The Beast Within

The Beast Within isn’t a terrible film, but sadly it is not a particularly great one either, so ham-fisted is its approach to its central themes.

The polished craft contributions and solid cast help to round out a tight production package. But it’s one built around a concept that doesn’t entirely work in the end.

The actual ideas that might lift this above ordinary genre fare fall short, while the vivid tension and anxious character identification needed to excel on a humbler plane never quite arrive.

There’s no sense of life being lived within the world of the film, which is indicated by a general refusal to shade in any details about the environment or even the characters beyond their scene-by-scene purpose.

A poignant horror fairy tale that’s at its strongest when exploring the psychological fallout, but it’s one that struggles to seamlessly blend the Gothic fantasy with authentic coming-of-age drama.

The Beast Within is a supernaturally laced thriller, but seems as if came from a painful, dark personal place where the horrors are human and the wounds remain open forever.

What we end up with is an almost entirely forgettable werewolf outing that had something it wanted to say, but was entirely too late to do it.

... a film that grows on you as you are watching it.

The Beast Within is a deeply distressing portrayal of generational trauma through the eyes of Little Red Riding Hood.

At its heart, this patient and measured horror thriller has human interests that stretch well beyond genre. Father-daughter relationships, loss of innocence, and generational trauma are just some of the thematic through-lines.