WOLFCOP
Starring Leo Fafard, Amy Matysio
Directed by Lowell Dean
A blue moon is practically an everyday occurrence compared to a Canadian film that people are champing at the bit to see. And yet, here we have the debut feature from Saskatchewan’s previously unknown Lowell Dean that’s already developed a considerable fanbase, earned national media attention, pre-sold a collectible action figure and had a sequel green-lit. From a purely marketing standpoint, the first product of the groundbreaking CineCoup Film Accelerator (CineCoup.ca) has to be considered an unqualified success. But what about the movie itself?
Thankfully, WolfCop delivers everything it promised, not only unleashing a badge-wielding lycanthrope on the big screen but also the sort of go-for-broke (but budget-conscious) carnage that would likely elicit an approving smile from schlock king Roger Corman. Leo Fafard plays Lou, an alcoholic cop who’s right at home in a nowhere town known for both the Liquor Donuts convenience store and annual Drink ‘n’ Shoot get-together. (Also on hand are the sort of scheming small potatoes politicians who tend to frequent B-movies.) One occult ritual later and Lou suddenly finds himself sprouting fur and going for a particularly gory rip.
An American Werewolf in London remains the standard for werewolf transformation sequences but WolfCop may have just clawed out a place in the pantheon thanks to the inspired lunacy of its R-rated metamorphosis. And while the film’s aesthetics were seemingly lifted from the straight-to-VHS vaults, it also draws from ‘80s fare in more unexpected ways. Lou’s arc cleverly recalls Tootsie’s famous lesson (“I was a better man with you, as a woman...”) while the audacious use of Gowan’s “Moonlight Desires” would see it become the new “Take My Breath Away” in a just world.
