The bark is worse than the bite in this would be werewolf-esque horror show that doesn’t quite pay off. It’s fascinatingly inventive & referential at the same time, as this period piece folk horror aims for the jugular but can only provide some nasty flesh wounds.
The set-up, creature designs, and gore prosthetics are very good. I appreciated the folk gothic gloom, similar to The VVitch or Hagazussa. Unfortunately, the rest of the tale didn’t have the same snap. Characters and drama are fairly rote and limp. Interpersonal drama is but a howl on the wind, which really undercuts the talent of the actors (especially Kelly Reilly and Boyd Holbrook who can’t wait to express themselves)and the drama the thriller tries to inspire. It wants to intertwine a whodunnit, ghost story, monster thriller, and socio-political class struggle of the time but many of those chunks get lost in the blend. I appreciate that they wanted to refer to the classic Beast of Gevaudan, but the timing is waaay off & ahistorical, which gutted my connection .
Some good ideas, fine craftsmanship, some stellar visceral violence and viable atmosphere, but it couldn’t overcome its meaty substance of the movie - which was accursed and spoiled.
