There damn well better be a full moon opening night!

Article: Farron Ager – Op-Ed Editor Follow @carillon_oped

So Saskatchewan’s last film under the doomed Saskatchewan Film Employment Tax Credit looks like it will be the horror-comedy WolfCop. For those who haven’t heard about the film, WolfCop will be a touching story of an alcoholic cop named Lou Garou (get it?) and his quest to become a better man, despite the fact he turns into werewolf, an ability granted to him via some churlish witchcraft performed by some masked ornery yokels in the woods. The film is being brought to us by director-writer Lowell Dean, a former student of the University of Regina, who graduated in 2002 with a degree in film studies. Dean is not foreign to these kinds of films, as he is also known for the zombie thriller 13 Eerie, which was met with generally favourable reviews.  After winning the national Cinecoup movie competition (wherein WolfCop was pitted against 91 other projects), the film received $1 million for a production budget and guaranteed distribution to Cineplex theatres. Needless to say, this is a pretty big thing for Saskatchewan, as it’s beginning to receive national coverage.

image: wolfcop.com

I’ll be the first to admit that I am no expert regarding Saskatchewan film, but I do love me a good horror movie. During my undergrad, a fair number of my dollars from meagre paychecks at minimum wage went to places like HMV, Zeus (R.I.P.), and even bargain bins of department stores to buy yet another diamond in the rough among the slew of incredibly terrible horror movies. Watching the concept trailer for this film, I have to admit that I’m fairly impressed with how the film is pitched. Since actual shooting doesn’t start until October 7^th, I’ll save any sort of comparisons to other films, since I’m fairly certain that the film will evolve during the filming process. However, one of scenes in the trailer that tickled me pink is found toward the end, just before the movie title hits the screen. Our beloved WolfCop has unexpectedly transformed in a bar. He eviscerates one man and uses his firearm to shoot another in the back. As he walks up to the terrified female character helpless on the ground, he leans over to pick up a beer bottle and takes a hearty swig, winks at her, and walks away.

After watching this video, I knew one thing was certain: I need to see this movie. The film is due to be released in March 2014 and, regardless of how the film turns out, I’ll do my little bit to support the movie by going to it opening night. I can’t predict whether or not this movie debut with an earth-shattering presence or be swept under the dumpster, doomed to the fate of films such as Skinwalker: Curse of the Shaman. That doesn’t matter to me. What matters to me is that Saskatchewan will be able to claim even just a little bit of that massive, hulking, terrible beauty of the independent horror scene as the province’s swan song.