Wolf (2021 Irish-Polish film)

Wolf is a 2021 psychological drama film[4] written and directed by Nathalie Biancheri. An international co-production of Ireland and Poland, it stars George MacKay, Lily-Rose Depp, Paddy Considine, Eileen Walsh, Fionn O'Shea and Lola Petticrew.

Wolf
US theatrical released poster
Directed byNathalie Biancheri
Written byNathalie Biancheri
Produced by
  • Jessie Fisk
  • Nathalie Biancheri
Starring
CinematographyMichal Dymek
Music byStefan Wesołowski
Production
companies
Distributed byFocus Features
Release dates
  • 17 September 2021 (2021-09-17) (TIFF)
  • 3 December 2021 (2021-12-03) (United States)
Running time
98 minutes[1]
Countries
  • Ireland
  • Poland
LanguageEnglish
Box office$565,825[2][3]

Wolf had its world premiere at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival on September 17, 2021. It had a limited theatre release in the United States on December 3, 2021 by Focus Features. The film received mixed to negative reviews from critics, who praised the performances of Mackay, Depp, and Considine, but Biancheri's script and direction were unanimously criticized.

Plot

A boy named Jacob who suffers from zoanthropy,[5] believing he is a wolf, is committed to a mental asylum following an attack on his brother. There he meets and befriends the other patients, who also believe themselves to be animals, including Rufus, who believes he is a German Shepherd. He forms a close bond with Cecile, an enigmatic patient nicknamed "Wildcat", and together they roam the hallways at night. After witnessing the brutal methods of treatment performed by the head of the asylum, Dr. Mann, the Zookeeper, Jacob becomes frustrated and attacks an orderly, resulting in him being caged and gagged. Cecile sneaks into the room where he is caged one night and makes love to him, but they are caught by Dr Angeli and Jacob is punished with a cattle prod, causing the other patients to lash out at the Zookeeper. Disgusted by Zookeeper and Angeli, Cecile frees Jacob from his cage, allowing him to escape into the forest where he can live in freedom as a wolf.

Cast

Production

In February 2020, it was announced George MacKay and Lily-Rose Depp had joined the cast of the film, with Nathalie Biancheri directing from a screenplay she wrote.[6] In September 2020, Paddy Considine, Eileen Walsh, Fionn O'Shea, Lola Petticrew and Senan Jennings joined the cast of the film.[7]

Principal photography began in August 2020.[8][9] Production was initially set to begin in April 2020, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[10] Principal photography ended by October 2020.[11]

Release

Focus Features acquired distribution rights to the film in October 2020.[12] The film had a theatrical release in the U.S. on 3 December 2021,[13] after premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival on 17 September 2021 as the entry for Ireland.[1][14]

Reception

Box office

In the United States and Canada, the film earned $82,640 from 308 theaters in its opening weekend and $15,160 in its second before ending its theatrical run.[15][16]

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 44% of 72 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.3/10. The website's consensus reads: "Despite George MacKay's best efforts, Wolf remains a horror-tinged social allegory that's left to largely chase its own tail."[17] On Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, the film has a score of 52 based on 15 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[18]

References
  1. "Wolf". Toronto International Film Festival. Archived from the original on July 28, 2021. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  2. "Wolf (2021)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
  3. "Wolf (2021)". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  4. "Weekend Box Office Results: Encanto Holds Top Spot and Eyes Pandemic Record". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on December 28, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
  5. Blom, J.D. (2013). ""Klinische zoantropie" [Clinical zoanthropy]". Tijdschrift voor Psychiatrie (in Dutch). 55 (5): 359–68. PMID 23696338. Archived from the original on March 21, 2022. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
  6. Wiseman, Andreas (February 12, 2020). "George MacKay & Lily-Rose Depp To Star In Genre Film 'Wolf'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 22, 2020. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  7. "Nocturnal – Interview with Director Nathalie Biancheri". movies.ie. September 17, 2020. Archived from the original on November 25, 2020. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
  8. Biancheri, Nathalie (August 24, 2020). "May the shooting Gods protect for the next 6 weeks... #dayoneDONE! 🐺". Instagram. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  9. Dalton, Ben (July 17, 2020). "International shoots turn to Ireland as European production slowly restarts". kftv.com. Archived from the original on November 7, 2020. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  10. "PRODUCTION: Irish/Polish Coproduction Starring George MacKay and Lily-Rose Depp In Production". Film New Europe. February 13, 2020. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  11. "Principal Photography Wraps on Wolf". focusfeatures.com. October 9, 2020. Archived from the original on January 18, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  12. Tartaglione, Nancy; Grater, Tom (October 9, 2020). "Focus Buys 'Wolf'; Amitabh Bachchan Boards Sci-Fi; Amazon Bolsters India Slate; Berlinale Postpones Italy EFM Country In Focus — Global Film Briefs". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on October 27, 2020. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
  13. D'Alessandro, Anthony (May 28, 2021). "Focus Features Sets December Release For George MacKay & Lily-Rose Depp Genre Pic 'Wolf'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 28, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  14. "Irish film Wolf to world premiere at 2021 Toronto International Film Festival". Scannain. July 29, 2021. Archived from the original on July 29, 2021. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  15. "Domestic 2021 Weekend 49". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on December 8, 2021. Retrieved December 8, 2021.
  16. "Domestic 2021 Weekend 50". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on December 14, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  17. "Wolf (2021)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on March 29, 2023. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  18. "Wolf (2021) Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on September 24, 2022. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
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