Wolf

The movie is empty. For such a complex topic the movie feels very superficial. We never learn anything about the characters; no beginnings an no endings just the middle which happens to be the movie but without any substance to it.

I was expecting to at least feel something from what I had read about the premise of the movie but I was sad that I finished the movie not feeling moved by it.

Such a waste of what could have been.

"It's not about surviving, it's about surviving as me."

Believing he is a wolf trapped in a human body, Jacob eats, sleeps, and lives like a wolf -- much to the shock of his family. When he's sent to a clinic, Jacob and his animal-bound peers are forced to undergo increasingly extreme forms of 'curative' therapies. However once he meets the mysterious Wildcat, and as their friendship blossoms into an undeniable infatuation, Jacob is faced with a challenge: will he renounce his true self for love. Wolf is an interesting movie. Even before it's release at festivals and theatrical, it was met with mixed reactions. A project like this would never work well with most audiences, but I'm glad they went for it. This is by no means a great movie, but with everything it covers, I think it's solid for the most part. To get one thing out of the way, it can be uncomfortable to watch. Quickly, it turns the uncomfortableness onto humanity and no these people suffering from species identity disorder. This is a real thing that needs to be taken seriously even if it's a little absurd. Writer and director Nathalie Biancheri knew how to handle this and make it serious. I do think she thought this was something greater than it is. For every festival it went to, this description was: A high-concept arthouse drama about a boy who believes he is a wolf. A bit pretentious, don't you think? And this is pretentious. But it makes do by creating something pretty interesting and you can see she cares.

George MacKay absolutely soars in this. This is a transformative role and he embodies his character with precision. His counterpart, Lily-Rose Depp also goes for it. Her character intrigued me the most and I feel we know more about her than anyone else. If the movie needed one thing, it was characterization. There is a lack of it and it's hard to find reasons to care for them. The antagonist, though played well by Paddy Considine, is just a bad guy because he's using awful methods to revert them to their normal selves though they want to be like this. I found it hard to connect with anyone. When the themes come in, and they are really strong, I could apply them to the characters but I couldn't tell you much about them. The script could've used some work at parts. And the pacing didn't flow right. The third act works really well but the first two run on highs and lows. Had it not been for some memorable moments throughout and most of the last act, this would've fell completely flat. But this is a memorable movie, mainly because the content. Wolf showcases some great acting, interesting themes, and really good cinematography. It's a shame not too many people are talking about it. It needs more work, but I found it quite interesting. When I went to see it, I was in a large auditorium on opening night and I was the only one there. Weird experience but I'm glad I had it. This is one of the movies of the year that has mixed-negative reactions that I liked.

Greetings again from the darkness. We all know that gender identity, and identity in general, are topics receiving a great deal of attention these days. Writer-director Nathalie Biancheri latches on to the discussion by bringing up Species Identity Disorder, also known as Otherkin. These are folks who identify as something other than human, typically a type of animal. It's easy enough to connect the dots to gender dysphoria, but it also walks a fine line between mental health and sadness (and if we are being honest, a bit of humor - at least as presented here).

The film opens on the bare butt of a male in the forest. That's a sentence I hope to never write again. George MacKay stars as Jacob, a young man who identifies as a wolf. It's his butt we first glimpse as he prowls the vegetation growing in nature. Next we see Jacob with his parents at an institution that specializes in Species Identity Disorder. The questionable curative therapies conducted by Dr. Mann (get it?) seem more like torture and humiliation than treatment. Dr. Mann (played straight-faced by Paddy Considine) is also known as 'The Zookeeper' as the patients include: a parrot, a duck, a squirrel, a horse, and a German shepherd.

It's unsettling to see the actions and mannerisms of these patients, but equally unsettling to witness Dr. Mann's methods. If you've ever seen THE SNAKE PIT (1948), then you have some idea of how disturbing institutional treatment can be. Of course, this movie is not at the level of that Anatole Litvak classic, but George MacKay's performance is quite something to appreciate. We saw his physical abilities as he performed yoga in CAPTAIN FANTASTIC (2016), and here he expertly creates the movements (and howls) of the wolf he believes himself to be.

Lily-Rose Depp plays Cecile, a long-term patient who has yet to fully kick her wildcat tendencies. She and Jacob manage to become friends, and the attraction goes deeper through Jacob's primal urges and tendencies. The two actors have one scene together that, by itself, elevates the film. Obviously the real mystery is whether Jacob's bonding with Cecile is enough to change his outlook. He much choose between what he sees as his true self, and life as a man. Director Biancheri has delivered a high-concept arthouse film that will likely find a niche audience, while others are likely to brush it off as cinematic absurdity.

Opens in theaters on December 3, 2021.

George Mackay portraits wolf very well. The sound & the movement totally show how much practice he has put in. However, the storyline & the script are just so terrible. So hard to watch the whole film?

Concept was kind of okay, acting was "interesting", but it just wasn't enough. Felt like half a movie, just a one dimensional plot with no cohesion. I get the main point of it, but why bother? It needed more substance and less howling 😂😂😂! The primary lead actor and lily are great. But besides that I just couldn't get into it. 4/10.