Leigh Whannell, the visionary writer/director behind The Invisible Man and Saw, returns with Wolf Man, his modern reimagining of Universal’s iconic 1941 horror classic The Wolf Man. Despite Whannell’s knack for updating horror legends with a contemporary edge, Wolf Man delivers a mixed bag of grounded storytelling, impressive performances, and frustrating missteps.
A Familiar Legend Reimagined
Whannell strips away the supernatural tropes of fortune-tellers and pentagrams from the original, opting for a grounded origin story rooted in human vulnerability and disease allegory. Collaborating with co-writer Corbett Tuck, Whannell crafts a narrative with moments of clever symbolism but struggles with pacing, particularly in the third act.
Christopher Abbott shines as Blake, a troubled father whose summer retreat to his late father’s Oregon property takes a nightmarish turn. The slow-burning setup contrasts sharply with the chaos that follows, immersing viewers in a tale of survival and transformation.
Strong Performances Ground the Horror
Abbott’s layered performance is bolstered by Julia Garner as Charlotte, his overworked journalist wife, and young Matilda Firth as their precocious daughter Ginger. While Garner excels in capturing Charlotte’s early skepticism and emotional conflict, her role devolves into a repetitive cycle of survival tropes, leaving her immense talent underutilized.
Watch the Wolf Man (2025) movie clips
Benedict Hardie delivers a brief but memorable turn as an ominous stranger who sets the tone for the eerie events that follow. Meanwhile, Stefan Duscio’s cinematography excels in amplifying tension, blending immersive close-ups with dynamic shifts in perspective that enhance the film’s emotional and visual impact.
An Allegory for Modern Times
Whannell uses the film’s post-COVID setting to explore themes of infection, isolation, and transformation. Blake’s overnight struggle to protect his family while battling his own beastly metamorphosis becomes an allegorical lens through which Whannell examines fear, communication breakdowns, and societal fractures.
The film’s most compelling sequences alternate between Blake’s animalistic perspective and Charlotte’s human view of his transformation, a technique that invites viewers to empathize with both sides. Unfortunately, these gripping shifts in perspective are sporadic, leaving audiences craving more of this narrative innovation.
A Flawed Third Act and Missed Scares
While Wolf Man delivers suspenseful sequences early on, its third act falters. The final 30 minutes drag with repetitive survival sequences that lack the emotional stakes and genuine scares expected of a horror finale. Julia Garner’s character, in particular, suffers from a lack of meaningful development during this extended climax.
Watch the Wolf Man (2024) ‘Monsters Workshop’ Featurette
Moreover, the film’s reliance on build-ups without payoffs undermines its tension. While subverting jump-scare expectations can be effective, here it feels anticlimactic, leaving horror fans disappointed by the lack of genuine frights.
Conclusion: A Mixed Horror Experience
Wolf Man succeeds in crafting a grounded and visually arresting update to a Universal Monster classic, but it stumbles in delivering consistent thrills and a satisfying conclusion. Whannell’s ambitious themes and Abbott’s gripping performance elevate the film, but a bloated runtime and missed opportunities hold it back from achieving the same acclaim as The Invisible Man.
Horror enthusiasts will likely be divided on Whannell’s latest offering, which hits theaters on January 17, 2025. While Wolf Man may not fully satisfy fans of the genre, it provides a fresh perspective on a well-trodden legend that’s worth watching for its visual flair and thematic depth.
