A still from The Wolfman

Film: The Wolfman
Cast: Benicio Del Toro, Emily Blunt, Anthony Hopkins
Director:Joe Johnston
Rating: * * ½

Ancient legends, curses, man-animal transformations, lycanthropic condition, werewolves- we have seen it all before (Lady Hawke,Wolverine, X Men, New Moon) and in far better fashion. ’Wolfman’ is aslow burner that never really reaches a high-point. Of course, this is also an attempt to resurrect a long-ago franchise for the modern viewer but it is hopelessly lacking in sustainability. Don’t know why Benicio Del Toro decided to lend his name as co-producer to this literal rehash. He still doesn’t get as many lead roles as he desires, is my guess.

Actor Lawrence Talbot's(Del Toro) childhood ended the night his mother died. Despite leaving the sleepy Victorian hamlet of Blackmoor and spending decades trying to forget, he is drawn into the intrigue once again when his brother's fiancée, Gwen Conliffe(Blunt), tracks him down to help find her missing love. Talbot returns home only to find that he has bitten-off much more than he coud ever chew!

Director Joe Johnston gets the tone and mood right but he fails to drum up enough tension to provide the scares or bite. Director Joe Johnston gets the tone and mood right but he fails to drum up enough tension to provide the scares or bite. Andy Nicholson’s art direction, the seamless CGI transformations and Shelly Johnson’s cinematography are definite pluses but the overall take is limp and uninteresting.

The action is routine, both the actors, Del Toro and Hopkins brood a lot but without the required intensity and there are very few surprises. There is not much chemistry between Blunt and Del Toro to give credence to their so-called attraction either. Johnston goes through the motions of setting up the character play but it’s all just a tad too enervating and uninteresting!