Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.5

Werewolf Blu-ray Movie Review

The Orphanage?

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 28, 2021

The Orphanage made a relatively early debut in the nascent days of the Blu-ray era, and so for some home theater aficionados, it may represent a memory of an initial viewing experience in the "new, improved" format. Memory is in fact part and parcel of The Orphanage's spooky ambience, one aided and abetted by a gothic setting of an abandoned building in an isolated setting. Something somewhat similar is at play in Werewolf, a 2018 or 2019 (depending on the source) Polish film that, like The Orphanage, deals with young people without parents who have suffered significant trauma (aside and part from being alone in the world). Werewolf is more historically based than The Orphanage, taking place in the waning days of World War II as the Allies encroach more and more on Eastern Europe (from both the west and the east), leading the German forces to take abysmal measures, including executing all sorts of prisoners at concentration camps. An absolutely horrifying opening sequence documents these despicable efforts at Gross-Rosen, an actual camp in Poland, where not only are the prisoners rounded up and unceremoniously gunned down, they're also subject to the feral proclivities of the camp guards' vicious German Shepherds, who are seen pretty much literally eating one poor woman alive. When two Nazi guards break down a barricaded door to one of the buildings holding a bunch of very young prisoners, the poor kids begin doing pushups, obviously offering up an activity they've been forced to do in their years of activity. This whole opening scene sets up a completely unsettling environment which Werewolf may not ultimately be able to totally sustain, though it's notable (and not really that much of a spoiler) that the film actually does not feature any supernatural German "cousins" to Larry Talbot (The Wolf Man).

While it really isn't overtly detailed which liberating forces arrive at the camp, the "good guys" do ultimately appear, and when they find the kids, they once again go into "survival mode", attempting with their battered bodies and psyches to perform more pushups. Soon enough they're rounded up, put in the back of a truck, and then ultimately delivered to a gothic mansion in the woods that is in fact quite like the setting of The Orphanage. There they're put under the stern but semi-nurturing eye of Jadwiga (Danuta Stenka), who does not suffer either Russian or German fools gladly, but who steps into her assigned role as quasi-den mother for this "pack" with a no nonsense authority. The film has already begun to detail various interrelationships between the kids (who range in age from very young to teenager). A bespectacled boy named Wladek (Kamil Polnisiak) seems both vulnerable and incredibly resilient, whereas female Hanka (Sonia Mietielica) seems to have made it through a suicide attempt to become ostensibly steely, albeit with both physical and psychological scars. Wladek seems to have a bit of a crush on her, but Hanka seems to have a crush on "bad boy" Hanys (Nicolas Przygoda), and so there are intimations of a teenaged ménage à trois that begin to bubble up underneath the surface.

Soon enough, though, there are other potential "issues" both in the dilapidated mansion and the surrounding woods. With the camp guards (mostly) taken out, their hounds are on the loose, and they're very hungry. There may also be a lone Nazi escapee lurking in the shadowy environs of the makeshift orphanage, all of which ultimately leads to the kids putting aside their perceived differences at least somewhat in order to fight back as a unit. The film seems to want to make some of the same "children reverting to atavastic tendencies" that suffused Lord of the Flies, but kind of oddly, given the context, many viewers will probably be rooting for the kids, rather than reacting with shock that young people could be so violent.

Somewhere between around a half to two-thirds of Werewolf works like gangbusters, with a nice balance between the interpersonal stories and some of the more frightening aspects that hint at a purer horror outing. The performances by the mostly young cast are absolutely superb, lending the story an emotional intimacy and impact that is quite memorable. But things start to unravel, if only slightly, past the half way mark with an increasing accretion of arguably needless sidebars that only tend to crowd the narrative and actually distract from the central focus on already "damaged" kids attempting to survive at any cost. Even with some perceived deficits, Werewolf is an unsettling film from any number of angles, and it's almost cheekily provocative how writer and director Adrian Panek almost willfully misleads prospective audience members with a title that will of course bring back memories of classic Universal films from the 1940s.

Werewolf Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Werewolf is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka! Entertainment and Montage Pictures with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39. The IMDb has no technical data listed, and I haven't been able to dig up any authoritative information online. Eureka also only sent a check disc for purposes of this review, and so I'm not privy to any information that might be included in the insert booklet. All of that said, this is an often surprisingly striking looking presentation, at least given the kind of dour and often dark and misty environments it exploits. A ton of scenes in the film are just shrouded in darkness, but detail levels remain agreeably consistent throughout. The outdoor material is often weirdly beautiful (again, given the subject matter), and fine detail on things like fabrics and even some of the gruesome injuries sustained by various characters is typically excellent. There are a few passing issues with crush in the very darkest moments, but I noticed no really egregious compression issues.

Werewolf Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Werewolf features a powerful DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track (mostly) in the original Polish (there are snippets in German and/or Russian at various moments as well). From the opening sequence, where rapid fire machine gun bursts, screams and snarling dog noises envelop the listener, it's clear that a lot of attention has been paid to the sound design. The glut of outdoor material in the film also lends itself to consistent ambient environmental effects wafting through the side and rear channels. There are a number of standout sequences in terms of the sound design, including some surprisingly "quiet" moments where terror may be waiting right around the corner. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. As can be seen from the screenshot of the main menu, optional English subtitles are available.

Werewolf Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer (HD; 1:51)

Eureka only sent a check disc for purposes of this review, but the press sheet accompanying the check disc mentions an essay in the insert booklet, and Eureka's website also details that a DVD copy is included in the package.

Werewolf Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The press sheet Eureka sent with the check disc states that Adrian Panek based this film on "real life historical events", and I'd love to know what those events actually were. The film's title may be more than a bit misleading, at least for those wanting a more hirsute focal character, but the underlying aspect of people becoming monsters is undeniably effective. A lot of "actual" werewolf movies are kind of unavoidably goofy, but it's notable that this film, which features no transformations of humans into wolves, is arguably spookier and more disturbing than any of those outings. Technical merits are generally solid, and Werewolf comes Recommended.