Werewolf films have taken a back seat to zombie mania, slasher sensations, and popular vampire films and television series for the last decade. In 2010, not even Anthony Hopkins or Benicio Del Toro could resurrect Lycan lore, with the beleaguered remake of “The Wolfman.” The biggest dilemma when making a werewolf film, is getting the creature design right. This can be expensive and time consuming, which is a major factor that has contributed to the lack of werewolf productions. Writer/Director Sean Ellis attempts to bring back the hairy sub-genre with his turn of the century film, “The Cursed.” Does this film get full moon fans drooling again, or will this be another quickly forgotten fang film?
Aristocrat Seamus Laurent, with the approval of his township’s leaders, chase off and execute a pack of gypsies that have laid claim to an area of land that sits upon his estate. Through their slaughter, the clan of gypsies lays a curse upon the field. Seamus’s children, Charlotte, and Edward, join their friends in attempt to locate the forbidden gypsy land. Edward is bitten by one of his friends after the friend unearths a set of silver fangs. Edward becomes possessed by the bite and flees his home, making pace towards the vast forest that surrounds the town. A pathologist, John McBride, arrives at the Seamus estate. He attempts to discover what happened to the gypsy clan as well as help find Edward and treat his unusual disease. A beast begins to slaughter members of the town as John races to uncover the dark secrets that have unleashed a familiar monster.
If one is going to make a werewolf film with limited werewolf action, then the artist must incorporate a fantastic plot that captivates the audience. If one is going to lead a production that is littered with fur-flying action instead of a rich story, then stain the film with blood drenched gore. This film does neither. Ellis shines with his cinematography and direction but fails miserably with this very mundane tale. The performances are all top shelf, considering the redundant script they were handed. Each performer speaks with elegant early 19th century prose, and the scenery will take the audience back to a simpler era which is filled with vast beauty. At 113 minutes, the film drags from one lengthy and boring monotone dialogue to the next. A plot where gypsies get chased out of town and curse the land is about as original as a dishrag.
We would be led to believe that there would be some significant werewolf action, but the actual creature is only seen far and in between long periods of useless descriptive dialogue. This werewolf design is abysmal, looking like late 1990’s bad CGI gone wrong. Mindboggling, as indie productions put out better werewolves on one, one-hundredth of this film’s budget. In the end, the only thing cursed will be your wallet after paying to see this horrifically overrated film.
Scream Score: 4/10