Lycan (2017)
Matt Boiselle
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Starring Dania Ramirez, Parker Croft, Vanessa Angel
Directed by Bev Land
“The werewolves are coming, the werewolves are coming!”…see? No one has the same reaction to those words much anymore, whether it be a stagnant grouping of sub-genre examples over the course of the past years, or the possible notion that these hairy beasts just can’t carry their weight anymore. Now, if you’re one of these werewolf-lovin’ aficionados, and my words are hitting you in the sour spots, then I sincerely apologize, but these are in fact just words – love on, ya wolf-wooers…cause we’ve got a film to dissect.
The name is Lycan, and it was directed by Bev Land, who apparently has an affinity for those howlers from the 80’s – and from the onset of the movie, it’s not only got the looks and feels of a Reagan-era production, but as the film slinks along, it becomes apparent that the good feelings dissipate into a collection of missed opportunities and forgettable imagery. The plot of the movie follows a group of college students, led by the ultra-melancholy Isabella (Ramirez), who are heading out into the woods to discover and determine the validity of a local urban legend…and I’ll bet ya can’t guess what it is? In tow of Isabella comes the prerequisite grouping of stereotypical identities: the rich girl, the nerd, the douchebag fraternity lunk…yadda, yadda, yadda. They party, they tell scary stories, and it begins the process of your mind starting to figure out which one of these meat-pockets will be the first bit of fodder for the beast, and with all due respects to our readers, you guys could nail this one on the head with very little difficulty.
Now I can certainly give Land mucho heaps of credit for his representation and respect to the werewolf flicks of the past that paved the way, but the sad fact here is that the movie has the same effect of someone bursting at a respectable sprint, but attempting to truck it in 4th gear up a 120-degree hill…sooner or later the legs are going to give out, and said sprinter will come-a-tumblin’ down in a dusty lump. While I’ve been harping on the complete predictability of the plot, I was rather impressed with the performances that were offered – hey, you may only be portraying a collection of college personalities led to slaughter, but there does have to be an air of credibility to the effigy, and it was pulled off with merit. I’ll go out on that long-assed limb to give a recommendation to those solely wanting to check out a werewolf film, but if you’re one of those cinematically-discerning types (like yours truly), then you’ll be just as happy popping An American Werewolf In London or The Howling into your DVD player and be just as blissful in essence.
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
