Wildling

At its best, "Wildling" is very smart about how we humans like to compare ourselves to animals - from the names of our sports teams to the way we describe the feeling of cutting loose.

A supernatural "What's Happening to My Body?" parable in company with "Carrie," "Ginger Snaps" and last year's "Thelma," "Wildling" is low-key with an undertone of menace, skillfully directed by Fritz Böhm in his feature debut.

A clever, sharp-fanged mélange of classic midnight-movie horror and modern indie ingenuity.

This creature feature from the director Fritz Böhm is functional but lacks flavor, an imaginative spark that might distinguish it from any number of other I-was-a-teenage-monster movies.

Move over, Bigfoot.

With curious fluctuations in tone, questionable motivations, a dull look and jagged editing that takes us out of potentially affecting moments, this tall tale feels slight.

Wildling changes directions one too many times.

Fritz Bohm's feature debut offers an intriguing spin on the hairy (and, one might add, hoary) old [werewolf] genre.

There's momentum to the endeavor that's compelling, and its general direction toward macabre discoveries is periodically hair-raising.

Wildling is a phenomenal, original horror film that transcends the genre, offers a trio of strong performances from Powley, Dourif, and Tyler, and marks a debut for the ages for writer and director Fritz Böhm.

As first drafts go, Böhm has carved out a good starting place for himself, but that just makes the need for revision all the more glaring.

The script needs a reworking to figure out how the third act evolution from character drama into bloody violence can be organic and relevant to the rest of the narrative with substance