Don't believe in the genre classification for this movie. It's not a horror movie, not at all. Classifying it as a horror movie is an insult of those true horror movies that can raise up your hair in each minute and each second. It's just a thriller movie at most. So, those who are fan of thrilling movies, but not really into horror things, feel safe and go ahead to watch it, if you have not done so yet.
The movie revolves around babes, hunks and wolf. Yes, there are a few babes in this movie, clad in old rural villagers' outfits. However, being set in place in the medieval time, the tight fashion with corset then made them quite well endowed and sexy, with Amanda being the sexiest of all. We also have a few hunks, with 2 main handsome boys fighting for the love and affection of the most beautiful girl in the village. Add into the context a scary big black wolf, and you have something to spend your one and a half hour.
Despite the famous title, the movie was very loosely based on the evergreen bedtime story. There was no small girl, only coming of age teenagers. There was no wolf pretending to be grandma, just wolf jumping around and killing mercilessly. There was a love triangle, with one guy gaining unfair advantage as the girl's childhood sweetheart, while the other one tried desperately to turn the table and win her love with his good look, sincerity and brave sacrifice for her, not with money or position.
There are a few fighting scenes in the movie, mostly between the wolves and those who tried to put an end to their own sufferings and the menace they have been enduring all the while. However, there was quite little bloodshed, and although the wolf looked big, its wet and dirty fur look did not scare much. It seemed to be not so high end CGI involved, and the fights were quite simple. You can easily find better action sequences elsewhere.
Having said that, the movie still had to plus points worth highlighting. First, Amanda's acting was quite natural, and through her abnormal big eyes, I could sometimes see emotion lingering, be it fear, anger, passion or confusion. She has been progressing, and will become a big shot in Hollywood very soon. Secondly, the plot was quite ok, except for the ending. I was left puzzled for quite a large part of the movie, unable to make a strong guess on who was the man turned into wolf. There were confusing indicators, and hints here and there for the possible candidates, which would help glue viewers to their seats as they wanted to stay until the end to see who the culprit was. Thirdly, when the real culprit was finally revealed, I was quite surprised and when I thought again about it later, it was a good fit. The film makers must have put some serious thoughts into the script and the flow of events to make it logical and fun to watch.
However, the part that disappointed me most in the movie was also the ending. It ended abruptly and loosely. There was no proper wrapping up, which made me think that they might want to leave a placeholder for a sequel should this one be a success. I will not say exactly how it ends, but it's something like the ending of Pirates of the Caribbean 3, but less graceful. Moreover, the only sex scene in the movie was pushed all the way to the very end, when everything has been settled, making it out of place and not necessary at all. It did not contribute anything to the story or the flow, and it seemed to be there just because it was a Hollywood movie, and a Hollywood movie needs some sex scenes so it can sell. Or maybe they shot that scene, but during editing they could not find any proper place to put it (I cannot see any place that they could put it either), and they did not want to cut it out totally after having to persuade Amanda to do it, and spending some efforts making it look good and sexy. I just find it ironic, and totally useless for the movie indeed. Maybe just another reason for you to be patient and stay until the end, assuming that you come to the cinema just to see Amanda naked and having sex for a few seconds.
The teenager and her love
Gary Oldman made a supporting appearance in this movie as the professional and obsessed werewolf slayer. He was talented, and his acting skill was natural. We all know that. However, the role did not give him much room to showcase his talent, and was cut short abruptly as well.
The teenager going to her grandma's
Her abnormally big eyes never fails to make an impression
The very short and unnecessary sex scene
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