Forget full moons and Lon Chaney Jr, today we’re watching the 2021 werewolf film, The Cursed!
The Cursed!
Movie Details:
- Release Date: 2021
- “Run”time: 1 hour and 51 minutes
- Where to watch it: Streaming
- Directed by: Sam Ellis
- Written by: Sam Ellis
- Starring:
- Boyd Holbrook
- Kelly Reilly
- Alistair Petrie
Synopsis: A small town is terrorized by some kind of animal that seems like a wolf, but maybe not necessarily a wolf.
Open Stab Wounds (out of 10): 7
Review: Knowing now that Kevin and I are dedicated enough to at least see it through these 31 days to the end, I think I’ll put more effort into spreading the genre’s out and incorporating as many as possible. This will be something maybe we do for a post 31-day podcast or article… but for now, I mention it because: hey, we’re at day 29 and found our first werewolf movie!
This one comes by way of writer/director Sean Ellis, bringing us a werewolf tale from the late 1800’s. The movie starts off with a cool series of shots from the trenches of World War I and into the medical tent, where a character is having bullets pulled from his torso… revealing a single silver bullet that isn’t German.
Shortly from there, we go 35 years back in time to a small village. There the British settler elders are discussing a Romani encampment that has a claim to the land. However, the settlers don’t care nearly as much about the claim and proceed to… evict the Romani’s in the most violent way possible. The set-piece here is a very wide shot that lets the audience see everything that’s happening. It was done as a single shot, with impressive (and chaotic) blocking/choreography.
This eviction of the Romani kickstarts the titular “curse” on the settlers and the head of the elders, Seamus (Alistair Petrie). Eventually, events take place, leading to Seamus’ youngest child Edward (Max Mackintosh) being bitten and disappearing. This brings in a pathologist with a history of werewolves into the mix, by way of John (Boyd Holbrook). The attack, the mystery of what happened to Edward, and the root of the curse drive the narrative forward.
That’s good enough for the plot. It follows along with most werewolf stories, so there aren’t a ton of surprises or spoilers here. Even the scenes at the end weren’t particularly revelatory. My enjoyment of this movie came more from the gore effects and the straightforward story. The truth is: I don’t always need to be shocked or surprised by a film to enjoy it. There was more than enough technical skill here for me to be drawn in by. The world war I shots in the beginning were great. A scene in the beginning, at the start of the curse with a scarecrow was brutal.
On a note of werewolves: silver bullet stories work well as tales of resource management. Setting werewolf stories in the 1800’s with the limitations of firearms is always handy. There’s a moment or two in the film where this could be a factor, but for the most part, they don’t fully rely on a limited ammunition. However, the usefulness of a silver bullet in The Cursed, I thought, was a nice departure on the “effect” it has on werewolves.
The last thing to bring up is the history of werewolf transformations. From the Wolfman to The Howling to An American Werewolf in London, transformations are a key part of the genre. The hard part is always making a unique way of showing this transformation. The Cursed moves away from the traditional way, more akin to metamorphosis than shape change. I wanted to see it happen more, but unfortunately, it’s not highlighted enough.
To wrap it all up, The Cursed was a decent entry into the werewolf genre. It doesn’t do anything too far above and beyond what we expect from the genre, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying it from a technical and storyteller perspective. Hell, I’m not even a big werewolf fan, but I liked this one.
Thanks for reading and watching along with us! Be sure to keep up with all 31 days of our Halloween Horror Film coverage!
Oh, and make sure to follow Brandon on Twitter @BarnyardCruz and Kevin @Solucid!