The werewolf is an fascinating creature in folklore. In one sense, they’re a shapeshifter crammed with bloodlust who wreaks havoc as quickly as they alter type. But in one other, it is like they symbolize loneliness — dwelling on the whims of the moon and infrequently left on their very own, solely to howl into the void.
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Jacqueline Castel’s My Animal is a horror-romance that just lately premiered at Sundance Film Festival and has the raging spirit of the lycanthrope flowing by means of its veins. A visually bewitching film that is laden with intense but light sexual longing, it follows the romance that unfolds between youngsters Jonny (Amandla Stenberg), who is new to city, and Heather (Bobbi Salvör Menuez), a hockey participant who could be in any other case unassuming, apart from the truth that she’s a werewolf. The film reverberates with the howl of the wolf inside of Heather, making it one of the must-see titles to return out of the competition. (Audiences will be capable of see it quickly, too, because it was acquired earlier than its premiere by Paramount.)
[Bobbi Salvör Menuez / Courtesy of Sundance Institute]
My Animal, which premiered on the Midnight part of the competition, marks the function film debut from Jacqueline Castel, who’s recognized for steering music movies for the likes of Caleb Landry Jones, Zola Jesus, and others. It’s additionally the primary full-length screenplay from Jae Matthews, who’s finest recognized for fronting the band Boy Harsher, however studied film and wrote the award-winning brief Dirt. (Boy Harsher additionally gives the rating for the film.)
The film is a very private assertion from each Castel and Matthews. “Jae Matthews wrote [the script] within the aftermath of her stepfather’s loss of life when she returned house to be together with her mom, who was grieving, and returning to highschool reminiscences,” Jacqueline Castel told AltPress in an interview at Sundance. “When I first learn the script, I felt immediately linked. I felt like there have been a lot of parallels to issues I had skilled in my very own life. There are sure scripts you learn, and also you simply really feel a connection to. It was simply fast, instinctual with My Animal.”
Together, they crafted a moody and evocative film about connecting to your true identity and finding strength in who you really are, no matter how difficult the circumstances. Expounding on the teen-monster genre, it uses the horror construct of the werewolf to show a young woman’s transformation from a person frightened of her own power to someone who embraces it — and does not apologize for it.
[Bobbi Salvör Menuez / Courtesy of Sundance Institute]
The film opens to a striking fantasy sequence that shows the effect of the full moon on Heather and the consequences of one night when she doesn’t return home in time. It contrasts between the brilliant milky white, snow-covered landscape of her small hometown and the inky seductive darkness that seems to surround Heather. Instead of princess stuck in a tower, Heather is a hockey player who surrenders her stick and mask, and chains herself to the floor of the family home that feels distinctly cold and unwelcoming to the young shapeshifter. It’s almost as cold as the chilly scenes outside. While Heather attempts to find a place for herself among the people who surround her, she finds hostility and a lack of understanding even from her loved ones. When she meets Jonny, though, and they share an immediate connection, that all starts to change.
My Animal is drenched in purple and red hues and swirling psychedelic imagery that contrasts with the stark white snow outside. In such a cold place, Heather’s passion burns brightly. In even minute graduations of expression, Bobbi Salvör Menuez and Amandla Stenberg have palpable chemistry that warms their shared scenes as their characters let the growing friendship and queer passion between them radiate from their faces and bodies until it can no longer be denied.
The symbolism of the werewolf in My Animal isn’t so much about the horror of an unwanted transformation and violence, but one of personal power and a strong sense of one’s own identity. While the image of the lone wolf is a well-known trope, in actuality, wolves are actually socialized pack animals who work cooperatively to survive. They need each other to endure and to thrive.
The untamed spirit of the werewolf runs by means of the film, stressed and wild. It’s a very apt metaphor for people who find themselves othered in our society who want to search out their method to acceptance and love, firstly and most significantly from themselves after which from others.
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