6.5 | / 10 |
Users | 4.3 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.3 |
When a mild-mannered, middle-aged book editor gets bitten by a wolf, it gives him a shot of confidence over younger colleagues, highly tuned senses and a few new lycanthropic appetites. Like a clever New Yorker cartoon, this urbane horror film satirizes middle age in New York's cutthroat social and business worlds.
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Michelle Pfeiffer, James Spader, Kate Nelligan, Richard JenkinsHorror | 100% |
Supernatural | 24% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Romance | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
French: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Portuguese: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
English, English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
BD-Live
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 3.5 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
The worm has turned and is now packing an Uzi.
An imaginative take on an old legend and a staple of the Horror genre, Wolf updates the
mythos of the werewolf for the modern era, intermingling office politics, back stabbing, and
extramarital affairs into the mix. The film retains the standard motifs associated with the werewolf
sub-genre, including physical metamorphoses, full moons, memory loss, and heightened awareness,
though the film does eschew the old standby that has come to define the genre, the silver bullet.
In a way, that allows Wolf to become its own creature, so to speak; it clearly doesn't forget
its roots, but at the same time it updates the story and foregoes the biggest cliché of them all in
favor of a fresh and refreshing take on one of film-dom's favorite subjects.
Jack following a Lakers loss.
Wolf sinks its teeth into this 1080p, 1.85:1-framed Blu-ray transfer. Though the image delivers a consistent, generally pleasing, and film-like appearance through the better part of the runtime, there are some visual anomalies -- particularly early on -- that take away from what is otherwise a solid transfer. There's some blatant telecine wobble over the opening title sequence; blocking creeps into a few scenes; blacks sometimes overwhelm the screen and drown out detail; and flesh tones can sometimes veer towards the red end of the spectrum. Despite a few misses, Wolf's 1080p transfer is generally good. The level of visible grain fluctuates between average and aggressive, but either way, Wolf delivers a satisfying film-like appearance. Sony's commitment to leaving grain in-tact saves the image from the pitfalls of digital scrubbing, and by extension the image retains a fair level of detail that won't wow its audience but does help in replicating the film's natural look nicely. Michelle Pfeiffer's hair flows naturally and distinctly one strand from another in several scenes, and Jack Nicholson's stubby facial hair and longer lupine fur are both nicely realized on Blu-ray. Likewise, clothing, the background objects inside the publishing firm's offices, and natural outdoor scenes retain a good, but not extraordinary, level of visible detail. Color is somewhat subdued but natural. Overall, and despite a few less-than-stellar scenes near the beginning, Wolf delivers a fairly good film-like transfer with sufficiently rendered detail and color.
Wolf howls up a storm on Blu-ray with a loud DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. Unfortunately, "loud" doesn't necessarily equate to "good," and while Wolf's soundtrack isn't a bad one, it's not quite as clear, balanced, and in-command as listeners have come to expect of a well-engineered Blu-ray soundtrack. The collision on the snowy Vermont road between wolf and Volvo delivers a startling level of power that adds to the surprise of the moment. In the subsequent shots, the track does well to place plenty of nuanced sounds -- particularly that of nearby trees buckling under the weight of the snow on their branches or limbs swaying in the cold breeze -- all around the soundstage. When Will is bitten, the music swells to include a range that features both crisp highs and seat-rattling lows. On something more of a downside, dialogue and background effects -- particularly early in the film -- often sound canned and unnatural, a dinner sequence in chapter two serving as a prime example. Throughout, the track places sound effects all over the soundstage -- background dialogue or city traffic outside the publishing house offices, for example -- but most come across as forced and often too loud, creating a false sense of space and perspective. More subtle background effects, for instance chirping crickets as heard during a few nighttime shots or some chirping birds in an outdoor scene in chapter five, sound a bit more realistic. Wolf's soundtrack is somewhat perplexing. It's not bad, but it seems lacking; whether that's a result of this mix or the film's inherent sound design, the net result is an uneven-at-best listen on Blu-ray.
This Blu-ray release of Wolf features only BD-Live functionality and 1080p trailers for Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Da Vinci Code, Ghostbusters, and Men in Black.
A cozy, fun, and altogether modern updating of the classic werewolf stories, Wolf is more about the man than it is the beast, the film examining the animal's impact on a man's life and career rather than simply reproducing a record of his howling at the moon and attacks on various peoples. The film foregoes more classic Horror motifs in favor of a surprisingly enthralling dramatic arc, solidified by top-notch performances from several highly talented actors; unremarkable but fitting direction; and a memorable score. Sony's Blu-ray release of Wolf features a loud but not always completely impressive lossless soundtrack, a rather strong 1080p transfer with several -- albeit brief -- shortcomings, and no special features. Wolf is definitely worth a rental, and fans might want to consider picking it up for the right price.
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