Rent The Wolf of Snow Hollow (2020)

Thunder road was better - The Wolf of Snow Hollow review by TH

Thunder road was quite a hidden gem but sadly this film had potential but never really knew whether it was going for b movie/comedy horror style. Jim Cummings has a very strange style of acting that almost feels like a bit of will ferrell/jim Carey but played really serious.

Overall it's alright to watch once.

Little gem - The Wolf of Snow Hollow review by Alphaville

With Thunder Road and now this, Jim Cummings is carving out quite a name for himself as a writer/director/star. And unlike many a writer/director/star, he does not indulge in vanity projects. This is a proper film that re-invigorates the tired old werewolf formula. Sure, people are torn apart at full moon, but this is more of a murder mystery set amidst the Rocky Mountains of Utah. It also has a nice line in sardonic humour as Jim (a local police officer) is beset by a whole world of problems both personal and professional. He flatly refuses to accept the existence of a mythical werewolf, unlike his deputy, but then “he thought Men in Black was a documentary”.

At a taut 81mins there’s not a frame wasted, right up to the satisfying resolution of the mystery. And if, amidst the action and the humour, you can’t quite put your finger on the supporting subtext that tackles nothing less than the human condition, watch the short DVD Xtra. It will add to your admiration of what is a small but unexpected gem.

Doesn't quite fulfil its promise ... - The Wolf of Snow Hollow review by NP

Horror comedies are a tricky business – humour is so subjective, it could make or break a production. I warmed to this – ironic given the snowbound location – immediately when a diner, interrupted by two louts, asks one of them, “Do you have the internet in this town?”

“Yeah, we have the internet.”

“Then why not use it? You could teach your mom how to read.”

There’s a caustic wit on display that runs all the way through, and balances out the genuinely nasty moments of gore, as well as softening the characters. Also, I love snowbound, isolated towns as locations for scary stories.

Jim Cummings writes, directs and plays the lead role in this. This is also the final film to star veteran actor Robert Forster. This is well acted across the board, by a cast who really seem to ‘get’ the quick-fire nuances and can balance them out with a growing sense of unease.

However - not all the jokes land, and sometimes scenes are over-filled with yelled expletives above anything else. Also, the balance isn’t always there – scenes that could be really horrific are undermined by swift cut-jumps to jokey reactions and comedy music. 5 out of 10.