Friday, 12 February 2010

• Prev
• Next

The Wolfman

Benicio Del Toro stars in the classic gory gothic horror

Benicio gives his trademark wolfish smile

Brooding Benicio Del Toro is perfect as the tragic hero in this remake of the horror classic The Wolfman.

Benicio (Che, Traffic) plays tortured nobleman Lawrence Talbot who is lured to his ancestral home to find out who or what butchered his brother by the light of the full moon.

Estranged from his father (Anthony Hopkins) since childhood, Lawrence has become a celebrated actor and is appearing on the West End stage when his brother's fiance Gwen (Emily Blunt, The Devil Wears Prada)  writes begging him to help in the hunt.

The legend of the werewolf is well-known - this is a remake of the 1941 film starring Lon Chaney Jr - so it's no spoiler to reveal that Lawrence is infected while fighting off the monster.

Come the next full moon Lawrence has an appointment with his destiny and unfortunately so do many others.

Only true love will break the terrible curse.

The film is genuinely spooky and there's no shortage of shock and gore. Del Toro, with his brutish attraction, always plays the horror with a note of genuine sadness.

The Wolfman out now

Gillian Crawley