WolfCop (2014)
*** (out of 4)
Alcoholic sheriff Lou Garou (Leo Fafard) spends most of his days drinking and sleeping on the job. One night he investigating a disturbance in the woods and it hit over the head. The next morning he wakes up not knowing what happen but when the next full moon rises he turns into a werewolf. Through some research he finds that a cult might be behind it.
WOLFCOP, thanks in large part to its title, has been getting some pretty good press over the past couple months and it's easy to see why. If you're looking for a dramatic masterpiece then you're obviously not going to find it here but then again, I doubt most film snobs are going to give a film called WOLFCOP that much attention. The film isn't anything great but I think it's a nice throwback to the 80's direct-to-video type of flicks that just threw everything out there at you and hoped something would stick. This isn't a movie that's so-bad-it's-good. No, the film is actually well-made, features some good acting and a story that's got a few new things.
I think the best thing going for the film is that Fafard gives such a good performance that he perfectly brings this character to life and makes you like him. No matter if he's just playing the drunken cop or the rocking werewolf, the actor gives a really good performance and draws you into the material. The supporting cast is also quite good with Amy Matysio, Sarah Lind and Jonathan Cherry all adding to the charm. It also doesn't hurt that the transformation scenes contain some pretty fun and fresh stuff. This includes not the typical transformation where hair simply comes out of the skin. Instead, here we get the skin falling off in gory details. I thought this was a pretty clever idea and led to some rather fun but gory moments. There's also a scene where the guy's penis transforms and I don't recall Lon Chaney, Jr. ever doing this.
Another thing going for the film is that it doesn't overstay its welcome. At just 79-minutes the film runs pretty smoothly and thankfully never feels too long. That's not to say there aren't some problems here because there are. The screenplay, while fun, doesn't have too much in it outside a few new twists on the subject matter. I'd also add that the movie is set firmly in its "B" movie nature and doesn't try to be anything more. WOLFCOP isn't the greatest werewolf movie ever made and it's not the greatest "B" movie ever made but it's fast, cheap and rather fun, which is all that matters.
