I’m pretty sure that it is no secret that I like the remake of
The Wolf Man,
I would even go as far and say I’m a positive fan of it.
Which doesn’t stop me from niggling mind you:
The first time I saw Sir Hopkins transformation sequence I felt awfully reminded of Michael J.’s dad's in Teen Wolf, probably not the effect they were aiming for.
*j/k*But seriously, some of the cheaper looking CGI FX tipped the balance and prevent the movie from becoming a true classic, more pathos and a few more memorable lines wouldn’t have hurt either. More choice pieces like Hugo Weavings:
“Rules Mrs Kirk. They ‘re all that keeps us from a dog-eat-dog world, you know.”
(Great delivery there)
But there's a lot to love about this movie, from steady paced action to brooding atmosphere and a great cast. Like Sir Anthony Hopkins taking on the role formerly played by Claude Rains, and not making a bad figure doing so. Then there's Emily Blunt who can easily compete with other female leads in the field, like Yvonne Romain or Nurse Alex, Jenny Agutter; and truly, I think nobody suffers more beautiful these days.
Not to forget the movies fun and action packed homage to the legendary Piccadilly carnage scene from
An American Werewolf in London.
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Speaking of which, it sure is not necessary to mention that Rick Baker worked on the creature FX for both
Wolf Man and
American Werewolf. I would like to insert here though that he also worked on the vastly underrated
Wolf; and seeing how the formidable make-up FX he used there are clearly a tip to the hat towards the Universal Classics, I feel that Rick came finally full circle with his work on
Wolf Man*.
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*
Please do not take this as me saying that we are going in circles in this genre, nothing could be further from my mind!