La metamorfosi del male

If only the film was devoid of the shaky cam/found footage stuff.

I saw this on a dvd which I own in 2014. Felt like reviewing it now since i am more active on imdb currently. Was reluctant to buy the dvd as i cannot stand found footage and hand held shaky cam stuff but the good reviews on IMDb prompted me to go ahead.

The film begins showing a family being brutally attacked by something unknown. The surviving member recounts a story of something resembling a tall, hairy man with huge hands that attacked the family......

The movie first starts as an investigative thriller with suspense n mystery. Later the movie turns into an excellent creature on the loose n full blown action flick.

The special effects and makeup are first-rate. The werewolf attack scenes are frightening n gruesome.

The movie is loaded with gruesome killings, the mutilated bodies' of the victims and the threatening figure of a gigantic beast on the loose is full of tension n mayhem.

The beast in this movie is fast, vicious and has a nasty tendency of tearing off its victims' bottom jaw.

The explanation given in the movie for the creature/transformation is something new.

I found the trailer on Youtube and was instantly intrigued. After finally tracking down a copy (due to no release date for cinema or Home-media release), I sat and watched what I consider to be one of the best found-footage movies of recent times.

Story wise, it starts off well and then just ramps up the tension superbly. Although there were a few scenes that I could guess what was coming, most of the film was pleasantly surprising.

The movie is not excessively gory, but it does have it where it matters! The effects were limited, but used to very good effect, and the whole found-footage genre lends itself to lower budget movies anyway.

The casting was spot on. The central character Talan, (Brian Scott O'Connor) was really well played. Although he seemed harmless initially, I could almost feel a sense of menace coming from him, and the other characters were played just right. (Although I couldn't help thinking about Vik Sahay (Eric) as his character from the TV show Chuck!)

Overall, a nice take on the genre with decent performances all round. Well worth a watch, and I will definitely get it if it is released on Blu-ray/DVD in the UK.

Since Twilight Werewolves, along with Vampires, were made a joke of. Timid and caring instead of the old fashioned rip-them-to-pieces killing machines. Fortunately "Wer" understands the true value of a Werewolf and will have fans of the sub genre rejoicing! The biggest plus is the vicious nature the film has and a solid build up with a mythology behind the main villain. I liked the way the mysterious Werewolf unfolded and it promised to a thrilling climax. Unfortunately, even though the pay off is incredibly violent, the movie starts getting a bit silly and loses all the control that the first half had. Mixing it with some pretty ordinary CGI effects, the second half is nowhere near as polished as the first, which ultimately hurts it, but thankfully there is enough to like about "Wer" to make it a recommended film!

In France, the Porter family is slaughtered while camping in the woods and only Claire Porter (Stephanie Lemelin) survives seriously wounded. She reports that her husband Henry and her son Peter have been eaten alive by a strong man. The eremite Talan Gwynek (Brian Scott O'Connor) that lives in the woods with his mother is arrested by the police accused of being the killer.

The defense attorney Kate Moore (A.J. Cook) is assigned to defend Talan and she comes to the police station with her investigator Eric Sarin (Vik Sahay) and the animal expert Gavin Flemyng (Simon Quarterman) to interview Talan. The unwilling police inspector Klaus Pistor (Sebastian Roché) is sure that Talan is the murderer but has to let Kate and her team work. There is turmoil in the precinct and Gavin is scratched by Talan. Then they visit Talan's mother Mrs. Gwynek (Camelia Maxim) and they learn that Talan has a rare disease. Further, the government wants her lands to dispose nuclear waste and her husband has recently died in car accident. Soon Eric discloses that the death of Mr. Gwynek was suspicious and Pistor was in charge of the investigation. When Kate succeeds in sending Talan to a hospital for examination, she discovers the effects of Talan's disease and is the responsible for the next events.

The underrated "Wer" is one of the best werewolf movies I have ever seen. The graphic story is brutal and with magnificent special effects. The screenplay is concise, with good explanation for the situation. Maybe the greatest flaw is the manhunt in a full moon night, but how to convince the authorities that they are hunting a werewolf and not a human being? My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Sinistro – A Maldição do Lobisomem" ("Sinister – The Werewolf's Curse")

Nothing haunted, no ghosts, no experiment gone wrong, so, a new approach on this type of movies. Did I enjoy it? I sure did! And lets see why:

1. good execution. everything went lovely, the suspense grew more and more and I was definitely drawn into it. 2. characters, all worked out nicely, believable. 3. killshots, plenty and good. 4. effects, few at number, but they made them count. 5. scares, one or two, but the usual.

This is somewhat more of a "Trollhunter" style, but in the horror section, and they did make it just right, so, I will recommend it gladly to any found footage fan, horror fan or someone who wants to get his girlfriend scared, so she can cuddle up real nicely.

"Wer", a movie that won't find itself on everyone's lips, but the ones that will talk about it, are the lucky ones!