Strippers vs. Werewolves (2013) by Johnathan Glendening


Director: Johnathan Glendening
Year: 2013
Country: United Kingdom
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Werewolf

Plot:
While working their strip club shift, one of the workers accidentally kills a patron and decides to ditch the body with one of the staff, only to learn he was a werewolf crime boss and his lackeys are now seeking revenge which forces them to battle the bloodthirsty beasts to stay alive.

Review:

This was an enjoyable if somewhat flawed effort. One of the better aspects of this one is the fun setup that brings the two groups together. The innocence of the original encounter between them where she happens to stab him in the eye merely as a form of self-defense serves this nicely, and then disposing of the body which infuriates the clan at the matter of doing so is a fun way to go here. The mixture of their territorial behavior and defense of their fallen crusade feels like a rather inventive and unique way to bring them up.

As well, the werewolf attacks once they get going offering up some enjoyable scenes. The girlfriend's hallucinations about the gang running around killing others as werewolves get these scenes started on a high note, much like their first encounter where they appear at the house forcing her to leave and seek shelter at a friend. While the first massacre is unfortunately off-screen it serves to launch nicely into the fun finale featuring an attack disguised as a strip routine, back-and-forth brawls, and plenty of inventive deaths for some nice gore. These all give this some positive points.


There are some problems to be had with this one. The biggest flaw is the wholly unappealing pacing that does take a while to get going. The overreliance in the first half on delivering goofy comedic gags, what with the strippers trying to deal with the outcome of the attack and the werewolves searching for their murdered member in between business meetings, really makes it difficult to get into. That they take far too long to discover the source of the boss's disappearance which should've been far more obvious on his schedule, making them running around feel pretty pointless.

The other drawback on display is the somewhat cheap feel that does crop up throughout here. The main culprit of this is the look of the werewolves which is a paltry make-up job, being given patchwork fur haphazardly attached to the face, goblin ears, and clumsy fangs without anything on their bodies to denote their lupine state. It all looks silly and underwhelming which lessens the impact, much like the CGI used which is thankfully sparingly but still obvious when used. On the whole, these are the issues that hold the film down.


Overview: **.5/5
With some solid positive elements and a couple of drawbacks which do serve to lower it slightly, this is a watchable effort if somewhat letdown by those drawbacks. Give this one a look if you're a fan of these indie features, intrigued by the setup, or are a fan of the creative crew while most others who aren't a fan of the approach or turned off by the class should need caution.

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