The 2024 horror film Out Come the Wolves is agonizingly slow to start. It picks up when the two men go into the woods. Not too unlike a teddy bear’s picnic, they get a big surprise. The violence is brutal. I have not winced so hard since Sean Pertwee’s death in Wilderness.
Out Come the Wolves Story
Sophie and Nolan invite her best male friend, and his girlfriend to their cabin in the woods to hunt. Her old buddy, Kyle, leaves his girlfriend behind. This trio spend a short time getting acquainted and then the two men go hunting.
Things go bad from there.
The Cast
Missy Peregrym is Sophie.
Joris Jarsky is Kyle.
Damon Runyan is Nolan.
What Works in Out Come the Wolves
Director/co-writer Adam MacDonald moves slowly in this hairy horror film. Similar to his other hirsute tale of terror in 2014 Backcountry. *MacDonald shares writing credit with Joris Jarsky and Enuka Okuma*
MacDonald tends to present his films at a snail’s pace. That said, in Out Come the Wolves the plodding story picks up minutely once said wolves do come out.
The FX are brutal. There are a total of four, maybe five deaths in the film. *This includes animal deaths.* Each one feels gory enough to be real and kudos on that fake blood. Having worked in an industry where gallons of the claret abound, I felt they killed it here. *No pun intended.*
The choreography of the stunts was brilliant. The actual physicality of the stunts were also, like the wolf attacks, worthy of impressed wincing. Falling down a hillside never looked so painful.
A Bone or Three to Pick
Well, two actually. As Sophie falls down that hillside she smashes her head against a pretty big rock. In true “Hollywood” fashion, after passing out, she wakes up and pretty much gets on with it. Not once does she throw up, get dizzy or grab her head to pause for the nausea to go away.
The second deals with the nature of the hunt itself. Kyle allows Nolan, a man who has never held a weapon in his hands before, carry the loaded rifle. Nolan is walking behind Kyle. I kept expecting to see the old best friend get accidentally shot.
Lastly, I could not connect with any of them. Not one character had any redeeming qualities. They were, despite attempts to add depth, pretty much cardboard cutouts.
Out Come the Wolves Verdict
The film manages to garner a full 3.5 stars. In spite of the lethargic pacing, those animal attacks elevate the whole thing admirably. It can be streamed via Hulu and AMC plus. I will warn you though, it is a little hard to drum up any sympathy for this trio of friends.
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