Werewolf by Night (2022) Review

High-Octane
3.5

Summary

Werewolf by Night is one of the most entertaining Marvel products I’ve seen for some time; it’s only a 50 minute special but I would love to see either a full series or movie set in this side of the Universe as it’s got awesome monsters and surprising amounts of gore making it perfect entertainment for this time of year.

Plot:On a dark and somber night, a secret cabal of monster hunters emerge from the shadows and gather at the foreboding Bloodstone Temple following the death of their leader. In a strange and macabre memorial to the leader’s life, the attendees are thrust into a mysterious and deadly competition for a powerful relic—a hunt that will ultimately bring them face to face with a dangerous monster. Inspired by horror films of the 1930s and 1940s, the chilling special aims to evoke a sense of dread and the macabre, with plenty of suspense and scares along the way as we explore a new corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Review: Werewolf by Night is a new Disney+ special that’s out later this week and although it’s just under an hour long it still manages to be one of the most unique shows they have ever done not feeling like anything else in the MCU thus far.

Directed by Michael Giacchino (who also composes the excellent score) Werewolf by Night is love letter to the classic Universal Monster movies of old and may be Marvel at its goriest with limbs being hacked off and blood spurting regularly; the black and white picture is probably why they can get away with the violence but it just adds to the sheer entertainment value. I love the creature features of old and Werewolf by Night captures the spirit of them perfectly.

Gael Bernal Garcia is well cast as Jack Russell (yes, like the dog) and he is an appealing lead while trying to hide his dark secret which isn’t really a secret as it’s literally the title of this show.

Werewolf by Night demonstrates a whole other side to the Marvel Universe and finally gives us something fresh; I would love to see more of this kind of content as it has plenty of action too with regular fight scenes and although some of the choreography feels familiar it’s still well done.

My only real gripe is that it’s too short as I would have loved to see this as a feature length movie but that could still come in the future with potential follow ups.

Overall, Werewolf by Night is a fun new addition to the MCU giving us that rare beast (pardon the pun) of something we haven’t seen before from them with a spooky atmosphere, plenty of action and surprising amounts of bloodshed.