The Forgotten Christina Ricci Werewolf Movie You Can Catch On HBO Max
Wes Craven was a master of the horror genre. He gave the world "The Last House on the Left," "A Nightmare on Elm Street," and "Scream," to name a few. It's hard to believe audiences would overlook any of his works, but that's precisely what happened with 2005's "Cursed." The werewolf film, which stars Christina Ricci, Jesse Eisenberg, and Nick Offerman, was critically panned when it first came out, but that wasn't so much Craven's fault as it was from studio interference. In an interview with CraveOnline, the director spoke about his dissatisfaction with the film: "We shot the whole film except for the last act. Then they pulled the plug; we completely rewrote it and shot a new version and a last act. Then Bob [Weinstein] didn't like the last act, so we went out and shot a third last act."
Forget the Snyder Cut; it's high time we start asking for the Craven Cut of "Cursed." Even with the version of the film we have now, it's still worth looking back on, especially for fans of Craven's work who want to check out the director's entire filmography. The story still has a lot of fun with the werewolf mythos, and with plenty of comedic talent in front of the camera, you may have some campy entertainment to cross off your watchlist.
Cursed has its charms
"Cursed" picks up when two siblings are involved in a collision on Mulholland Drive in Los Angeles. Out of the trees comes a vile creature that slashes them and tears apart the other driver. It doesn't take long until the brother and sister begin exhibiting all of the tell-tale signs of werewolves as they suddenly crave human blood and can't pick up anything silver. The only way they can break the curse is to take out the one responsible for all of this in the first place.
"Cursed" follows very much in the footsteps of Craven's previous effort, "Scream," which makes sense seeing how both films have the same screenwriter. There are plenty of frightening moments, but there isn't quite as much bloodshed in the werewolf movie because it has a PG-13 rating. This is clearly a film designed to have fun within its genre and poke fun at the tropes and elements of more serious fare involving these creatures of the night.
When it first came out, some critics understood the kind of tone "Cursed" was going for. Staci Layne Wilson of Horror.com got a lot out of the movie and wrote in her review, "'Fun' is exactly what this movie is: It's a rollicking popcorn flick, so don't go in expecting Oscar material, and you'll enjoy yourself immensely." "Cursed" is now available to watch on HBO Max. It's one of Craven's many works found on the streaming platform in addition to the "Scream" series and 1989's "Shocker."