The Best Part of Wolf Man reminds me of director Leigh Wannell's most underrated film

Warning: This article contains major spoilers for “Wolf Man”.

Before Leigh Wannell took his talents to the Universal Monsters franchise, the Australian filmmaker first worked as an actor, writer on the Saw and Insidious franchises, and (most importantly for our purposes) a director who first made his name with stylish, low-budget thrillers. . His exact career trajectory has hardly been typical compared to most, but the broad strokes of moving up the studio system until he reached his pinnacle – at least so far – with The Invisible Man and, more recently, The Wolf Man. (which I reviewed / Movie here) couldn't be more perfect. It's hard not to notice how his latest monster movie feels like the culmination of almost every lesson learned from The Invisible Man, especially with the approach to making the title character feel fresh and modern. But more than anything else, “The Wolf Man” echoes what is arguably Whannell's most underrated film: “Upgrade.”

The 2018 sci-fi film made waves immediately after its release (you can see /Film's glowing review by Matt Donato here) and inspired something of a cult following thanks to its inventive camerawork, genre-sophisticated storytelling, and the fact that Venom did better than any of the Venom films. The film follows Logan Marshall-Green as Gray Trace, an old-school junkie/mechanic who ends up being implanted with a cutting-edge chip (and related artificial intelligence, STEM) that essentially turns him into a high-tech vigilante.

Neither “The Wolf Man” nor “Upgrade” seem to have much in common… until you take a closer look at how both treat the idea of ​​perspective, autonomy, and the way we portray these concepts in film.

It sounds stupid to say (write?) it out loud like that, but everything we see in a movie or TV show was done with considerable intent and purpose. Think of any close-up/insert shot of a hand holding a coffee mug or a phone screen, and a defining shot showing a cityscape or building exterior, or the wide range of colors that make up the production design, costumes, and overall look of the entire film. All of this was done for a reason – to evoke a certain emotion, convey an important piece of information, or simply provide context for the rest of the scene.

So, on to what is almost certainly the biggest and best talking point in The Wolf Man (aside from all the controversy over the design of the creature), is worth digging into why Leigh Wannell decided to shoot these nasty-looking scenes from the Werewolf's perspective, as he and cinematographer Stefan Duscio did.

The first of these raunchy moments comes after poor Blake (Christopher Abbott) is scratched early on by the Wolf Man during that tense car crash in the Oregon woods, and is now gradually succumbing to his symptoms. At first, we don't get a full picture of what's wrong. Sure, he seems a little sweaty and nervous, but otherwise seems capable enough to protect his family. That is, until he noisily climbs through the cabin's front door, his wife Charlotte (Julie Garner) and daughter Ginger (Matilda Firth) wander down the hall and just…stare blankly at him. It's only a few scenes later that we find out they are not those who behave strangely – he is. After keeping the audience firmly in Blake's perspective, the camera smoothly shifts to Charlotte's perspective and reveals the full extent of her husband's transformation into a Werewolf. The lighting changes dramatically, the camera frame itself literally tilts off its axis, and we understand that Blake's condition has already deteriorated significantly. He can't speak, his wounds are festering, and he's on his way to the Wolf Man.

In both Upgrade and Wolf Man, Leigh Winnell's clever filmmaking decisions use conventions and our own expectations of the genre to keep the audience on their toes. Upgrade relies heavily on wildly jarring tilts and shots that ignore normal frame horizons, all to disorient us and help us engage in the gritty action. (The moment Gray allows the AI ​​in his head to completely take over his body and fight for him, as seen in this clipis the earliest and most effective example of this in film.) While The Wolfman never opts for this maximalist approach of controlled chaos, Whannell's similar choice to completely change the film's visual language has the same effect.

The Wolfman reunites Gunnell and cinematographer Stefan Duscio — yes, they also worked together on both The Invisible Man and Upgrade , which should hardly come as a surprise — and tap into their unique magic once again. In this case, they rely on a much quieter method to once again put the audience on their heels. After putting us exclusively in Blake's headspace throughout the film, where we rarely (if ever) see anything he doesn't see himself, we suddenly switch places as the camera literally pans to Charlotte's perspective. First it happens at Blake's bedside and then again in the darkened basement as she frantically calls out for help on the CB radio… though we initially see it in night vision and with the muffled sound Blake experiences in his sensory overload state.

While this is a completely different shift in perspective than the duo pull off in Upgrade, Whannell and Duscio find an equally effective way to keep us on edge during these Wolf Man moments while staying 100% true to the wildly different tones of each respective film. Leigh Winnell, who made The Wolf Man, simply couldn't have done it without Leigh Winnell, who first wowed us with Upgrade, and we're lucky to have both.

“The Wolf Man” is now in theaters.