The Big Picture

Out Come the Wolves
is an intense survival thriller that takes a predictable love triangle to brutal, bloody heights.
Effective body horror provides a visceral viewing experience.
The film delivers on its gory premise with practical effects, sound design, and powerful performances.

There’s nothing quite as effective as a well-executed high-concept film. A giant shark terrorizes beachgoers, GMO dinosaurs wreak havoc at a theme park, or, in the case of Out Come the Wolves, a pack of vicious canines try to devour your nasty jealous boyfriends. A tense, at times nauseating survival thriller from director Adam MacDonald, this indie is one part love triangle, two parts female rage, and three parts skin-crawling body horror, sure to leave you putting down the popcorn, watching through your fingers, and likely rethinking your next cabin retreat.

What Is ‘Out Come the Wolves’ About?
Out Come the Wolves takes you deep into the woods for a wholly uncomfortable weekend getaway with Sophie (Missy Peregrym), her fiancé, Nolan (Damon Runyan), and her lifelong best friend, Kyle (Joris Jarsky). Nolan wants to learn how to hunt, Sophie wants Kyle to teach him, and Kyle, obviously, wants Sophie all to himself. As Nolan uncovers more about Sophie and Kyle’s tangled past, jealousy and egos run high as the two men embark on a hunting trip, which is soon interrupted by a pack of ravenous wolves. When Sophie learns that her two favorite men are in mortal peril, she dons her bow and arrow and embarks on a perilous rescue attempt, leaving us wondering who, if anyone, will make it out of the forest alive.

Missy Peregrym, Joris Jarsky, and Damon Runyan Fight for Their Lives in ‘Out Come the Wolves’
Image via IFC Films

In terms of performances, Out Come the Wolves acts as an intimate character drama as much as it does a bloody wolf buffet. On the part of the two male characters, the emotional demands oscillate between seething jealousy and abject terror. Luckily, Damon Runyan and Joris Jarsky knock it out of the park. Minutes after you’re rolling your eyes at their possessive pissing matches, you’re cringing in sympathy as they’re subjected to the terrors of the untamed wild. As these men fight for their lives against a horde of hungry wolves, there’s never a moment that feels over-acted, adding to the film’s disturbing realism.

In her role as Sophie, Missy Peregrym’s performance is a bit more complex. She’s at times playful, doting, disappointed, enraged, and devastated, and Peregrym does it all with ease. As she grapples with horrific circumstances, tending to wounds both physical and emotional on her quest to save those she loves, Sophie emulates all the qualities of a badass final girl, never letting her fear or pain stop her from doing what needs to be done.

‘Out Come the Wolves’ Delivers on Its Gory Premise
Image via IFC FIlms

Blessed with gorgeous scenery, great actors, and a straightforward story, Out Come the Wolves is at its best when it embraces simplicity. While there are some impressive, sweeping shots of the forest, and one jarring shot randomly tinted red, the movie really works when it forgoes gimmicks, providing its most powerful moments with simple jumpcut-jump scares and drawn-out shots of our leads in peril. Screenwriter Enuka Okuma (who collaborated on the story with MacDonald and Jarsky) further aids in this believability, with the characters’ dialogue and choices feeling refreshingly realistic.

While seasoned fans of the survival genre might be slightly less impressed by the crunching bones and tearing flesh, curious horror novices will undoubtedly be affected by the sickening (and excellent) combination of practical effects, sound design, and eerily convincing performances. If you come for the wolves, you will certainly not leave disappointed.

‘Out Come the Wolves’ Cinematography Objectifies Missy Peregrym Just as the Characters Do

While the “hungry beast tries to eat people” plot is a surefire hit, the main conflict of Out Come the Wolves, aside from the battle with the titular beasts, stems from the raging jealousy of its male leads — a thinly veiled, but ultimately successful metaphor. Early in the film, fueled by cognac and testosterone, Nolan talks about his fiancée like the piece of meat that he himself is sure to become within the next 45 minutes. As he and Kyle compete for Sophie’s affection, they strip her down to parts and dismiss her desires, as Nolan confesses to Kyle that he couldn’t possibly be just friends with a “f**king hot girl”, and Kyle is positive that he knows Sophie better than she knows herself.

The camera likewise objectifies her, and throughout the movie, we’re shown Sophie as the men in her life see her. We zero in on her eyes and lips as she aims a bow and arrow, see her slowly dance as she tries to entice Nolan to join her, and, at one point, watch as the camera slowly rakes up her body as she lies in bed, taking its time dissecting our heroine. By the time the third act rolls around, and Sophie is bloodied, bruised, and at her wit’s end with the wolves that keep trying to eat her, the screams that tear through her resonate on multiple levels.

Ultimately, through its powerhouse performances, effective bare-bones plots, and strong horror elements, Adam MacDonald’s latest survival story gets the job done, and does it well. 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.

Out Come the Wolves is in theaters in the U.S. starting August 30. Click below for showtimes near you.

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