“Wolf Garden” Movie Review

 

“Wolf Garden”

Movie Review

 

The plot of the Wayne David-written and -directed film "Wold Garden," which features Wayne David, Sian Altman, and Grant Masters, concerns a guy who has gone into hiding and is haunted by images of the lady he loves as well as a strange creature in the woods nearby.

In the English countryside, Wayne David's character William lives by himself in a cottage. It can be challenging to determine this at first because the movie alternates between the present, the past, and what might be hallucinations or visions. Eventually the spectator is able to distinguish between the two, it becomes clear that he is not only alone himself but also in hiding, with the local daily listing him and his girlfriend Chantelle, played by Sian Altman, as missing.

We've previously seen the two of them together during what appears to be multiple trips to the cottage. Although they appear to have been ended by some form of violent incident, they are primarily cheerful scenes. Yet she shows up in his hallucinations, some of which are difficult to distinguish from his memories. Or perhaps they are fabricated memories created in his head as well.

The story steadily reveals hints that will enable us to piece together what is actually happening. We hear something barking and growling inside the locked shed as we watch him slide food bowls under the door. In a conversation from a friend, William continually asks, "Do you blame me?," which indicates that he is feeling guilty over something.

This results in a dark first act when combined with the tune by Rupert Uzzell and the melancholy photography by Ariel Artur. The only issue is that many viewers will be well in advance of it. Before the first signs of the beast are exposed, it doesn't take much experience with the genre to be able to deduce what happened and what is in the shed.

The Visitor, a mysterious figure, eventually makes an appearance. They assert that they are aware of what is happening and what William is aware of but will not admit it. But it's unclear to us if he is a ghost or a creation of William's clearly troubled mind. Wolf Garden is essentially a psychological horror film that is based in that unsettled psyche, even though Nicholas Hurst and David Foxley provide some excellent, if fleetingly glimpsed, effects and makeup. The only time it turns into a monster movie is in the climactic scene, and even then, a lot of it depends on his ability to coerce his mind into allowing him to "do what needs to be done."

As a result of everything, Wolf Garden is a confusing and inconsistent movie. The first act offers a variety of moods and displays a solid sense of when to convey information. Unfortunately, everyone save genre novices will have figured out the main premise by now. Yet even after the beast is set free, we hardly ever get to see it. Even though what we currently see is impressive, I wish there was more to be seen.

The movie's ending—or perhaps we should say endings—is more troubling. Without giving anything away, we'll just say that it ends logically, and although taking place off-screen and using sound, the sequence is still incredibly powerful. Instead of stopping there, Wolf Garden continues with a twist that is predictable and finishes with what appears to be the beginning of a completely different kind of movie. The movie has much of an atmosphere and David has some interesting ideas. Just too bad he couldn't make it all come together.

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