Ginger Snaps (2001). Cert 18. Director - John Fawcett. Writer - John Fawcett & Karen Walton. Starring - Emily Perkins, Katharine Isabelle, Kris Lemche, Mimi Rogers & Jesse Moss.

Premise - Angst ridden teenagers Ginger and Brigette are attacked by a creature in the woods. Ginger is bitten by the creature and starts to gradually change into a werewolf. Since Scream was released in 1996 horror films have for the large part starred sexy teens, had rock soundtracks and have been ironic in their treatment of the genre. Ginger Snaps is a breath of fresh air in a genre that has been resting on it's Scream induced laurels for so long.   Whilst it has sexy teens and a (good) rock soundtrack, Ginger Snaps is for the most part played straight without even a hint of post-modern irony. There are some laughs, but these come for the most part from a delightful Mimi Rogers playing the naive, dotting mother of the two teenagers. Director Fawcett (The Boy's Room) goes down the less is more path regarding the werewolf. Not until the final reel do we see the full creature, instead Fawcettt gives us some quick, flashing, glimpses in the first reel and then uses some exemplary make-up work to show the transition that Ginger is going through.   Speaking of transitions, Ginger Snaps is primarily a horror film. However dig deeper and you will uncover a sharply written exploration of the transition of adolescence. The werewolf maguffin is used as metaphor for the loss of innocence as teenagers enter adulthood. Relative newcomers Emily Perkins and Katharine Isabelle shine as the two teenagers. Particularly Perkins as the titular Ginger. Her transition from goth tinged suicide candidate, through vampy seductress, to what she ultimately becomes is quite impressive. Isabelle is exemplary also, she spends almost the entire film in some state of fear and conveys it well. I touched on the effects before, but the practical make-up and model work is off the highest standard. Its refreshing to see a film stick with practical work when so many are abandoning the craft to use CGI. For my money CGI, just isn't at the point where it can completely replace practical work. A perfect example is the recent American Werewolf In Paris. The creature in that was so fake that any sense of fear was lost.   Ginger Snaps is an excellent movie that slipped many people by on it's (limited) cinema release I would urge all horror fans to seek it out. Heck, even if your not a horror fan the story is strong enough to engage the non-horror lover as well.

7/10 for Ginger Snaps. Poster Quote - A film with some real bite.