The Cursed

The Good: This movie is freakin' GORGEOUS. I absolutely loved how this movie looked; I couldn't take my eyes off the screen. Everything from the depth of the images, to the saturated colours, the rolling fog, and the period appropriate costumes come together to transport you to a different world. While it's a relatively simple setting, it's imbued with a lot of character. As for the more fantastical elements, this film has some truly shocking images that I guarantee will lodge in your mind (if you're into that sort of thing).

I also appreciated the period appropriate characters and sensibilities. This is more The With or The Nightingale then your typical historical horror film, with characters acting as people in Victorian Britain would act. That includes the good and the bad, with a heavy dose of class obsession that feels right for the era. I'm not opposed to movies taking liberties with history, but only if there's a point to the subversion. The Cursed is quite authentic in that regard, and it's awesome.

But, let's be real, what we all want to know is if The Cursed delivers on the scares. I wouldn't say this is a particularly *scary* movie, but it is unique and inventive. It's take on the werewolf myth is pretty novel and rooted in trauma, injustice, and oppression (with some very clever Biblical connections as well). It's very interesting and I give Ellis credit for that.

Horror movies don't often get praised for performances, but shout out to this movie's wonderful cast. Everyone felt transformed into late 19th century Britons, to the point where I almost forgot where I've seen these people before. Boyd Holbrook, Kelly Reilly, and Allistaire Petrie really shine.

The Bad: This movie's worst aspect is its editing. The cuts are relentless (especially towards the beginning) and quite disorienting. There are scenes of truly striking imagery ultimately ruined by the constant cutting. It's an inexplicable decision for a movie that's ultimately quite slow paced.

Moreover, while I really liked the performances, none of these characters had all that much depth. I kinda hoped for a subplot or something about class and land rights of the era, but despite the film's longer-than-average runtime, it never materialized. The characters, as such, don't get to really address or even mention the cruelty that sets the plot in motion. It just feels kind of weird that this wasn't used as an opportunity to further flesh out the story.

The ending is also kind of underwhelming and abrupt. There's a connection to the first scene of the movie that doesn't really amount to anything either.

The Ugly: After a few years of straight-to-streaming schlock, The Cursed is a celebration of the good ol fashioned, ornate gothic horror.

Sean Ellis wrote, directed, and co-produced this gothic horror, along with serving as it's cinematographer. This is 100% the vision of his single creative mind, and I have a tremendous amount of admiration for that, even if not all of it worked for me.

The Cursed is a bizarre, unconventional monster movie. It has a heavy focus on tone and atmosphere with very little regard for establishing mythology. And it's a very refreshing take on the well-worn concept of werewolves.

With this film, Ellis proves himself to be a more than capable director and cinematographer. He crafts a bleak environment in which no one is safe or truly morally just, and he keeps the horrifying creature out of the frame as often as possible so that when the gore does finally come, it's a shocking occurrence.

The visual presentation is far more impressive than the writing, however. Ellis's script certainly isn't bad. It's just overstuffed, biting off a bit more than it can chew. There is an opening sequence that isn't mentioned again until the ending, and even then it feels disconnected from the actual narrative. There is no real reason for it to be here, and it's presence actually takes away from a more ambiguous ending that would have been far creepier.

Additionally, there are quite a lot of characters, and none of them are really fleshed out beyond the positions they hold in society. There is quite a lot going on in this film in its first and final acts, and it could have been streamlined a lot by cutting the fat to make it as lean and suspenseful as the middle portion of this film is.

Still, even with its faults, this is a thoroughly ambitious film that I think really does revitalise the werewolf mythos in a lot of ways, and I really hope that people go and support this film so that we can get more unique visions like this.

I'd rather see unique but flawed movies that allow a creator to have free reign than simple competent movies that don't take risks and feel like studio-approved products.

I wished they never changed the original title, Eight for Silver. That name had a unique identity of its own.

An aesthetically pleasing horror drama, beautiful locations, peak cinematography, talented actors, a proper budget, brilliantly written and directed, realistic brutal scenes with outstanding performances.

A unique take on lycanthropy that never ever seen before. I would've rated more if Sean Ellis carried the same momentum he had until the final act.

The cursed revolves around a werewolf and a set of silver teeth buried in a field. Might sound lame, but it actually works. The root of the killings is deeper than just werewolf violence - and the plot keeps interest where run of the mill werewolves fall short.

It's been quite some time since there has been some legitimate horror in this genre. This movie delivers on all the right aspects from the cinematography to the creature effects. I thoroughly enjoyed it.