Sean Ellis turns in a mish-mashed mess with The Cursed

There’s something finicky about a werewolf movie. It’s not quite as easy as Dracula or Frankenstein; With a few noteworthy exceptions that I’m sure sprung to your mind just now, one has to admit that the werewolf is a difficult monster to do well. Sean Ellis’ latest outing, The Cursed, throws its hat into that ring and sadly takes a silver bullet right to the heart.

The Cursed is, as stated above, a take on the classic tale of the werewolf, with a shake of revenge and a splash of Pumpkinhead. Unfortunately though, this creature feature tries to be too many things at once. Visually, the film is stunning. Bleak, wide angle shots of the fog-shrouded French Countryside help the film to attain something akin to eeriness. However, uneven pacing and a script that cannot seem to figure out what story it wants to tell detriment any kind of unsettling atmosphere The Cursed attempts to convey.

The writing is ham-fisted and a little shallow, contradicting itself on at least one occasion. In addition, the characters the film expects us to at least empathize with are somehow both two-dimensional and unlikeable. The majority of the cast turn in rather tepid performances, most notably leading men Boyd Holbrook and Alistair Petrie as John McBride and Seamus Laurent, respectively. This is disappointing, as We spend a majority of our time with these two, uselessly muddling around Laurent’s property looking for the beast that stalks them. Couple that with a two hour run time, and The Cursed becomes a slow trudge to the finish line by the time credits roll on the tacked-on conclusion.

The creature of this creature feature is more akin to an eldritch abomination than a wolf. The design is reminiscent of Cronenberg, and it does succeed in startling through a few cheap jumpscares. Unfortunately, the monster is shown blatantly throughout the movie, ruining any kind of mystery around its appearance. Though the practical FX shine in their sparing use, highlighting some of the most impressive details of the “werewolf.” However, the CGI used to bring the creature to life the majority of the time is passable, but will surely not age well.

The Cursed wanted to be the next great monster film, but unfortunately comes up short at nearly every opportunity. While maybe worth a watch once it hits streaming, getting your werewolf fix elsewhere is highly recommended.