Product Description

In the cozy English village of Kromer, where few things are as feared as the werewolves who wander the surrounding forests and fields, two young and handsome wolves, Seth and Gabriel, meet and fall in love. Although their habits and appearance are essentially human - except for the pointed ears, coats of fur and bushy tails - the wolves are considered outcasts and a dangerous menace to the village folk. Seth and Gabs roam the fringes of Kromer, keeping their fur and friendship out of sight. But certain townspeople, afraid of those different from themselves, devise a fiendish plot to pin a murder on the hated and feared wolves. The local priest - himself a bit lycanthropic - stirs up and angry mob that pursues the young prey to the end.

This tale of young love fighting the hypocrisy of an older generation, combined with elements of the classic British murder mystery, gives the film a rich and lively texture, and allows the character's diversity to show interesting contrasts. Our young wolves and their pack are urbane, glamorous and clubby but live in a world that is far from a metropolis. Their world is in fact a timeless world of waterfalls, lakes and valleys. In contrast, the village folk live an outward life of church going and piousness yet have evil on their minds.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #84077 in DVD

Amazon.com
A mix of revisionist fairy tale and social satire, this gay allegory imagines urban runaways as storybook werewolves lurking around the fringes of a quaint little village. Gabriel (James Layton) is a rascally, seductive veteran of the wilds who fancies young Seth (Lee Williams), an innocent newcomer tossed out of his home by parents appalled at his sudden transformation from normal boy to... wolf. Sporting shaggy fur coats, long fingernails, and pointy Spock-like ears, these handsome young cubs are a cross between Dickensian street urchins, Peter Pan's Lost Boys, and modern homeless kids. Harmless (except when committing petty crimes and doing some minor hell raising), they are feared and despised by the good churchgoing folk of the town, demonized in sermons, and blamed for the crimes of a few citizens whose pious façades hide the true evil in this rural paradise. It's a modest little tale with a simplistic view (it's a fairy tale, after all) and easy scapegoats in the scheming elderly villagers, but it's a clever approach accomplished with suggestion and sly revisionism. A rebellious city girl puts a cute twist on "Little Red Riding Hood" when she seduces the cute, naïve Seth, and a priest proclaims, "There were no wolves in the Garden of Eden," before loading his gun for a hunting expedition. Sweet, romantic, and sad, there's even a "happily ever after" worked into an otherwise tragic turn. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews

Haunting, mind-blowing
This is one of those rare movies that upon first view it enthralled and frightened me with it's subconsious familiarity. From Boy George's first words of narration to the strange interaction of a local women to these two "wolves" I was hooked.

And while it could be seen as simpistic. When have fairy tales ever been complex? A case could be made that the acting is all over the place. Have you seen Star Wars II?

The great "secret" of this movie seemed a bit obvious. But considering the current stuff in the paper seems sort of precient.

Entertaining. Sensual. Evocative. Strange.

A great movie - beautiful, funny, odd
I first saw this film at a film festival a few years ago, and have looked forward to getting it on DVD since.

It's a beautiful movie - the settings and scenes are lush and rich, and the characters are all wonderful - from sexy young men to ridiculous old ladies.

It's a fairy-tale-esque story with wolves as an allegory to gay men, with a nicely intertwined story of some elderly ladies plotting to kill their mistress.

It's not just worth watching, it's worth watching more than once!

A Howling Success
A beautifully written and filmed feature that intelligently explores homophobia and hypocrisy through an allegory that reworks Little Red Riding Hood amongst the Shropshire Hills.

The Wolves of Kromwer focuses on the relationship between Seth and Gabriel, two gay wolves, their supposed murder of the local lady of the manor and the resulting wolf hunt.

Imaginative script with surreal comic touches. Well acted and good characterisation. Involving and thought provoking.

Premiered at Sundance Film Festival. Charles Lambert (writer and producer) is a man I am expecting great things of in the future.