“The Wolfman” Review
June 9, 2010
Release Date: 02/12/2010
Length: 119′
Personal Rating (1-10): 4
“The Wolfman” is the allready well known story of the werewolf that can only be killed by silver bullets. The representation in 2010 brings nothing new to the table, just maybe some scenery and some new actors (that are actually old actors, age-wise).
The story is as simple as it gets: Long lost son, Lawrence Talbot, comes back in small English town, after his brother was killed in a brutal way by what is believed to be a beast. In an altercation with the beast Lawrence gets bitten by the animal (which as in all good soap opera’s is his father) and is then saved by a gypsy, only to become “The Wolfman” himself. Everything ends with a terrible fight between the beasts in which the youngest animal prevails, and then gets killed himself. Ta Da! I ruined it for you!
Let’s take a look now at the selling points of the motion picture “The Wolfman“:
Sir John Talbot (the senior wolf) is played by Sir. Anthony Hopkins, a remarkable actor that does not disappoint us, and makes a secondary, mediocre role to be the only entertaing part in an otherwise dull movie.
Lawrence Talbot is played by Benicio Del Toro, an actor everybody praised that has left me with an impression of a classy Stevan Seagal and no acting gift at all. Surprisingly he also starred in some other medium rated movies before like “21 Grams” and “Snitch” and also in the classical “The Usual Suspects”.
Not sure if the next two things were on the poster for the movie but they are worth mentioning. The producers managed to put together a great set, with a lovely castle for the Talbots, some nice woods near by for “The Wolfman” to roam free and lovely dresses and costumes for the people so the air from the beginning of the last century can be refreshed.
Also in a production point of view, probably in order to attract teenage boys that are still dealing with puberty, the film is extremely bloody and describes very well and in detail how “The Wolfman” bites, scratches and pulls every limb off its victims.
“The Wolfman” took me 4 nights to see because I repeatedly fell asleep. I think they put their money on the simple legend and on the presence of Anthony Hopkins and didn’t bother giving this tale the new twist in the plot that was needed to revitalize a dusty anti-hero. Shame on them!
