WEREWOLVES WITHIN

US, 2020, 97 minutes, Colour.

Sam Richardson, Milana Vayntrub, George Basil, Sarah Burns, Michael Chernus, Catherine Curtin, Wayne Duvall, Rebecca Henderson, Michaela Watkins, Glen flesh, Harvey Guillen, Cheyenne Jackson.

Directed by Josh Ruben.

There’s been quite a tradition of the werewolf films, especially from the 1930s and 40s. These are the films that older reviewers will be remembering. However, younger reviewers will tell the oldies that this particular title is that of a computer game – and has to be considered as a version of playing the game, oddball characters, dangerous situations, werewolf threats, and, of course, elimination of characters with more than a touch of the gory. (And the screenwriter’s name happens to be Wolff!)

Which is what this film does. However, to the uninitiated, it does seem like something of a scratch concert, the actors enjoying themselves and indulging in caricature, and a lot of it seeming very much impromptu. This is not the kind of film we remember with solemn black-and-white, horror overtones, Lon Chaney Jr or even more free recent versions of The Wolf man with Benicio Del Toro, let alone the sinister Jack Nicholson in the 1990s, the grim Wolf.

Which means that the setup is quite contrived. We have a town out in the sticks somewhere with about a dozen inhabitants. We have seen that there are some sinister happenings at the beginning but then things turn jolly, and new Ranger, large and friendly, played by Sam Richardson, dives in and encounters Cecily, who runs the postal delivery and helps out at the local hotel. Gradually, we are introduced to the various characters, a couple who ran a garage (he a variation on the hillbillies), then a witch -like character with a pet dog whose husband has strayed with the garage wife, and a rather prissy camp gay couple. Visiting is an executive who is promising finance for the building of a pipeline, some eager for the money, some environmentally protesting. And, visiting, is a scientist to set up her laboratory in her hotel room. There is also a bushy-bearded aggressive hunter, a mountain man.

A lot of first part of the film is bickering, especially when the landlady’s husband is found chewed up, electricity failing, everybody gathering in the hotel. This leads to cantankerous human nature, then violent human nature, reminding us we all have werewolf capacities within. And, when everybody decides to go home, the killings start! So, who is the werewolf?

With an ever diminishing cast, it narrows down to just a couple of suspects – and, things brighten up (at least for those who are wanting some horror and gore) when the werewolf is revealed, monster appearance, going into malicious action.

So, very broad comedy, werewolf conventions, a cinema equivalent of a pastime like playing the computer game!