizens to take up arms despite government warnings. However, the film continually orbits around Wesley’s quest to get to his family, where we don’t get a sense of that happening. The werewolves themselves have abilities beyond the pale of super strength or healing in which they can communicate. But it’s not expounded beyond a small dialogue of doctors discussing “year oners” and how previously transformed humans can feel the supermoon coming. The sense of overall devastation the world is facing together is a non-factor.
Frank Grillo is charismatic as a scientist who can yield a wide array of artillery in this role, but much of what the character is feels like a different take on Leo Barnes from ‘The Purge’ films. Instead of Leo fighting off murderous people on Purge night, Wesley is fighting through the streets battling lycanthropes. The special effects range from varying degrees. There are times when the practical effects of the werewolves themselves and the injuries they inflict shine through. Later in the film, the CGI takes over, and things do not look like they are kept together. “Werewolves” finds itself between a rock and a hard place. It’s not emotionally believable enough to invoke suspense regarding the family rescue plot and not enough to explain why this phenomenon is happening.
Main Photo Credit: Briarcliff Entertainment
