Terror grips a small mountain town as bodies are discovered after each full moon. Losing sleep, raising a teenage daughter, and caring for his ailing father, officer Marshall struggles to remind himself there’s no such thing as werewolves.
I certainly wasn’t expecting “The Wolf of Snow Hollow” to be one the most thoughtful and entertaining films of the year. The screenplay’s intellectual commentary to dissect the patriarchy works because of its accuracy and humor. Law enforcement and masculinity’s limitations are shown as violent and ignorant, sometimes silly but never effective.
After a series of hypnotic shots moving through endless mountains, a young couple arrives at their winter lodge. While out to eat, they have a verbal altercation with two local bigots but the fight deescalates and they retreat to their rental. It’s a special occasion, the boyfriend gleefully pulls out an engagement ring before heading out to the jacuzzi. Outside, in the snow, he slips on a trail of his girlfriend’s blood. Although she’s torn to bits, the camera tastefully captures the gore without lingering and moves over to a large paw print pooled with blood reflecting the full moon.
John Hadley (Jim Cummings) is introduced at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting telling a funny anecdote about his ex-wife. Before he can finish his fantasy of slowly destroying his ex-wife’s home with a backhoe, “where no one gets hurt,” his phone rings. He’s a local cop in the appropriately named town of Snow Hollow with his father, Sheriff Hadley (Robert Forster) leading the force. Feeling his mortality and encroaching retirement, his father is particularly overwhelmed by the murder and ensuing media attention. At the lodge, he comically yells at a news reporter, because people in power don’t like to be investigated or scrutinized.
Back at the police station, Hadley is bemoaning the eleven unread emails in his inbox stating, “it’s worst than my birthday.” John doesn’t think the boyfriend was the perpetrator and disagrees with his father’s simplistic theory. Detective Robson (Riki Lindhorne), one of the only females at the station, is on the case, and she’s smarter than her colleagues.
Ski season and holiday cheer are the main concern for the town, so the majority of the cops are wanting to let the FBI take over or lazily hoping the case resolves itself. While John is out at the local bar with his fellow officers, an idiotic cop, Gutierrez (Skyler Bible), declares “someone will handle this.” To which John replies “so you’re saying nobody is going to handle this since we’re the only ones that can handle this?” They continue to discuss the crime scene and it appears the murderer disemboweled the victim for the purpose of consuming her organs. Even worse there’s another full moon on the horizon.
It’s an impressive triple threat to write, direct, and star in a feature. Jim Cummings is a talented performer and refreshingly doesn’t write himself as the impeccable hero. John is always losing his nerve whenever he’s frustrated with his coworkers or engaging with general members of the public. And while the horror-comedy genre isn’t easy to navigate he manages to gracefully nail it.
Filming took place on location in Utah amongst the snow-lined mountains. The remarkable editing stands out with overlapping scenes that transition through the use of moody dissolves. Natalie Kingston’s cinematography and Cummings’ direction capture the snowfall, police lights, and action with a subtle flair.
The movie is dedicated to Robert Forster, who sadly passed soon after filming wrapped. He was one of my favorite old school actors and it’s a wonderful final role for his lengthy career.
I’ve heard good things about Cummings’ prior feature, “Thunder Road,” where he plays a cop facing a personal crisis after some unexpected tragedies. He seems to have a grasp on how one’s personal prejudices and issues can snowball and come crashing down on the wrong people. His writing is progressive without being patronizing and I can’t wait to watch this film again.
Now available on Digital HD and on Blu-ray™ & DVD December 15th
