Everyone knows that Marvel’s schedule is carefully planned so that each movie or series leads to the next big event in the crazy cinematic universe that Marvel started building for us a decade ago. Until now, the main criticism of the new Marvel series that started last year with “Wanda-Vision” was that each series basically constitutes a kind of trailer for the following titles. After seeing the “Werewolf By Night” special, I wondered, is this another product that aims to promote a certain franchise in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or is it simply a good, quality tribute to old horror movies?
This time we join a group of monster hunters called for an organized hunt that takes place at the Bloodstone family home, after the death of Ulysses Bloodstone. The hunting ground is the courtyard of the mansion, a kind of complicated maze where the monster hunters compete with each other for the goal at any cost, with the winner getting the “blood stone”. What the members of the group don’t know is that there is a werewolf hiding among them who is trying to save his friend, the prey himself – Man Thing.
The special opens up a completely new world for monster movies but beyond that confirms the existence of other creatures that are expected to enter the cinematic universe soon. The plot is not too complex – after all, a television special of just under an hour that is entirely a tribute to horror films from the 30’s and 40’s, yet there is something in the combination between the outdated design (intentionally) and the advanced effects that simply turns the special into something that has not been seen before .
It seems that Marvel is taking progressive steps here to adapt the age rating to the changing target audience – in particular, the fans who have been following the movies for years and have already matured, which leads to Marvel allowing itself to release more mature content in recent years. We have already seen more violent content in the Marvel universe, such as Sam Raimi’s work in “Dr. Strange in the Dimensions of Madness”, but in“And a werewolf at night” we go up a notch with the graphics – a severed hand, blood splattered from the bodies of the enemies until it covers the camera lens and of course a severed head. These are things that have not been seen before in Marvel.
In general, if there is something that should be praised in this special, it is the masterful design and black-and-white photography, a simple effect that also manages to obscure the violence enough to still maintain a rating of “14+” and also maintain the nostalgic atmosphere. Although there is something a bit clichéd about painting the red stone over which the hunters fight throughout the special, it also fits here – and combines interestingly with the excellent and completely modern effects. The film itself is not scary and can hardly be called a “horror film” by modern standards, but it is a loving tribute to fans of nostalgic horror cinema from the 30’s and 40’s.
From “Werewolf by Night” (Courtesy of Disney)
There are two ways to look at this special: as a plot booster for the current phase Marvel is in and as an unrelated Halloween special. As a plot promoter, the film does not really fit into the cinematic universe and certainly not at the current stage that deals more with the multiverse. However as a Halloween special it is excellent and is exactly what you expect it to be: a good quality tribute to old horror movies.
I’m not saying that every content that comes out of Marvel should be adapted to the plot of the parallel universes, but what can we do that Marvel fans are already at a stage where they are just waiting for another hint about the future of the cinematic universe. If all this is just a 50+ minute trailer for “Blade”, then I’m not sure what I saw here. And maybe this is actually a reminder that you can take your foot off the gas for a second to look for the clue to the next thing that will happen in the Marvel movies and just enjoy what we have, of course when it looks great and doesn’t last too long.
Werewolf by Night is available on Disney+