Sadly, there is no interest in depicting the Romani as actual characters. Working against the film, however, is Ellis’ padded screenplay chock full of rote characters, drawn-out human conflict, and an ill-advised flashback structure that rips apart its final act. Another serious flaw comes from making McBride the hero, or at least with Holbrook’s performance. With Boyd Holbrook, Kelly Reilly, Alistair Petrie, Roxane Duran. This review is part of our Sundance 2021 coverage. Rather than being a fun werewolf movie that cleverly twists the genre, it becomes enamored of its own style and violence rather than having anything to say or characters worth caring about. It takes Eight for Silver far too long to acknowledge that there is a werewolf problem, and then even longer for the body count to truly begin. Spoiler alert: There is no tension. Wolf Design: Ellis’ eye for period detail and crafting atmosphere are fantastic. Things start to get especially exciting–at least to the genre’s acolytes–when Ellis introduces John McBride (Boyd Holbrook), an archetypically capable werewolf … THE BEST FILMS IN ACTION, DRAMA, HORROR, AND MORE, Sundance Film Festival Announces 2021 Virtual Lineup, Suspect208 (Sons of Slash, Trujillo) Unveil New Singer, Unleash “Nicotine” Single: Stream, Mumford and Sons' Winston Marshall Praises Right-Wing Agitator Andy Ngo, Tame Impala Play Sold-Out Concert in Australia, Mumford and Sons address photo with controversial psychologist Jordan Peterson, Sacha Baron Cohen Caught Selling Black Market Vaccines to Celebs During Kimmel Interview: Watch, Tom Morello to Twitter User Accusing Him of "White Privilege": "I'm Not White", CBD, Pre-Rolled and Delivered Right to You, What Comics Tell Us About the New WandaVision, Limited Edition Masks While Supplies Last. This prim aesthetic is a perfect contrast to the ultra graphic and gory attack scenes. A silver bullet is dug out of his corpse that is unrelated to the war, but then the action cuts to his sister inheriting said bullet and the title appears: “keeper of the silver.”. The Verdict: Eight for Silver works best as an atmospheric period werewolf film with outstanding gore effects and creature design. Despite depicting Seamus as a clear villain for his genocidal actions, the Romani are still presented as scary with their sole narrative purpose to inflict suffering on the rich white landowners. Instead, Eight for Silver is too busy fretting about the survival of its white heroine and her children to care about its POC characters. Directed by Sean Ellis. Eight for Silver is a nice looking movie, a perfectly grim widescreen film with misty moors and dim manor houses. Eight for Silver somehow manages to be two irreconcilable things simultaneously: a thorough re-imagining of the werewolf movie that's also the most traditional, formulaic werewolf movie in years and years. For more of our Sundance 2021 reviews, check out the links below: From recasting Hulk to hiring Joss Whedon, here's how one of the biggest films of the 21st century was created. Casting Boyd Holbrook, a human charisma vacuum, doesn’t do the film any favors, but there’s nothing for him or any of the other characters, including the luminous Kelly Reilly to work alongside. Rather than compete with classics of the subgenre like An American Werewolf in London or The Howling, Eight for Silver adopts a mutated tendril creature design. Thanks to those opening scenes, the audience already knows the outcome. Eight For Silver (review) is a werewolf … It’s safe to say that you’ve never seen a werewolf movie like Eight For Silver. But Eight for Silver drags the confirmation out, then resolutely pretends its opening didn’t spoil the outcome. Rather than reasoning with the Roma, he simply has them all murdered and pillaged, which isn’t only a moral error, but also because the Roma always have powers in movies and know of ancient dark magic. Eight for Silver is not as heavily stylized as Tim Burton’s Sleepy Hollow, per se, but it has a similar gothic, Puritanical vibe (albeit sans the humor). It’s understandable why writer/director Sean Ellis opens the film with such an intriguing hook. The Verdict: Eight for Silver works best as an atmospheric period werewolf film with outstanding gore effects and creature design. Atmospheric and haunting, it bears bloody fangs as a new style of werewolf movie, with lycanthropy as a tool of vengeance against an entire generation of colonizers. Set primarily in the 1880s, the film sees a mythical creature torment an aristocratic family as a result of a curse they have wrought upon themselves. Everyone is haunted by vivid nightmares of the Romani blacksmith (Jicey Carina), who was tortured and turned into a scarecrow, as well as a box of buried silver teeth. Eight for Silver is a gorgeously filmed werewolf film that shows reverence for the cinematic werewolf stories of the Hammer era and, of course, the Universal classics. This plodding denial of actual narrative development in favor of rote nightmares with cheap jump scares continually delays Eight for Silver from achieving its sweet spot: the gory animal attacks its audiences is patiently waiting around for. Frustrating Flashback: Eight for Silver opens in the trenches of WW1 with the death of a soldier named Edward Laurent. Eight for Silver makes McBride the hero because he’s handsome and knows more than the rest of the characters, but that doesn’t make him interesting. This immediately sets the film apart from other werewolf films, particularly in its two stand-out scenes: an underwater transformation and an otherworldly autopsy that evokes Carpenter’s The Thing in all the right ways. There are a lot of ingredients in Sean Ellis' new horror film Eight For Silver that could have made a much better movie. The first-ever “virtual” Sundance Film Festival runs from January 28 – February 3. Strong performances from Petrie (Rogue One) and Kelly Reilly (True … Romani As Other: As a period piece that includes Romani people, it is inevitable that Eight for Silver uses problematic language. To be fair, it’s a nifty spin on the werewolf movie, but the film misses where it really needs to concern itself. Drawn Out Pacing: Eight for Silver’s other major flaw is its drawn-out plot and shallow characterizations. It feels like any thoughtful touches to McBride that would make him compelling have been wiped away. In the end, Eight for Silver needed more werewolves and less Holbrook. The use of werewolf transformations is particularly inventive, and again, the broader theme of innocents suffering ties in nicely with a werewolf—a strong beast feasting on the weak. How the MCU Was Made: ‘Marvel’s The Avengers’, Recasting Hulk, and How That Thanos Scene Happened, ‘Eight for Silver’ Review: A Gory and Atmospheric Werewolf Story Lacks Bite | Sundance 2021, More Gore and atmosphere are all well and good when used correctly, but here they’re trying to stand in for substance rather than style. The werewolf mythology Ellis creates is fairly compelling as he tries to link it all the way back to the silver that was paid to Judas for betraying Jesus, although the Roma having special curse powers feels like a tired and boring trope that needs to be retired. It has the illusion of substance, but never drills down beyond its superficial aspects. This eventually leads to Edward’s disappearance followed by the gruesome death of a local boy at the claws of a mysterious beast. While ghoulish and atmospheric, there are two main problems when it comes to Eight for Silver. The best things about Eight for Silver are the ways it tries to reinvent werewolf mythology.Obviously, silver is still involved (hence the title) but most of … Ellis has a bunch of individual elements—the werewolf, the nightmares, the gore, the atmosphere—to create terror, but they never add up to anything greater. In the late 19th century, manor house lord Seamus Laurent (Alistair Petrie) has a dispute with local Roma over some land. Eight for Silver is a well-crafted and fun take on the werewolf horror genre – it’s as though A24 made Brotherhood of the Wolf. Children, including the lord’s son Edward (Max Mackintosh), follow those nightmares to a field where they dig up silver teeth belonging to the Roma. The look and feel of the film is sublime, especially the mist-shrouded fields, the threatening woods, and the muted color scheme. The Pitch: When greedy land owner Seamus Laurent (Alistair Petrie) massacres a group of Romani living peacefully on land he claims is his, a curse is unleashed upon him and the members of the nearby settlement. McBride could have been a far more nuanced and complex hero, and instead we get the blandest version possible. Eight For Silver tells the story of revenge with the element of mysticism and touches on topics like colonisation. There aren’t full moons or sexy werewolves this time around. You can see it in the prologue that’s set in World War I and in the film’s inciting event. Even so, Eight For Silver is still an extremely watchable horror film, and probably the best werewolf film since Brotherhood of the Wolf. In some ways, Eight for Silver ends up being almost a parody of the “elevated horror” genre. Instead, Eight For Silver delivers a refreshingly horrifying take on werewolf lore and period piece horror. This attracts the attention of pathologist John McBride (Boyd Holbrook), whose own tragic history makes him the natural choice to hunt the beast and prevent the curse from spreading. Directed by Sean Ellis. Somewhere buried in Eight for Silver, there’s a strong central theme about how the sins of the powerful are visited upon everyone. Which brings us to Eight For Silver, writer-director Sean Ellis’ new contribution to the werewolf medley playing Sundance, which, to its favor, aims high, but which sputters and … He resides in Atlanta with his wife and their dog Jack. Giving away the ending of his own gothic horror, director Sean Ellis presents his period werewolf film. Seamus calls in pathologist John McBride (Boyd Holbrook) to investigate as the beast continues to hunt the people of the village. Altogether Eight for Silver is an engaging werewolf film that succeeds on a lot of fronts. Eight for Silver offers a tantalizing vision for how to revive the werewolf movie, but it’s lacking once you get past the great atmosphere. A cholera outbreak surrounds this beastly saga while family members vanish mysteriously and inhuman transformations multiply with each passing day. Really, after the gypsy slaughter, you eagerly root for vicious werewolf carnage. That’s what Eight for Silver is: a werewolf movie remixed with other horror conventions. Sure, this werewolf bares its fangs, eats children, and has a complicated relationship with silver just like your favorites but it’s all the gnarly details in between that make this story something truly unique. Each time Eight for Silver fleetingly delivers the gore, only to return to the Laurents and McBride, we are reminded of how tepid and uninteresting the human drama is. Led by Boyd Holbrook as a … Starring Boyd Holbrook, Kelly Reilly, Alistair Petrie, Roxane Duran, and Áine Rose Daly. Matt Goldberg has been an editor with Collider since 2007. The trappings of Eight for Silver are fairly lavish, but by the end you can see that its bark is far more fearsome than its bite. And yet this theme always remains underdeveloped because writer/director Sean Ellis puts more effort in the gore and atmosphere surrounding the werewolf mythos he’s concocted. I wouldn’t say Holbrook is a “bad” actor (I liked him quite a bit in Logan), but there’s nothing to McBride even though we learn that he’s haunted by loss and a similar case involving a beast. He’s also not afraid to color outside of the box of conventional werewolf designs, namely the treatment of the initial transformation. Yet when Eight for Silver flashes back 35 years to explain the bullet’s origin, its ties to a Romani curse, and the series of “mysterious” werewolf attacks, the poor screenwriting decision becomes evident. Around 20 minutes into Sean Ellis’ new werewolf horror-epic Eight for Silver, a man is mounted on to a makeshift crucifix, has his hands and feet … January 31, 2021 by EJ Moreno Eight for Silver, 2021. As the film progresses, this flashback framing device only becomes more infuriating as the film reaches its two-hours-in-the-making climax and yet is still attempting to mine tension about what will happen. Read our review! When the townspeople are bitten, they are mauled, and Ellis isn’t shy about lingering over the bloody, broken and chomped upon remains. When Edward is bitten and disappears, it’s clear to audiences what he has become. These are stock characters who exist solely to speak in hushed tones about their missing son, while Ellis’ screenplay stubbornly refuses to move the narrative along. The go-to source for comic book and superhero movie fans. But the theme never gets built out beyond that, and ultimately Ellis’ goal seems to be in regular horror scares and gore with his werewolf (a poorly designed CGI creation that lacks any of the imagination Ellis brings to the surrounding mythology). As the site's Chief Film Critic, he has authored hundreds of reviews and covered major film festivals including the Toronto International Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival. Eight For Silver is an assured, engaging chiller that takes an ambitious bite out of the wolfman legacy As Carmilla recently refreshed the vampire movie as … John McBride, a pathologist, comes to town to investigate the danger -- and exorcise some of … Here’s a man who has suffered and faces a dangerous enemy, so being a “man of action” isn’t good enough. Eight for Silver is a classical monster movie, skirting the boundaries of schlock but never placing its tongue in its cheek. Sundance 2021 has been filled with so many movies about—and made in—the current pandemic that a 19th-century, gory genre flick feels like a return to normalcy. Sadly, these moments of body horror are too infrequent. Eight for Silver writer-director Sean Ellis “I was able to find a new approach without going into the old cliche ‘sprouting teeth and growing hair and howling at the moon’ aspect of the werewolf, which I was very keen to try and avoid.” Brain' Coming to Apple From 'Parasite' Star and 'I Saw the Devil' Director, 'Voyagers' Trailer Shows Hot People Getting Their Freak on in Space, Disney's 'Pinocchio': Joseph Gordon-Levitt Cast as Jiminy Cricket Opposite Tom Hanks, 'Fate: The Winx Saga' Star Elisha Applebaum Was as Shocked as You by the Way Season 1 Ended, 'WandaVision' Finale: What Those Credits Scenes Mean for the Future of the MCU, 'Made for Love' Trailer: Come for Cristin Milioti, Stay for Ray Romano Performing a Beyonce Cover, How 'Willy's Wonderland' Misunderstands the Gonzo Appeal of Nicolas Cage. “I am beyond thrilled to bring the world of ‘Eight For Silver’ to the screen,” Ellis said in a statement. This werewolf saga stars Kelly Reilly, Boyd Holbrook, Amelia Crouch and more. Then again, Eight for Silver, a new werewolf gothic written and directed by Sean Ellis, is still focused on the containment of spreading diseases. The trappings of Eight for Silver are fairly lavish, but by the end you can see that its bark is far more fearsome than its bite. Covering the hottest movie and TV topics that fans want. One of the more outrageous scenes in the Sundance horror movie “Eight for Silver” involves star Boyd Holbrook using a butcher knife to dissect a massive werewolf monstrosity, only to reveal a young woman crawling and screaming out of the cavity that they then have to kill. Eight for Silver is Sundance ’s period werewolf film . The first is that the ending is given away almost immediately. “Eight for Silver” is a twist on the werewolf film and follows a landowner who unleashes a gypsy curse on his village that leads to his son disappearing and transforming into a monster. But unlike so many other films in this genre, writer/director Sean Ellis ‘s new werewolf thriller Eight for Silver does not fixate on a gruesome physical transformation to illustrate that duality. Eight For Silver (review) is a werewolf thriller that made its debut at this year's Sundance Film Festival. Eight for Silver is full of bland stock characters that don’t offer any rooting interest. There are also far too many nightmare sequences about the Romani blacksmith: first Charlotte Laurent (Amelia Crouch) has one, then Edward, then finally McBride (twice!). Sean Ellis’ Eight for Silver aims to take a more original crack at werewolf lore, while still keeping very true to the influence of silver. Sean Ellis’ Eight For Silver premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this year. Writer-director Sean Ellis revisits the werewolf legend as a fogbound descent into Victorian Gothic in Eight for Silver. At no point, though, is there is penance for these slaughtered individuals or an attempt to understand their plight. Sean Ellis’ horror film has some nifty ideas but relies too heavily on superficial elements. After local boy Timmy (Tommy Rodger) ill-advisedly digs up the treasure, Seamus’ young son Edward (Max Mackintosh) is infected and transformed into a hideous beast that attacks and kills the locals. There are no strong characters, and the plot only seems to serve the next bloody death or horrifying transformation. It coasts on twisting a few werewolf tropes, playing up the atmosphere, using a period setting, and then piling on the gore. The Roma choose to curse the lord, his family, and the inhabitants of the land with nightmares. That carries the film somewhat, but by the end all you’ve got is a hollow growl. The idea of a serious werewolf period piece in the vein of the recent "elevated horror" trend is a good one, and Eight For Silver 's contributions to werewolf … From Matt Goldberg, The 25 Best Documentaries on Netflix Right Now, 'Valheim' Notches 5+ Million Sales in Iron Gate Studio's Hand-Crafted Viking Belt, Breaking Down 'WandaVision's TV Sitcom and Genre Influences, Episode by Episode, 'I Care a Lot': Rosamund Pike Reveals the Significance Behind that Vape Pen, Alyson Hannigan on ‘Flora & Ulysses’ and How She Successfully Navigated the Transition From Child Actor, Here's What's Leaving HBO Max in March 2021, Alejandro González Iñárritu Starts Filming on ‘Limbo’, His First Feature Since ‘The Revenant’, Watch Ben Affleck Roast David Fincher for Always Filming So Many Dang Takes, 'Jupiter's Legacy': New Footage, Cast Photos Tease Netflix's Next Great Superhero Show, 'Superman & Lois' Goes on Hiatus — Find Out What CW Show Will Take Its Slot, Tom Holland Loves ‘WandaVision’ So Much He Has to Stop From Asking Kevin Feige How It Ends, Trippy Sci-Fi Thriller Series 'Dr. Eight for Silver might sound like some oblique title for an indie drama, but is actually a sly, gothic werewolf horror from Sundance-favorite director Sean Ellis. In rural 19th-century France, a mysterious, possibly supernatural menace threatens a small village.

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