Diva Del Mar’s Unsung Heroes Review: Wer
In continuation of my Unsung Heroes series, where I sniff out interesting pieces of cinema and television that, in my opinion, did not receive enough media spotlight, I’d like to offer you a tight, little horror film called Wer, by director and writer William Brent Bell.
Currently available through Amazon for streaming, this dry but effective take on the werewolf genre is a refreshing offering. Werewolf films tend to either receive a tongue-in-cheek treatment in modern day cinema, or they focus so much on the subversive tropes of bestiality, that they stink in terms of story-telling. And, for the record, I don’t count werewolves in vampire movies as the werewolf genre. These genre benders were fun at first, but now they’re the Alien vs. Predators of the /horror romance world. Nobody really expects a quality movie, but we watch for the spectacle of it.
Now, I haven’t had the chance to see Bell’s latest film, The Boy, and I wasn’t super impressed with The Devil Inside, however, with Wer, his understated approach creates a unique presentation of a familiar story. The story is set up with the death of a family on vacation in France. The deaths are beyond grizzly and an American defense attorney, Kate Moore, played by A.J. Cook, takes the case to defend the suspect, Talon (Brian Scott O’Connor), a giant of a man with a mysterious disability. She is assisted by her clever assistant (Vik Sahay) and her ex-boyfriend (Simon Quarterman). Also offering up a good performance is Sabastian Roche playing a local detective who is not thrilled with Moore’s commitment to her case. Moore works hard to defend her client with compassion and a dogged faith that he is a victim of discrimination due to his strange physical ailments. And though we have a pretty good idea of what happened to the slaughtered family from the get-go, it is fun to go along with the sleuthing elements as information is discovered.
Predictability is a given here, unless you have never seen a traditional werewolf story. And as I write this, it occurs to me that so few good werewolf movies have hit mainstream cinema in recent decades, that there must be a group of folks under 30 who have never enjoyed a quality were-film. Yikes. For those of us that grew up with The Howling, Silver Bullet, and Ginger Snaps, the fact that you know where the story is heading shouldn’t be a problem to your enjoyment of Wer. The story is told beautifully and the reveals are satisfyingly executed. From the terror of the opening sequence to the surprisingly grand finale, we are happy to follow along the well-trodden lore of the werewolf myth.
That being said, Bell’s wonderful use of found-footage camera shots spliced with traditional filming offer us a stark presentation of this genre with a fly-on-the-wall twist. The reveals are presented in a thoughtfully creative way and timed out to feel real. The camera doesn’t flinch and characters don’t make gratuitous choices for the sole purpose of moving the story along. The audience isn’t spoon-fed information, adding to the fresh feel of the plot, despite the clinical edge to the movie. One particular scene taking place in a morgue features some of the most fantastic and grizzly cadaver creations I’ve ever seen. It’s truly beautiful and gag-worthy work.
The filmmakers and actors offer up decent character development and emotional engagement with the audience. You understand why Moore feels compassion for the brooding Talon, as much as you naturally distrust the faith she has in his innocence. The viewer is also invited to engage with the emotional interaction between the three protagonists as they struggle through this increasingly dangerous case. Gratefully, Bell chose to avoid the love triangle trope and the interaction between the protagonists is believable. Simon Quarterman rises in the third act of the film and steals the spotlight from Cook as his character eclipses hers. At this point the film evolves into something bigger and much more fantastic in nature, leading you to a finale worthy of a higher budget.
I do wish this movie had a larger budget, but then I always feel this way about clever independent films. As with most fiscally tight films, and in the case of Wer, the limitations of resource are tackled through creativity with camera work and blocking. The grainy “security camera” footage and fly-on-the-wall style filming allow the filmmakers to offer up scenes that, if filmed in traditional HD, would have required thousands of dollars in special effects. I’d prefer more filmmakers to think outside the box on camera work than to buy into the poor quality CG that tends to plague low budget films. Bell does a fabulous job at this and it lends strength to the story.
If you are a lover of the horror genre, I would wager that this would be a great addition to your werewolf library. It hits all the traditional marks of the subgenre, served with an interesting appeal. Snuggle up on the couch, turn out the lights, and purchase a viewing of Wer on Amazon for a few bucks. Do it on the next full moon, and let me know what you think!
Thanks for reading!
Diva Del Mar
