#Nathalie Biancheri

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[week-of-wonders]

Wolf (2021)

[ceirinen]

- Wolf (2021), dir. Nathalie Biancheri.

[icantspellthings]

This article from 2019 has me fucking laughing like mad, why didn't they make this film!!!! I NEED IT!!! BARRY IS PERFECT FOR IT

Edit: FUCK THEY MADE THE MOVIE BUT BARRY WASN'T IN IT MOTHERFUCKEF

[alicentdeservesbetter]

NEW PROJECT: Olivia Cooke and Jamie Bell to star in romance film ‘TAKES ONE TO KNOW ONE’ from Nathalie Biancheri. When Eleanor (Cooke) and Lucas (Bell) meet in Rome, the chemistry is electric.

[nicolacoughlanbigheartfanpage]

WOLF

Nathalie Biancheri sharing the news that movie WOLF is not available on Netflix, I don’t which countries are available since it’s different each region, but in case you haven’t checked.

[arcanespillo]

oooooh 🫀 (it is saltbind btw)

The Eight Mountains 2022 ‘Le otto montagne’ Directed by Felix van Groeningen, Wolf 2021 Directed by Nathalie Biancheri, My Heart Can’t Beat Unless You Tell It To 2020 Directed by Jonathan Cuartas, Super Dark Times 2017 Directed by Kevin Phillips, Little Sister 2016 Directed by Zach Clark, The Hand of God 2021 ‘È stata la mano di Dio’ Directed by Paolo Sorrentino, Brick 2005 Directed by Rian Johnson

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wolf (2021) | dir. nathalie biancheri

[mackayzy]

George MacKay and Lily-Rose Depp in WOLF (2021).

[weak-hero]

WOLF (2021) dir. Nathalie Biancheri

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[thecinematics]

First look at George MacKay in Wolf (2021), dir. Nathalie Biancheri

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Wolf (2021) (opinion, kinda review)

Images are from imdb.com

I saw the trailer for this movie a few months ago and immediately thought "Well, somebody finally made a movie about species dysphoria.” Or more precisely, about people suffering from it; from this whole phenomenom that to many (including me) exists only in heated discussions on twitter and Tumblr, or in ethically questionable documentaries and reality TV shows.

When you look up this movie’s title on Tumblr, you find quite a few negative reviews from people that I assume had the same thought as I did when I first saw the trailer. Except they are not really reviews - they are angry emotions packed into words like “disgusting” and “worse than I thought”. I had to watch the movie to find out for myself. And after I did, I think the disgusted/offended view on this movie is unjustified.

This movie is not about species dysphoria.

Aside from it being my actual opinion after seeing the movie, it is also a direct quote from the director Nathalie Biancheri in one of her recent interviews:

But I also felt that in reality, like the themes that I kind of wanted to explore and the story that I wanted to tell, I didn't really want to do that, within a real world setting or necessarily have a sense of position towards species dysphoria or make a film about species dysphoria. So, that was quite clear to me early on. I have a background in journalism and documentary, so it was more like a light bulb, like a trigger and a jumping off point, but then I quite quickly departed and decided to just write my fiction narrative.

This movie is a fiction.

It is a story about a boy suffering from species dysphoria.

If you let yourself truly watch the movie and peek under its surface layer, it is a movie about finding out your identity, about one’s place in the world, and about trauma and healing and the world around you sometimes not getting you, and even hurting you in the process that is deemed neccessary (but is it really?) to help you.

It is most surely an art house piece, in my opinion. A movie you can so gladly enjoy in its boldness to embrace its unusual setting, but wouldn’t choose for a movie night with your date (especially if it’s a first date). Its thought provoking sets, costumes and ensamble of very capable actors bring forward many questions and ideas, and ideals - and I believe each viewer can catch a glimpse of something close to their heart in this movie. Be it the desire to be free, or the desire to belong.

The cast, mainly amazing George Mackay, who at this points embodies the highest standard for a truly physical performance, and Lily-Rose Depp, who brings Wildcat alive so well with her voice and body language, that it makes me mad that the reviews focus mostly on her physical feline-like features, introduces characters so full of potential, it is almost pitiful this concept wasn’t a mini series. The story is about Jacob - a boy who belives is a wolf. But there is also a girl who thinks she is a spider, and one who thinks she is a parrot, and a big man who desperately wishes to be recognized as a squirrel, to a point where he snaps off his nails, trying to will them to become claws so he could climb a tree. Wildcat and Rufus, who thinks himself a German Shepherd, both show signs (and speak) of major trauma that their condition might be rooted in. 

At this point, I am starting to see the basis for the outrage people may feel with this potrayal. I cannot speak for people actually suffering from this condition. All I can declare is that I see how this could be considered at the very least a harsh potrayal. 

But what I’ve gathered from this movie, is that it is a story about people suffering from species dysphoria. This movie didn’t strive to be educational or truthful about the condition. This movie strived to tell a story, and used a setting and elements of species dysphoria. Whether they did it well is up to anybody’s standards, but it does not make this movie an anti-species dysphoria propaganda - or disgusting. There are thousands of movies, low or high budget, tackling similiar (serious) issues. Sometimes gracefully, sometimes not. The best we can do is like a movie, the worst we can do is dislike it. It is just a movie.

The angry online mobs that want to burn this movie at a stake can be angry - it is everybody’s right to be angry. But perhaps we can use our energy on something more productive other than unjustly trashing an art house film. These are always hit or miss. For me - this movie was a hit. For others, it doesn’t have to be. 

Movies, theatre, art, writing - these are our entertainment and creativity outlets. It doesn’t always have to be true, it doesn’t always have to be like you imagined it. If people nowadays learned to cease this group call to “cancel” everything disagreeable, perhaps we could all discover some middle ground in this world, and learn by kindness rather than hate. Too often, public calls for “freedom” by restraining others. Maybe if one looks hard enough, they can find this theme in this movie as well.

Just to round up this ramble - Wolf definitely has its flaws. In story-telling, for example. The Zookeeper (portrayed by the amazing Paddy Considine) is a caricature of evil at times - to the extent where you wish his picture was shown on the wall next to his patients’, with a stock photo of a “human” to his right, because he clearly isn’t acting like one now. There are glimpses of the supporting characters’ stories that do not have the space or time to shine, but are intriguing enough to stick in your mind. This is most likely because the story wants to focus on Jacob, who is very much deserving of the spotlight in his own right.

A wolf who wishes not to be a wolf, his howl itching just under the surface layer of his skin when he is writhing in his bed,  scratching all over during full moon. At one point, Jacob comes face to face with a wolf trapped inside a cage.

“Caught by humans, and will be killed by humans,” says the Zookeeper.

But the young wolf looks into the eyes of his brother and howls. 

This movie is not for everybody and the mixed reviews are very much expected, but it explores bold themes and manages to perform them with amazing skill. It chose a controversial setting that worked with the themes of the movie.

7,5/10

[nicolekaptan]

Wolf (2021) dir. Nathalie Biancheri

[nicolacoughlanbigheartfanpage]

LILY-ROSE DEPP

Original movie characters poster from Wolf (2021) by Nathalie Biancheri