Review: Wolf Man (2025)

A movie is only as strong as its exposition, and that’s where 𝘞𝘰𝘭𝘧 𝘔𝘢𝘯 (2025) struggles the most. After an eerie opening sequence that skillfully establishes the titular threat, this sharp-toothed creature feature fails to properly introduce its characters. Yes, we get a brief back-and-forth between and a father and his daughter (which is meant, of course, to establish the loving bond that is shared between them), but the relationship that drives the narrative of 𝘞𝘰𝘭𝘧 𝘔𝘢𝘯—the frayed connection between a man and his wife—only comes to light in a bit of stilted dialogue and is barely given any time to breathe at all before things get hairy. (Perhaps writer/director Leigh Whannell, the idea man behind several of best horror movies of the last two decades, forgot the old adage in filmmaking—“show, don’t tell.”) And that’s to say nothing of the mythology of 𝘞𝘰𝘭𝘧 𝘔𝘢𝘯, which is only ever revealed in a title card at the beginning of the film. It’s a shame too, as 𝘞𝘰𝘭𝘧 𝘔𝘢𝘯 does so much right, including the strong sense of isolation that is established throughout the film. But in its desperation to get its characters from Point A to Point B (in this case a remote cabin in the Oregon wilderness), 𝘞𝘰𝘭𝘧 𝘔𝘢𝘯 takes far too many shortcuts in bringing its narrative to life. Hell, I kept waiting for a “wise old sage”-type character to show up and explain everything to the characters (and to the audience!), but, alas, there were no sages to be found. 𝘞𝘰𝘭𝘧 𝘔𝘢𝘯 is a film that I will eventually watch again if only to ruefully recollect just how close it was to being something truly memorable. Well, at least it was better than Joe Johnston’s 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘰𝘭𝘧𝘮𝘢𝘯 (2010), which, unlike this film, was a disaster in almost every way.