Wolf Man (2025) - Simple, but Effective

Wolf Man (2025) is the second in the Universal Monster Movies 'remakes,' follwing The Invisible Man (2020) and the second to be directed by Leigh Whannell. Though they're calling them remakes, they're new takes on tales that have been told several times; in this case, the werewolf movie.

And Whannell's Wolf Man is The Classic Werewolf Movie. The premise is simple: a family head to a man's estranged father's cabin to collect his belongings, and in doing so he gets scratched by a creature that infects him. From there, we have a front row seat to his transformation.

So Wolf Man has a very simple plot, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It means that we have time to sit with the family before the tragedy occurs; it especially means that we get to like Blake (Christopher Abbott) and see his relationship with his daughter, Ginger (played wonderfully by Matilda Firth). It's one full of foreshadowing that sits at the heart of the movie, and the foreshadowing increases the sense of tragedy. It builds the emotional investment in these characters and their sense of realness to give the soul. Blake's relationship with his wife, Charlotte (Julia Garner), is decidedly less simple and sweet. They're not in the stereotypical bad place of horror couples, as such, but they're real enough to feel like more than puppets.

Whannell decided to use both CGI and practical effects for the movie, and the result is a good marrying of the two. The CGI is used, most importantly, not distracting, and used to create punchy scares effectively. Whereas the practical effects are reminiscent of the legendary An American Werewolf in London's. Blake's transformation is a very gradual process, evoking the same pain as Rick Baker's effects. The final appearance of the wolf has drawn some controversy, as it is more man than wolf, still. Whilst it's certainly different from the 40s movies full fur look, I believe it marries well with the themes and metaphor of the movie, and allows us to connect with Blake's expression more fully - an important part of the character relationships. Similar to Eggers' Nosferatu, the new look is nothing groundbreaking, but is at least trying to stand out from what we've seen recently.

Tying into the practical effects of Wolf Man is the camera work. We're led into Blake's mental state with POV shots showing the changes in his vision and world. The vibrant use of colours in the dark are an interesting visual treat that demonstrates Blake's alienation, and keeps us close to his mind. We never forget the man inside the wolf; the movie won't allow us to.

Much of the camera and cinamatography is slick and well-excuted and experiments with how to be interesting. It's a shame that we lose some of this lovely lighting choices sometimes. Particularly when it's dark in the cabin; we end up with flat 'death of film lighting' shots, where our eyes are drawn to the lamps in the room, instead of the characters.

Wolf Man is technically very competent, and does have a lot of heart in, as everyone does, using the werewolf as a metaphor. Here, the films thesis is delivered to us: (paraphrased) "Daddies want to stop their children being scarred, but sometimes they are the reason their children are scarred."

It's not subtle, but horror movies rarely are. It serves here as a moment of understanding for Ginger's character, and one that plays into her mix of fear and compassion in the third act. Blake delivering this line plays into the flashback of his own childhood, and we under the cyclic nature of generational trauma. The werewolf here can be seen as an exploration of masculinity, of fatherhood, of hereditary illness. Any of these readings would work, which is slightly where the problem lies. Eventhough the metaphor is clearly laid out, it doesn't follow through to a fixed conclusion. The ending is suitably tragic for the tale, but what are we supposed to take from it in terms of masculinity? As something that can never be conquered? (This seems to go against our opening scenes of Blake and Ginger?) Whilst the message isn't fully fleshed out, it sits well with other werewolf exploration, and elevates the simplicity of the movie into interesting, instead of forgettable.

The only other small nitpick is that all of the information given to us in the opening text is laid out just as obviously in the following scenes. It seems needlessly handholdy, and an interesting choice to mention the Native name for the wolf, if it never comes into play again.

Overall, Wolf Man is a simple, but effective portrayal of a werewolf transformation, taking its time to explore its characters and message. It's certainly worth a watch for January horror.