The RPM Show

By Adam Miller

“Even a man who is pure at heart and says his prayers by night, may become a wolf, when the wolfbane blooms and the autumn moon is full and bright.” That proverb is an old saying in the legend that says he who is bitten by a werewolf will become one himself during the full moon. But in movie terms it reigns as one of the greatest screen legends of all time. That screen legend has been resurrected on the big screen in a fantasticlly produced thriller. It can be said that this remake is one of very few that actually works.

The screen legend is the monster that is the name of the film. The Wolfman is a staple in the history of the Universal monster legacy. The original film, released in 1941, starred Lon Chaney Jr, as the Wolfman and Claude Rains as his father. That version was another successful monster picture that was rolled out from Universal Studios during the height of its love affair with monster/horror pictures. Today, The Wolfman along with pictures like Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy, and The Invisible Man, are regarded as classic Hollywood national treasures that are still being enjoyed by film buffs and new audiences alike.

At the center of this film is Lawrence Talbot (Benicio Del Toro), who has received notice from his brother’s fiance Gwen Conliffe (Emily Blunt), that his brother has gone missing. Upon his arrival, he meets up with his father (Anthony Hopkins) who informs him that his brother was found dead. It is established that his brother was killed by a huge monster-like beast. While trying to find out what happened, Lawrence is attacked by this beast and is nearly killed. After realizing that this attack will bring on a curse whenever the full moon will appear, he must figure out how to live through it.

Now, being a remake, this movie already had a lot of obstacles to overcome. The first being the fact that it is a redoing of a film that is regarded as a classic. The second is having the performances be fresh and original. Finally, just being different while at the same time bringing a new vision to the screen and being respectful, not undermining to the original version. This new take on this story successfully blows those obstacles away and creates one of the best movies of the year. It recreates the style of the old fashioned monster movie and resorts to using the old make up special effects, which is something that has been taken out of control in films like Twilight and Van Helsing .

This film gains tremendous strength from the atmosphere and production design. The designers create a period piece that gives us more of a feel of the environment of the setting. In so doing this version substitutes the Universal back lot for designed set to recapture the period of pre-20th century England. The whole atmosphere is a plus as well because it creates the dark and moody need that elevates the film.

As far as performances go, everyone in the cast disappears into their roles. Del Toro indeed shows that he is using Chaney’s original interpretation as an anchor but at the same time does his own thing. And he pulls off this role very successfully. Hopkins, Blunt, and the rest of the cast pull off tremendous performances that truely give the film more spirit.

In conclusion, this new version of The Wolfman is a must see. Not only is it a good and worthy remake, but it is one of very few remakes that have been done that can be considered being great. It is one remake that actually when all is said and done works very successfully. It’s a movie that brings one of the greatest cinematic monsters back to life and revives the old fashioned monster movie in every way imaginable.