“The Wolfman” has been updated from its original 1941 version and unlike the original, which gave you glimpses of a mean and nasty werewolf (played by Lon Chaney Jr.) who creepily stalked the villagers in fog-shrouded woods, this version lets you graphically see livers and all kinds of body parts ripped out, including the sight of intestines on the blood-soaked ground. Any mystery in the original is nowhere to be found in this bloody version. Not that it doesn’t bear some resemblance to the original. Benicio Del Toro, despite his Hispanic blood, does resemble Lon Chaney Jr. to a certain extent. And his character in this movie has the same name as in the original, that of Lawrence Talbot. He returns home from America as in the original one. His brother has died but this time it is by the hands of a wolf man and not a hunting accident. Anthony Hopkins plays Sir John Talbot and does a good job, frequently chewing up the scenery. But he is hiding something which doesn’t become known until near the end of the picture.
This version even includes the old gypsy woman Maleva, played by Geraldine Chaplin. In the original the Russian actress Maria Ouspenskaya played her and helped Larry Talbot on occasion. In this version, she mainly attends to his wounds.
The cinematogrphay is nicely presented, with fog covering the woods in this version too. And it does include a “sacrifice for love” scene. However, it is so gruesome with blood and violence that we cannot recommend it for our Dove families. No Dove Seal for this one.
