“The Wolf House” is the creepiest animated film since “Coraline”
Unless you go in knowing what it’s about, it’s hard to watch The Wolf House and understand it completely. Outside of a brief synopsis that offers a little bit of insight, nothing in the film will actually say what’s happening as it sends you on a psychedelic acid trip made out of creepy paper-mache. It’s “Three Little Pigs” meets “Red Riding Hood” set in a house in Hell. Only 75 minutes long, it feels like two hours. A Chilean stop-motion animated horror film, its natural title is La Casa Lobo, and it’s a propaganda film spoken entirely in hushed whispers.
It’s not literally a propaganda film. Kind of like a mockumentary but without the documentary part. The film is presented by a small, reclusive community in Chile that’s never named, but referred to only as “The Colony” or “The Society.” A quick dive into the film’s history, however, will reveal that the community in question is Colonia Dignidad, a real colony founded south of Santiago in 1961 by a group of Germans that fled after WWII. The leader of the colony, eventually turned cult, was Paul Schafer, a convicted pedophile and Nazi.
The film opens with an introduction that feels like those absurdly cheerful videos about “hugs not drugs” in grade school, where it’s explained to be a presentation put on by the Colony for the outside public in an attempt to “dispel the horrible rumors” about them. The brief introduction is filmed like a welcome video tour of the Colony, full of images made to look like happy Amish country, and then the actual film begins.
The Wolf House is very much a dark fairytale, and like any fairytale, it tells a lesson of obedience. It focuses on a young girl named Maria who one day was disobedient and punished for it. Rather than take her cruel punishment like a good girl, she flees the Colony into the surrounding wilderness for a life of independence. Not long after, a large wolf finds her and chases her deeper into the woods where she’s forced to take refuge in an abandoned house.
Inside the house, she finds two baby pigs and becomes their mother. The three end up staying there for years (maybe months, it’s never clear), as the wolf patiently waits outside. His voice, like a dark hymn, calls her name all throughout the night. “Maria. Maria. Maria,” he chants, playing nice. “I was very harsh on Maria, but it will be good for her.” He is not really a wolf but Schafer hunting her down.
From there the film gets super surreal. It is a stop-motion animation made from paper-mache so a dreamlike creep factor was pretty much a given. The house is connected to Maria directly and changes to match her moods, fears, and thoughts. Essentially the third little pig in their strange family of three, Maria’s power to shape the world around her eventually bleeds into her two piggy adoptees as she turns them into human children. Pedro and Ana.
She’s given them life but is ill-equipped to manage it, and soon this freedom turns against her.
Themes of innocence, naivety, fear, and hunger, in more ways than one, are all on display in The Wolf House, but given the Colony’s purpose of the film, it’s all used against poor Maria. We watch Maria go from child to mother then back to a child again, from liberated survivor to frightened victim, her spirit is beaten down until she’s meant to believe that life on The Colony is actually better. As time goes on, the house and the two children become more nightmarish. They’ve grown beyond Maria’s influence and the wolf’s quiet, unseen, presence begins to suffocate her.
Verdict
This review’s title is actually misleading because this isn’t the creepiest animated film since Coraline, it’s much creepier than Coraline. I honestly never got what everyone liked about Coraline and never really thought it was all that frightening, even though everyone else did, but The Wolf House is definitely an eerie little film, disturbing and beautiful in its pastel-colored grotesqueness. The animation is a horror show all its own.
Watching the animation shift from form to form, accompanied by a crackling sound like a thousand cockroaches crawling up and down the walls, is just unnerving. You’ll be completely transfixed, unable to look away, and if you watch it in the dark it’ll sound like those creeping cockroaches are all around you. The icing on the cake is the film’s chosen silence. The characters whisper their dialogue as if they’re whispering for the purpose of not waking the dead.
It is an acquired taste. Not exactly fun to watch, or even that exciting. It will demand your full attention so if you aren’t willing to give it, maybe skip it. The Wolf House is directed by Cristobal León & Joaquín Cociña in their first fiction feature film co-written with Alejandra Moffat and featuring a cast of just two voices, Amalia Kassai as Maria and Rainer Krause as the Wolf.
(5 / 5)
Photos are the property of Diluvio and Globo Rojo Films
Released in 2011, Grave Encounters is one of the better-liked-found horror movies by both critics and horror fans alike. At least, that’s the opinion of the few who’ve seen it. For some reason, it’s not as well known as many others in the genre. So today, let’s spread awareness for this overlooked spooky gem.
The story
We begin our story with a TV executive, talking about an ill-fated reality show named Grave Encounters. He explains that everything went south during the taping of episode six. While the footage was retrieved, the ghost hunters were not. Our TV executive assures us that what we are about to see is not a movie, and has only been cut for time.
We then dive into the footage collected from episode six. The ghost-hunting team will spend the night in an old mental hospital called Collingwood Psychiatric Hospital.
During the night, the team does see a few eerie things. A door slams shut. A wheelchair moves on its own. Fairly standard ghost-hunting fair.
The real horror starts when the team isn’t released from the hospital in the morning. Because morning doesn’t come. The sun doesn’t rise and the doors don’t open to the outside world. Lance, TC, Sasha, Matt and Houston are all trapped inside an ever-changing hospital, with the patients who remain even in death.
What worked
The first thing I want to talk about, and the part that attracted me to the film in the first place, is the parody element. Fans of ghost-hunting shows like Ghost Hunters will recognize many of the same elements. The title even has a very similar font. As someone who loves a good ghost hunt, but often finds that these shows take themselves a little too seriously, this was quite enjoyable.
Another thing I loved about Grave Encounters was the effects. The ghosts were shocking, not just the first time we saw them but every time. This is even more impressive when we remember that this movie had a budget of $120,000. The creators taught themselves how to do these effects, and most of them are practical, not CGI. This would have been impressive if the effects were just passible. And they were far more than that.
Finally, I want to talk about the character development. We start the film without much sympathy for our characters. Especially Lance. Lance was so punchable at first. He was flippant about others’ pain. He was clear that he’d make up evidence if he couldn’t find any. And he didn’t seem too interested in listening to his team.
By the end of the movie, though, we care about him and the rest of the team. And it takes so little time for us to change our minds. We see TC talk to his daughter, and realize he’s never going to get home to her. We see Sasha care about the people lost in the hospital. We see Lance protect Sasha and the rest of his team. We see that these people, as willing as they are to financially benefit from other people’s pain, actually do care about each other. No one is a coward. No one is leaving people behind. That’s admirable. And that makes me give a damn about them.
What didn’t work
All that being said, it wasn’t a perfect movie. To start with, there are some questions we don’t get answers to. And not in an acceptable way. It’s okay that we don’t know what really happens in the end. It’s okay that we don’t know how the spirits manipulate time. It’s not okay that one character is simply eaten by fog. That scene, close to the end, just felt lazy.
I will also say that some of the acting wasn’t great. Especially from Sasha, played by Ashleigh Gryzko. I won’t say she was terrible. But her acting was overdone. She was also a bit of a scream queen. We didn’t learn much about Sasha, except that she’s the token girl. Her character could have been fleshed out a bit more.
Overall, Grave Encounters is a great film. Whether you’re a fan of found footage, ghost hunting, or just spooky stories well told, this is one to put on your TBW list sooner rather than later.
For Haunted MTL, this is Nicole signing off.
(4.5 / 5)
Episode four of Agatha All Along started on a sad note and ended on a shocking reveal. Can we really ask for anything more?
The story
We begin this episode, as mentioned, at the graveside of poor Sharon. She’s the first to pass away on The Road, but I’ll be quite surprised if she’s the last.
It’s one thing to have died. But it’s quite another to have died surrounded by people who don’t really care and won’t really mourn you.
After that, we continue down The Road to find another house. This one appears to be familiar to Alice. She tries to turn around and go the other way, but The Road won’t let her escape that easy.
What they find inside is the home Alice shared with her mother. They also find a record of Alice’s mother’s version of the Ballad. After the coven starts experiencing Alice’s family curse, they realize the only way out is to sing The Ballad that can protect them. One that’s been protecting Alice for most of her life.
They do escape the house, but not unscathed. Teen is badly injured. And we see another side of Agatha. Maybe even one she didn’t know she had.
What worked
This aspect shocked me, but Agatha is a good team leader. This is undercut because we all know she doesn’t care about her team. But twice now she has stepped in and helped when a member of the coven was struggling. She didn’t do it with love but with honesty. And sometimes that’s what we need.
Another thing I want to draw attention to is the sexual tension between Agatha and Rio. However, they’re doing a fine job drawing attention to it themselves.
It is killing me.
There is so much history between these two characters that we just don’t know yet. But we want to know. This is one of the biggest drives to watch the next episode, at least for me. While at first, it seemed like Agatha was to blame for their riff, it appears after this episode that it might have been Rio. Or, frankly, it might have been both of them. All I know is that I am constantly reminded of Rio’s question to Agatha from the first episode.
“Do you remember why you hate me?”
Finally, I thought the 70’s vibe of this episode was very fun. I especially liked the camera shots that were quite reminiscent of old 70’s show. The split screens, the quick gasp shots. It reminded me of Scooby Doo and Jabber Jaw in the best way.
What didn’t work
I don’t have much negative to say about this episode. The only real complaint I have is that I didn’t like this new version of The Ballad. It’s fine, but it isn’t nearly as cool as the first.
All in all, this was a great episode. I have so many questions about Teen, about Rio, and about what The Road has in store for the rest of them. And I can’t wait to see what’s next.
(4.5 / 5)
Movies n TV
Evil: “A is for Angel” (S2E2)
“A is for Angel” is an episode of the supernatural drama, Evil. The assessors investigate a potential angelic possession.
“A is for Angel” is an episode of the supernatural drama, Evil, created by Michelle King and Robert King. The central cast includes Katja Herbers, Mike Colter, Aasif Mandvi, Michael Emerson, Christine Lahti, and Andrea Martin. It originally aired under CBS before moving to Paramount+. As of this review, it’s available through Netflix and Paramount+ and its add-ons.
The assessors investigate a potential angelic possession. David (Mike Colter) meets a helpful nun (Andrea Martin as Sister Andrea). Kristen (Katja Herbers) talks to the police. Sheryl (Christine Lahti) takes out her frustration on someone who deserves it. Leland (Michael Emerson) makes a haunting confession.
What I Like about Evil: “A is for Angel”
While “A is for Angel” fears depicting a biblically accurate angel, it still evokes a haunting terror such angels evoke. Brandon J. Dirden’s Raymond/Archangel Michael provides an unsettling performance that directly comments or alludes to actions that angels take in the bible.
This episode introduces Sister Andrea, who will become a key character of the series, acting as a spiritual advisor and mentor to David specifically. She’s interesting enough to evoke lasting memorability, given more attention than debut characters in their introductory episodes.
Leland’s confession to David gets dark, revealing much of the personal relationship the two had before the series began. While nothing remains confirmed, and Leland clearly aims to antagonize David, David’s reaction suggests that some truthful admissions linger within the deception. However, it’s ultimately a viewer’s decision to weigh these claims.
“A is for Angel” creates a rather terrifying dynamic that evokes a haunting narrative. Where the previous episode focused more on what comes next, “A is for Angel” dives into the horrific implications of the procedural plot.
Tired Tropes and Triggers
As mentioned earlier, the procedural plot involves an angelic possession and some Old Testament godliness, which might upset some viewers. Some points suggest sexism and abuse, but little of this receives attention beyond the claim.
A character potentially murdered their wife, suggesting spousal abuse, but the reality of the situation seems blurred. Regardless, the victim tries to leave their abuser, which is a common source of abuse in domestic violence.
While nothing remains confirmed, a child molester apparently receives angelic punishment. The viewer takes the word of the angel’s supposed host on this claim, which hardly means an absolute confirmation.
Suicide, potentially assisted suicide, is another plot point alluded to in the episode. Little remains a proven fact, but the suggestion seems plausible considering what the viewer knows of the situation. As this remains the only confirmation, the claims seem interpretable.
What I Dislike about Evil: “A is for Angel”
Again, “A is for Angel” puts a lot of focus on the horrifying concept of an angel but doesn’t try to depict a biblically accurate angel. Frankly, it’s a wasted opportunity, considering the haunting nature of their descriptions. Such descriptions rival that of Lovecraftian abomination in horrifying potential. It seems like a perfect opportunity for a show or film like Evil. Even as “A is for Angel” challenges the depictions, it hesitates to open its’ trillions of eyes to the opportunities available.
Leland allows the assessors into his home and leaves valuable evidence for the team to find. For such an intelligent character, these oversights seem uncharacteristic. Viewers might assume this frantic response is a ploy, but his reactions suggest otherwise.
Final Thoughts
“A is for Angel” returns Evil to the horror roots that the previous episode hadn’t lingered on. The episode unravels some mysteries of the past that better contextualize relationships. If you’re eager for Old Testament godly intervention, this episode brings out a proper dose of it.
(3 / 5)
