Blood and Chocolate - La caccia al licantropo è aperta

From the producers of Underworld, this movie looks like a cheap cousin to the popular wolves versus vampires movie starring Kate Beckinsale. Based on a book by Annette Curtis Klause, and directed by Katja von Garnier, it's difficult not to draw comparisons because of the subject material and similar themes, this time though doing without the vampires, and sets the spotlight firmly on a group of hunted werewolves called the Loups-Garoux. Sexy sounding, but essentially a useless name for useless beings.

The group of Loups-Garoux proudly stands by their tradition of being able to transform into wolves at will (and that is their only power mind you), and because of their abilities and lust for blood, they are hunted down by Men with their guns and silver bullets (who and what else). In order to survive persecution, they go underground and keep their identities secret, only to come out during the night for frequent partying at rave clubs (and to pick up chicks), as well as attending strange rituals such as gathering in the woods to partake in hunter-prey chases with wounded men as victims.

In essence, they're a bunch of self-preserving cowards who hunt in packs, believing whole- heartedly that unity is strength. As mentioned, they got unimpressive abilities which probably forces them to do so, not by choice - only remarkable agility and the preference to scale walls and run along rooftops. Led by an uninspiring, cowardly leader Gabriel (Kylie Minogue's ex Olivier Martinez), he holds on to the unexplained hokey prophecy as well as the tradition of the leader of the pack to handpick a wolf-maiden to bed every 7 years. No wonder he's holding onto power without the necessity to do much to further their cause (which is?), and sets his sights on marrying Vivian (Agnes Bruckner).

Vivian however, being the headstrong ingénue, falls for a plain human, graphic novelist Aiden (Hugh Dancy), and this is where references to Underworld come into full swing. The reluctance in the formation of a forbidden relationship from the girl with secrets, the revenge killings and the hunting down of Aiden, and with Vivian protecting her love, all reeks with familiarity. While Underworld had a rich backstory created for its characters and beings, Blood and Chocolate failed to have anything interesting in either wolf or man to engage the audience.

And the execution here is painfully boring. No special effects, not even the baring of fangs, save for coloured contact lenses. It's relatively low-budgeted, and the transformation of man to beast, is so cheap, even a 10 year old kid with a no-frills video editing software will be able to achieve. Fights are confined to chases between wolves and man, and the usual scruffy fisticuffs. Don't forget the loopholes galore too after transformation, which is seldom seen on screen as it'll pose more questions.

The only redeeming grace however, is the on-location filming in the streets of Bucharest, a beautiful romantic place, totally ideal for a romanticized tale of man-beasts. The soundtrack too had a tinge of Hindi(?!) music influences, which I totally enjoyed, but too bad, the film had been intrinsically destroyed by a lack of a strong storyline, plagued with non charismatic and weak villains with zero diabolical plans, with preference to hang around and do nothing, save for showing off their pitiful skills (which I suspect is because of the lack of budget).

With a strange title, Blood and Chocolate correctly named itself - a weird and silly mix which doesn't go down well at all. Only watch it on disc if you've got time to spare.

"Blood and Chocolate" is a surprisingly good movie. I was expecting it to be some terrible, low-budget horror-wannabe movie in the vain of "Dracula II: Ascension," "The Prophecy: Uprising," and "The Prophecy: Forsaken". Instead, "Blood and Chocolate" was a well-done film. This movie was nearly pitch-perfect. The acting, set design, score, cinematography and story were nothing short of wonderful.

Olivier Martinez gave an outstanding performance in what could have been a clichéd role. His portrayal of Gabriel was multi-dimensional and none of his screen-time was wasted. He brought all of the elements together as leader, father, and lover (even though there are no sex scenes, he is constantly smoldering with an animal rapacity). He gave a credible performance, especially in light of Gabriel's fate. (I also enjoyed his commentary on the DVD. He is a very thoughtful and funny person.) Agnes Bruckner's portrayal of Vivian was well done. Her acting was not robotic. Vivian's nature is pent-up and bland; she has no outlet for her inner turmoil other than running, and according to the rules of the pack, she must not form close relationships with humans. It is important to remember that this character is not the same as Selene from "The Underworld" series who seethes with vengeful ferocity even while she's strapping up her bustier. Hugh Dancy was adorable and believable; which is always a difficult feat in the role of romantic interest. Also, in the character of Aiden, the filmmakers were able to acknowledge their respect of the loup garoux storyline; they were practically screaming, "This is not some cheesy werewolf story!" Katje Riemann and Bryan Dick also gave nuanced performances as Astrid and Rafe. (The movie suffered from trimming Astrid's storyline. I strongly recommend watching the deleted scenes on the DVD. I think the fate of Astrid's storyline was the result of studio executives wanting to focus on the two younger characters more, but ultimately that decision hurt the overall movie.)

The soundtrack was nothing short of amazing! In my opinion, it suited this movie perfectly. The percussion was not overdone, nor were the synthesizers. Each drumbeat not only heightened the excitement, but also helped to intertwine the dual nature of the loup garoux (human and wolf). I felt it as if it were the quickening pulse of the loup garoux giving in to their wolf nature. I think the decision to stay away from gypsy music (which I love) was a good one. The synthesized music was good and helped to the ground the story in youth and freshness, rather than some overwrought Romanian folklore manner.

On the dual nature of the loup garoux, the transition from human to wolf was beautiful. I loved the notion of the "leap of faith" involved in the transformation and the mythical element of that transformation. Also, the coloring of the loup garoux eyes were spot on. The respect of the transformation from human to wolf translated to the great execution of this premise. The entire story could have been a cliché since the story is mostly "Romeo and Juliet" for the loup garoux set, but it was well-done and well worth watching.

"Blood and Chocolate" had a few missteps. Nothing in the movie makes this title appropriate, other than a short, barely-audible line by Astrid. Not until visiting this web site was I aware that the movie was an adaptation of a book. Whatever occurred in the novel to make "Blood and Chocolate" a suitable title was omitted from the screenplay and the movie suffered for it. As I have stated, Astrid's storyline should have remained intact in the film. My final criticism is that the story is so well-done, I would have liked to have seen an R-rated version of the movie. Meaning, I would love to have seen an even more serious treatment of this story. My understanding is that the novel is geared toward pre-teens which explains the light treatment of the storyline.

I highly recommend "Blood and Chocolate" to anyone looking for an interesting and well-crafted film.

I enjoyed this film. It isn't life changing, deep or even particularly thought provoking, but it does draw you in and keep you 'entertained' throughout.

Many of the comments below extol the book and damn the film, you'd think they would know better to expect a fairly run of the mill film to outshine the fiction it was based on. I haven't read the book but I may now.

The story is compassionate and attempts to re-consider the wolf-person theme by treating them as an oppressed minority, I couldn't help but think that they were a metaphor for the Roma, a thought that bears scrutiny I think.

The cinematography was atmospheric and Bucharest became the star, lots of beautiful rococo buildings and a pleasantly eastern soundtrack. I kept wondering if the film wasn't a Hollywood offering because the characters all seem normal and manage to avoid behaving in the usual American manner (not an "oh my god" in earshot), but no, the ending isn't European.

I was really pleasantly surprised with the beautiful human to wolf transitions, the makers restrained themselves from fx to the benefit of the film, it reminded me of the early eastern European fairytale films (the singing ringing tree). Don't be concerned about gore or substance abuse as mentioned below, there is little more blood than a few cut fingers and bloodstained clothing, and the only substance that gets abused is absinthe (which may well be an illegal substance in your country as it is here), it gets drunk sparingly, injected once and burnt fairly often. See this film.

I have read the book. I have seen the movie. I would've been mad if I had seen it in theaters but I rented it and so I wasn't as angry about the changes. Basically, the book and movie have very little in common. If you can't get past that, you won't let yourself give the movie a chance. After original indignation I sat back and watched and I wasn't totally horrified by what I saw. Have I seen better movies this year? Yes. But I didn't hate it and demand the hour plus of my life back. I actually really enjoyed the Rafe character. He made me laugh several times and in my opinion, saved the movie for me. After I cast all things in the book from my mind, I enjoyed the premise of the movie and the new take in the werewolf genre.

What a fine accomplishment for German director Katja von Garnier. She has delved into the traditionally all-male world of directing a genre monster movie and turned it into a Romeo & Juliet with style. There's a distinct lack of gore, and the violence isn't overbearing, while the astounding art direction and overall moodiness of the movie is only heightened by filming on location in Romania, a perfect backdrop for the heavy gray feeling of Blood and Chocolate. Even when the couple in love is happy, there's a brooding nature that permeates the streets, even in daylight. Most amazing is the graceful and poetic transformation of the humans into their alter wolf egos. They run into a frenzied pitch and then leap into the air and become real wolves, rather than the usual cheesy werewolves accentuated by special effects. It's quite breathtaking.