'Out Come the Wolves' Reviews: Film "offers a fraught thriller that will satisfy fans of the genre, as well as a complicated character study about what we're willing to do (and stab) for the ones we love"

            On August 30, 2024, IFC Films released 'Out Come the Wolves', which has received predominantly positive reviews from critics, currently holding at 76% on Rotten Tomatoes. In the film, "At a remote cabin deep in the wilderness, a weekend of hunting turns to mayhem and a fight for survival when a pack of wolves attack a man, his female best friend, and her fiancé." The ensemble cast consists of Missy Peregrym, Joris Jarsky, and Damon Runyan. But what did the critics say?

        Avi Offer of NYC Movie Guru was less impressed, stating, "The screenplay by Enuka Okuma is just as bland and on-the-nose as its unimaginative title. Okuma and director Adam MacDonald deserve credit for keeping the plot somewhat tight and lean, for the most part, with very little padding, except for a love triangle between Sophie, Nolan and Kyle, who has a crush on Sophie. That love triangle, unsurprisingly, causes friction between the three of them. Their friction moves to the backburner when the story takes a darker turn once the wolves start to terrorize them. It takes too long to get to that point, though, and once the plot arrives there, the film becomes nothing more than a tedious, uninspired and forgettable B-movie. It's too bad that there's a lot of physical grit and unflinching gore, but very little emotional grit or anything else to enliven or to ground the film. The filmmakers know where to take ideas from, but not quite where to take them to. They also don't include enough much-needed levity. At a running time of 1 hour and 28 minutes, Out Come the Wolves opens at IFC Center and on VOD via IFC Films.        

        Matt Oakes of Silver Screen Riot says, "This lupine venture into the outdoors, despite a solid setup, fails to turn meager scraps into a full-fledged tale. In the end, there just isn’t enough to sink your teeth into." Adding, "Economically cast, the film features just three actors. It’s impressive what MacDonald is able to wring out of this tight trio, all of whom offer solid performances. But it’s the writing that lets them down, doing an effective job of setting up the drama and tension but then failing to explore that in any meaningful way."

Photo by Hans Veth on Unsplash

        Shaina Weatherhead of Collider notes, "Out Come the Wolves offers a fraught thriller that will satisfy fans of the genre, as well as a complicated character study about what we're willing to do (and stab) for the ones we love."

        Robert Kojder of Flickering Myth praises the film, stating, "Out Come the Wolves is a story of two halves satisfying for different reasons; compelling relationship dynamics transition into full-blown survival horror with vicious, grisly wounds and broken bones." Continuing, "Daringly, the filmmakers have also opted to use real animals here (with several notices in the ending credits that it was safe for the actors and creatures involved), elevating that white-knuckle adrenaline."