David’s Review
Snappy, smart (almost poetic) teen dialogue really makes this one pop from the beginning. Set in a Canadian suburban hellscape, the camera travels low over perfectly-manicured backyard grass, tilting into a Dutch angle, to reveal a dog, mutilated by an unseen monster and still chained to its dog house. Everything is darker than you would expect from a teen werewolf movie from the year 2000. Without seeing the release year, I was convinced this was a movie from 2017-ish trying to look like a late 90s movie. But this is the real shit. Title sequence a montage of realistically-staged fake suicide photographs that really set the tone. Shot on beautiful film that snaps and crackles on the screen. Undertones of feminism unique to the werewolf genre. Only downsides are slightly one-note acting from Emily Perkins and a maybe too-drawn-out climax that shows a little too much. But otherwise, glorious 100% practical effects, gallons of beautiful prop blood, and crunchy, effective sound effects keep you engaged.