Leigh Whannell’s new film “Wolf Man” may not have the modern twist of his 2020 take on the Invisible Man, but the Australian filmmaker’s second Universal reboot is an effective monster movie with plenty of tense, effects-heavy moments to feed a hunger for the horror icon.
The film begins in 1995 with a text card about a missing hiker and stories of a creature in the Oregonian wilderness, before picking up with a hunting trip between a quiet boy, Blake (Zac Chandler), and his intimidating, survivalist father, Grady (Sam Jaeger). The two nearly become the prey of an unseen animal, only narrowly escaping home, where Blake overhears his father radio a friend for help in tracking it down.
Fast forward 30 years and adult Blake (Christopher Abbott) is a recently unemployed writer and stay-at-home dad with a young daughter, Ginger (Matilda Firth), and a career-minded journalist wife, Charlotte (Julia Garner). Blake and Charlotte appear distant, with the mother even admitting that she doesn’t relate to her daughter as well as he does. Blake has his own moments of frustration, though he tries to avoid becoming like his old man, whom he grew up fearing.
It’s revealed that Blake was estranged from his father, who later went missing and only now has been officially declared deceased. With Blake receiving the keys to his childhood home, he suggests a trip to clean it out and bring the family closer together. It’s been a long time since Blake has gone back, though, and he doesn’t remember the area as well as he had thought. After getting lost and receiving directions from a suspicious, armed acquaintance from Blake’s past, they’re run off the road by what appears to be an animal on two legs — and the chase is on.
With Blake clawed in the escape, Whannell does away with any expository lore like full moons and silver bullets in favor of a taut, down-to-basics home invasion/chase thriller with some effective scares and nasty practical effects work. With the family of three barricaded inside Blake’s childhood home, they must protect themselves from the beast that’s still outside while coming to the realization that he is transforming into one himself.
The film is careful not to reveal too much too early while building a sense of tension as the transformation spreads more like an infection than a quick animalistic turn. This lends to plenty of gross and grisly moments, right down to a visual cue that calls back to Whannell’s own origins as a creative force behind the “Saw” franchise. An interesting stylistic choice comes in the form of the Wolf Man’s POV, a sort of psychedelic, vivid-colored visualization of how he perceives the senses.
Written by Whannell with his wife, Corbett Tuck, the family drama and grief of parental loss at a minimum set the foundation for the story, but the characterization is too broad to sell the emotional arc. Though this leads an ending that seems unearned, even unsatisfying, “Wolf Man” still has enough thrills for a fun time at the movies.
“Wolf Man” is now playing in theaters.
