Taking on the werewolf subgenre, Wolf Garden approaches the monster movie as more of a relationship drama, as we follow a man across two timelines. One is a quietly romantic two hander between William (Wayne David) and Chantelle (Sian Altman), who have taken themself away from people into the forest, the other a more solitary affair as William faces a violent outside force. The duality builds tension, even if the viewer will likely be in on where this film is going.
This is an impressive debut from David, who as well as taking on the lead, directs and writes Wolf Garden. He grapples well with the limitations of a first indie horror, shaping the film to not have to show us the monster at the centre of the narrative. At times this feels closer to a ghost story, even if ultimately this feels like it is undeserving the trappings of a monster movie.
David and Altman have a terrific chemistry together, sweetly drawn and naturalistic whilst maintaining the building tension within. Altman is a performer worth keeping an eye out for and they are surely going to pop up in some terrific genre fare in the future.
Wolf Garden is a small, insular affair, far away from effects-driven works that have marked the werewolf movie. This is both a blessing and a curse and is likely to impact the amount of enjoyment one can take from it. Still Wayne David clearly has the potential to be a real genre talent, especially when paired with the very good Sian Altman. There are indeed diamonds in the ruff here.
This is an impressive debut from David, who as well as taking on the lead, directs and writes Wolf Garden. He grapples well with the limitations of a first indie horror, shaping the film to not have to show us the monster at the centre of the narrative. At times this feels closer to a ghost story, even if ultimately this feels like it is undeserving the trappings of a monster movie.
David and Altman have a terrific chemistry together, sweetly drawn and naturalistic whilst maintaining the building tension within. Altman is a performer worth keeping an eye out for and they are surely going to pop up in some terrific genre fare in the future.
Wolf Garden is a small, insular affair, far away from effects-driven works that have marked the werewolf movie. This is both a blessing and a curse and is likely to impact the amount of enjoyment one can take from it. Still Wayne David clearly has the potential to be a real genre talent, especially when paired with the very good Sian Altman. There are indeed diamonds in the ruff here.