Loosely based on true events, this high-powered Gallic blockbuster - directed by Christophe Gans, hired on the strength of his incredible genre-bending adaptation of CRYING FREEEMAN - wowed French audiences when released in 2001. And no wonder! A high-kicking combination of horror movie, period drama, political thriller and 'Matrix'-inspired kung fu pageant, the film combines the best elements of these disparate sub-genres in a dazzling display of technical wizardry. Photographed in widescreen Super 35 by Dan Laustsen (MIMIC, THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN), and played with solemn conviction by an all-star cast - including relative newcomers Vincent Cassel (LA HAINE), Monica Bellucci (the MATRIX sequels) and Jeremie Renier (LES AMANTS CRIMINELS), and veterans Jean Yanne (most recently seen in BELLE MAMAN) and Edith Scob (the elegant heroine of Franju's LES YEUX SANS VISAGE) - the movie is a riot of action and intrigue, sustained by a multilayered screenplay (co-authored by Gans and Stephane Cabel) which recounts an elaborate fable of class warfare and religious bigotry during a grim period of French history. The fight scenes - choreographed with ruthless efficiency by Hong Kong movie veteran Phillip Kwok (MASTER OF THE FLYING GUILLOTINE, HARD-BOILED, TOMORROW NEVER DIES, etc.) - are fashioned with elegant grace, and edited to perfection by Sebastien Prangere and David Wu Dai-wai (another prominent HK movie figure, Ronny Yu Yan-tai's current editor of choice). Much of the film's otherworldly visual texture is due to the sumptuous art direction (by Guy-Claude Francois [JEFFERSON IN PARIS]) and costume design (by Dominique Borg), which roots proceedings in a recognizable period 'style', despite Gans' resolutely modern approach to the material. It shouldn't work, but it does, somehow. The 'explanation' for the beast and its murderous activities - which takes into account a wide range of modern research into the story of an animal which really DID terrorize the French countryside during the 18th century - forms the backbone of the entire production, and while much of the film is a rip-roaring joy, the climactic sequences are offset by an element of tragedy and sadness, which thoroughly distinguishes the movie from most of its Hollywood counterparts. All in all, BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF is a magnificent folly, way ahead of its time, and quite unlike anything ever made before.

This review is based on a viewing of the Canadian disc from TVR Films which presents the original French version in its entirety (the international version, including the one released in the US and UK, appears to be shorter by about 10 minutes) and runs 150m 34s, minus the logos which open the video print and weren't part of the original production, and letterboxes the scope frame at 2.35:1 (anamorphically enhanced). The US disc - a region 1 release from Universal - is a no-frills affair which features a letterboxed anamorphic version of the shorter print, and some reviews suggest it's a better-looking transfer than the one featured on the Canadian disc. Captions and subtitles are provided. The Canadian version, however, is a 3-disc spectacular, and features (amongst many other things) an extremely frank documentary on the making of the film which opens with an actress being clobbered during an accident on-set, and proceeds to outline the various obstacles which constantly threatened the production schedule (not least the unpredictable weather during location shooting) and ultimately strained relations between director Gans and co-producer Samuel Hadida. That such a remarkable film emerged from these traumatic circumstances says much about the talent and dedication of these extraordinary gentlemen and all those who helped bring their unique vision to the silver screen. A triumph.


Quite the exceptional French Action/Horror film:   June 24, 2002
 38 out of 46 found this review helpful

Largely based on actual events taking place during the reign of King Louis XV, Brotherhood of the Wolf is an 18th-century-era tale of the mysterious "Beast of Gevaudan" that left a trail of mutilated victims (mostly women and children) and spread wholesale terror amongst the peasants in southeast France before its eradication under somewhat mysterious circumstances.
In the film, King Louis XV assigns a young detective Gregoire de Fronsac (Le Bihan) and his partner Mani (Mark Dacascos), a Mohawk Indian to investigate the mysterious creature.

The incredibly lavish, numbered limited edition 3-disk French DVD release included:
1. Production Notes
2. Audio commentary by Director Christophe Gans, actors Samuel Le Bihan and Vincent Cassel
3. An 80-minute "Making of... " featurette
4. A 36-minute editing featurette of Cut scenes
5. Clips of plans not used
6. Interview of Historian Michel Louis
7. Theatrical trailers
8. A 24-page booklet
9. a 90-minute documentary on 'Turning'
10. Deleted scenes, trailers, storyboards, stills, posters, production notes, a press kit and DVD-Rom content.

Chances are slim that purchasers of the Region 1 US version will be treated to the same fine accompaniments.


A truly entertaining historical action movie from France   December 21, 2001
 37 out of 43 found this review helpful

We (Husband Steve and myself) had expected a 'normal' werewolf story, but we were in for a pleasant surprise!
Steve did not mind reading the subtitles and I am lucky enough to understand French, so we both left the cinema very happy indeed. The plot centres around a mystical beast said to be roaming the forest and killing women and children and is based on a true story in late 18th century France. It is said that still today local historians do not know what exactly the beast was, but the killings stopped all of a sudden, so the beast must have somehow been hunted down and killed. The makers of the film made sure their research was solid enough to make the story plausible, and as for the setting, the costumes,the atmospere, the colours, the language and the portrayal of French aristocracy and life in that period of time just before the French Revolution is lively and full of suspense. The main characters of the story are the noble Gregoire de Fronsac (Samuel Le Bihan) and his taciturn Native American companion and blood brother Mani (Mark Dacascos) who have been asked by the French king to investigate the story of the Beast in the French region of Gevaudan. There they meet an amazing assembly of nobles who in spite of the killings do not seem altogether interested in uncovering the truth, but more in getting rid of the investigators and going back to leading their normal lives - the reason for which becomes apparent later on in the plot. Even the love interest between de Fronsac and Marianne de Morangias (Emilie Dequenne) does not slow things down as so often happens in films of that nature, and the witty dialogues are a pleasure to follow.
There is a lot of mysticism involved, be it through the character of J.Francois Morangias (brother of Marianne, Vincent Cassel) whose travels had led him to Africa where he lost one of his arms while hunting and who will do anything to keep his sister from harm - or men like de Fronsac, or the amazingly impressing representation of a Native American's way of looking at life, nature and people, and as an extra bonus the action scenes are superbly done.
So, it goes almost without saying that the character that impressed us most was the taciturn Mohawk Indian and the way Mark Dacascos managed to portray him as an almost supernatural being linked to nature and animals and seemingly removed and existing on a totally different spiritual level.
We wholeheartedly recommend this film, it is full of action, suspense, drama, a must!!


Special Features   January 6, 2004
 35 out of 38 found this review helpful

3 DISC SPECIAL EDITION

Special Features
(all special features are in French WITH English subtitles unless otherwise noted)

:: Two Commentaries (in French with NO English subs)
:by actors Samuel Le Bihan and Vincent Cassel
:by director Christophe Gans
:: Deleted Scenes
:: "The Guts of the Beast" Documentary - 78 min.
:: "Behind the Scenes" Documentary - 78 min.
:: Filmographies
:: Trailer
:: "The Legend" Documentary
:: Storyboards
:: Photo Gallery
:: Production Notes Booklet


A beautiful horror kung fu action period film from France   January 14, 2003
 33 out of 38 found this review helpful

Wow, they certainly tossed just about everything into the pot in making this one, including the French Revolution. "Le Pacte des Loups" starts off as a exquisitely photographed costume drama/horror flick set in 18th century France with a poor peasant girl being hunted down by an unseen beast. My first thought that this was a beautiful film, more reminiscent of a Jane Austen period piece than a horror flick from Hammer Studio. But then our hero, Gregoire de Fronsac (Samuel Le Bihan) and his faithful Indian companion, Mani (Mark Dacasos), show up and we suddenly discover the film is also a cross between "The Last of the Mohicans" and "Couching Tiger, Hidden Dragon." However, since this is movie based on a legend regarding a huge wolf ravaging the French countryside, this hardly seems the time to insist upon a standard of realism.

The collaboration between director Christophe Gans and cinematographer Dan Laustsen results in some beautiful and memorable camera shots (most notably, as the camera tracks up a woman's nude body it morphs into snow covered terrain), often playing with time and movement to great effect. In the deleted scenes Gans provides a sort of mini-commentary on the film that is quite interesting in terms of setting up the film's dynamic, especially regarding the opening sequence originally conceived for the film and the scene that replace it. Laustsen is the cinematographer on upcoming "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," and my assumption is that when I see that film I will have a better sense of who contributed the most to "Brotherhood of the Wolf."

The film was edited Xavier Loutreuil and Sebastien Prangere, with David Wu doing the Hong Kong kung fu fight sequences, which are impresive because they do not, for the most part, violate the realism of the time, which is a way of saying the wire work is extremely limited and understated. I also like the way Fronsac's love triangle is color coded: Marianne de Morangias (Emilie Dequenne) is a redhead often dressed in a red uniform while the raven haired Sylvia (Monica Bellucci) always wears black. The rouge/noir opposition works well in contrast to the blues, browns and yellows which serve as the palatte for most of the film.

My only real complaint is actually the traditional complaint one has after watching a Hammer horror film: the beast, when we finally get to see it, is something of a disappointment. However, I will allow that this is probably due as much to my heightened expectations given the quality level of the rest of the film more than to the limitations of CIG technology. The second time I watched the film this aspects was less bothersome to me, but still something of a disappointment. An action/horror/fantasy/thriller/romance like "Brotherhood of the Wolf" is not going to be embraced by everyone, but certainly fans of those genres will admire the ambition of this film, the most beautiful of its type we have ever seen.