utgard14 Jack Nicholson plays a middle-aged book publisher, bitten by a wolf during the full moon, who undergoes a physical and psychological transformation just as his life seems to be falling apart around him. A different kind of werewolf movie but an interesting one. Nicholson does a good job, despite being somewhat miscast for the role of a nebbish. Once the transformation begins and this man starts to show his newfound wolf side, it's a role right up Jack's alley. James Spader is a treat as the sleazy villain. Michelle Pfeiffer looks as pretty as ever and has decent chemistry with the much-older Nicholson. The script is clever and fun. Rick Baker's low-key makeup won't please many horror fans but I think it was perfectly suited for this type of film. Really this isn't the kind of werewolf movie for the average horror fan who wants strong visuals and lots of violent action. It's not scary, either, in case that wasn't obvious. It's a werewolf movie for people who want something outside of the ordinary.I really liked this one and I gotta say I didn't expect to when I first saw it years ago. I'm not a big Mike Nichols fan. The kinds of films he made are not the kinds of films I tend to enjoy. I'm not saying they are bad films or that he was not a talented director. He made some classics that I did like to watch, although the idea of rewatching any of them is not particularly appealing to me. So, take my opinion on Nichols into account when I say that this is my favorite Mike Nichols movie. No, I'm not saying this is a better film than "The Graduate" or "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" or anything crazy like that. But I enjoy watching this movie more than any of his relationship dramas. The interesting thing is that, underneath the supernatural elements, this is a story about a man's mid-life crisis. That's exactly the sort of movie you expect Nichols to make, only this time the story is told in a less prosaic way by making it a werewolf movie with the subtext and dark humor that comes along with that.

GL84 Returning back to work after an accident, a publisher is suddenly endowed with a strange series of powers and abilities from the encounter and gradually realizes he's become a werewolf and must keep it in check before harming others.Frankly this one turned out to be quite enjoyable is problematic effort. When this one works is basically in the first half here, as this here is when it builds all the details about his affliction and condition turning into his real-life with the outburst of hair, the main change in attitude and overall personality change into being more ruthless and vindictive towards others as a result of this, and along with the sensory enhancements it paints a rather intriguing air while subtly hinting at the change. Due to this set-up, the early scenes of the transformation come off nicely as the deer attack out in the woods or jumping the hoodlums mid-change while in the park serve as fine introductions to the change, and coupled with the growing evidence really completes the picture. That also manages to make the big action- packed finale quite fun as there's a large, drawn-out brawl here through the barn and gets quite bloody as well. These here help it out, although there are quite a few problems here. The majority of these flaws here come from the film's inability to come to terms with what it wants to be, as the classy nature of this one is really troubling by holding down the true horror nature of the story. It really holds back here on the creature, both in the make-up and the creature' overall behavior as the wolf make-up is slightly haphazard with contact lenses and splotchy hair around the edges of his face being the only signifiers of the change which looks utterly lazy as a horror film while being too dark for the mainstream crowd. There's even the lame behavior of jumping around on wires for just about anything here resulting in superhuman leaps for an all-around weak main creatures that's all based on not appearing too controversial for the mainstream crowd, as if it's apologizing for being a horror film. There's not a whole lot of good will associated with a film if it doesn't accept what it really is, and is what really harms this one the most here. The last flaws here is the bland, unappealing pacing here that really doesn't offer much as this is mostly filled with utterly bland subplots, a really bland romance that unravels quite slowly that it really takes forever to get anywhere and never set-ups up too many horror scenes here in this section by keeping the whole thing downgraded in favor of these other elements that turn it away from a horror film. There here are what really hold this one back.Rated R: Graphic Language, Violence and mild violence-against-animals.

grainstorms "He was a killer, a thing that preyed, living on the things that lived, unaided, alone, by virtue of his own strength and prowess, surviving triumphantly in a hostile environment where only the strong survive." That, of course, is a description of a wild dog from the menagerie of San Francisco's great storyteller Jack London. But it can also be a successful book editor in today's wolf-eat-wolf world of big- time book publishing. In Mike Nichols' enchanted 1994 movie, Wolf, we meet a failing book editor, Jack Nicholson, who, sorry to say, would rather purr than bark. Because he's a goat staked out for the kill, meek and mild Jack is about to succumb to the claw and fang of the monsters around him -- not the gibbering ogres that hide behind bookshelves in editorial offices, and come out at night to hide author contracts, mix-up manuscripts and insert misspellings and inaccuracies in freshly proof-read books – but assassins who can kill a career with an e-mail or fax. In his case, Nicholson has two creatures to deal with: the jackal- like James Spader, as vicious and as smiling a villain as one might find in a Grimm's fairy tale or an MBA executive program, and the nightmarish Christopher Plummer, the nastiest and most treacherous boss since Genghis Khan, the sort of corpse-eating, bone-crunching sneak who gives hyenas a bad name. Both actors are at the top of their game, and it's a delight to watch them work their nastiness.Fortunately for the Nicholson character, he gets bitten by a werewolf, and we all know what that means, kiddies.Like one of Jack London's canines on the prowl: "He became quicker of movement... swifter of foot, craftier, deadlier, more lithe, more lean with iron like muscle and sinew, more enduring, more cruel more ferocious, and more intelligent."All this without having to spend a minute on a tread mill or give up steak ("I said bloody rare!") . Sometimes there is justice in this world. As if this wasn't enough of a bonus for getting nibbled by a werewolf, he falls in love with a dirty-minded Little Red Riding Hood, the toothsome Michelle Pfeiffer. And his ill-wishers soon find out they've bitten off more than they can chew. Ingenious Mike Nichols has trapped the old werewolf legends – as told in the Universal Pictures Lon Chaney movies – and given them a new, giggle-filled twist. But if you have a feeling that we're not in tranquil Transylvania any more, you're right. This is New York City, where the pointy skyscrapers look like fangs against the midnight sky, and a chill wind at the stroke of 12 can suddenly come howling down Broadway. Even so, a newly minted werewolf in Gotham has appointments to keep and rivals to slay. And to do the job properly, he's now armed with useful new office skills, like the ability to hear whispered workplace gossip blocks away and a sensitive nose that tells him who's been sipping tequila at the breakfast table. However, he can't be a 9-to-fiver forever. A wolf-man needs to make time for fun, like one of Jack London's animal heroes: "But especially he loved to run in the dim twilight of the summer midnights, listening to the subdued and sleepy murmurs of the forest, reading signs and sounds as a man may read a book, and seeking for the mysterious something that called -- called, waking or sleeping, at all times, for him to come." As you might expect, evening is chow-down time in the Big Apple. But what happens in Central Park stays in Central Park, minus a hand or two.Blending chills, kills and giggles, Mike Nichols has created a marvelous tale for our time. And with the wondrous Jack Nicholson, who can be both blithe and bloodcurdling at the same instant, he has a creature any monster-maker would be proud of. Glorious special effects, great ensemble acting, and laugh-out-loud wit – the sort of insightful and caustic comments that over the years Mike Nichols rewarded us with, like so many jalapeño-flavored candy bars -- make Wolf an engaging fable for grownups ... but one that you might not want to view just before bed-time; especially if you sleep with an open window with the moon shining down. (A tip of the old Davy Crockett coonskin cap to perennial best- seller Jack London, an acute observer of wild animals and wild writers, whose century-old canine heroes would do very well in modern Manhattan ... if it ever came down to the crunch.)

OllieSuave-007 This is not your typical werewolf flick, where out of luck publisher Will Randall (Jack Nicholson) has to deal with younger co-worker Stewart Swinton (James Spader), who snatches away both his job and wife. However, Will's energy and senses become stronger after being bit by a wolf. More than just a story about a human turning into a monster, the plot deals with the competition between Stewart and Will and the unlikely romance between Will and his boss' daughter, Laura Alden (Michelle Pfieffer), which gives this horror film a more unique story.The acting was good, especially the spellbinding Michelle Pfieffer and the calm yet cunning Jack Nicholson. Sound of Music star Christopher Plummer gave a nice co-star appearance. But, while the film's momentum goes fairly quickly, I thought the film lacks humor and overall charm, and I didn't find the overall horror elements of the film riveting. The drama of the film is good, but the horror doesn't quite grab your attention as other more conventional horror movies do.Grade C