Leigh Whannell's new Wolf Man reboot contains a subtle but powerful nod to the horror franchise that launched his career. The film uses a similar climactic sequence to Saw, but with a different underlying meaning. This echoes a pattern in Whannell's work, which often includes references to his breakout film. The article explores how this reference highlights Whannell's growth as a filmmaker, from independent horror to big-budget studio productions.
Leigh Whannell ’s new Wolf Man reboot subtly yet memorably references the hit horror movie franchise that launched his filmmaking career back in 2004. Wolf Man retains the core elements of the original Universal Monsters classic — a doomed romance, a strained father-son relationship, and, of course, a werewolf — but delivers the story in a unique way.
Christopher Abbott stars as Blake Lovell, a seemingly ordinary man who travels to his deceased father’s Oregon farm, is attacked by a werewolf, and gradually transforms before his family’s eyes. This marks Whannell’s second reimagining of an iconic monster movie; he previously reinterpreted The Invisible Man as a haunting psychological drama exploring an abusive relationship. Whannell has crafted numerous successful films over the years, ranging from the thrilling cyberpunk actioner Upgrade to the chilling Insidious franchise (which he co-created). However, his debut film remains one of his most celebrated works. Whannell made a significant impact when he wrote and starred in the original Saw movie — and there’s a nod to that modern classic embedded within his latest horror creation. Wolf Man shares a gruesome climactic sequence with Saw. Near the end of Wolf Man, Blake’s wife Charlotte and his daughter Ginger barricade themselves in the barn to escape his werewolf form. He burrows under the door and stalks them through the darkness. While Charlotte and Ginger are enveloped in pitch black, Blake’s enhanced werewolf vision allows him to see them clearly. He’s mere feet away, staring intently at them. Luckily for Charlotte and Ginger, a deus ex machina intervenes: Blake’s foot becomes trapped in a bear trap. While these sequences are structurally similar, they carry distinct meanings. As Charlotte and Ginger flee the barn into the woods, Blake desperately tries to free his foot from the trap. Failing that, he makes the agonizing decision to bite off his own foot. This echoes Dr. Lawrence Gordon’s desperate act in Saw, where he saws off his own foot to escape Jigsaw’s twisted game.However, the motivations behind the acts differ significantly. Dr. Gordon’s self-mutilation was a testament to his desperation, while Blake’s act signifies the complete takeover of his primal animalistic instincts. Whannell has a history of subtly incorporating Saw references into his films. This isn’t the only callback to Saw throughout Whannell’s filmography. The director hasn’t forgotten his roots and has woven in references to his breakout film across several of his subsequent works. In Upgrade, the face of Jigsaw’s puppet Billy can be seen spray-painted as graffiti on the wall of the computer hacker’s lair. Billy also makes a cameo appearance within Mary Shaw’s puppet collection in the ventriloquist thriller Dead Silence, which Whannell co-wrote with his Saw collaborator James Wan. In Insidious, which Whannell also penned, Billy is scrawled on a blackboard beneath Wan’s name. It’s not uncommon for filmmakers to reference their earlier works in their movies. The character of Vincent Vega in Quentin Tarantino’s second film, Pulp Fiction, is implied to be the brother of Vic Vega, a character from his first film, Reservoir Dogs. In Edgar Wright’s Hot Fuzz, a DVD copy of Shaun of the Dead can be spotted in a bargain bin at the supermarket. Sam Raimi has ingeniously incorporated his beloved 1973 Oldsmobile Delta 88 into as many of his movies as possible. Saw references have become a similar signature flourish for Whannell. Wolf Man starkly illustrates the evolution of Whannell’s career since Saw. In 2004, he began with an independent horror film on a meager budget, confined almost entirely to a single room. The unexpected blockbuster success of Saw enabled Whannell to progressively create larger-scale films. The first few Saw sequels, which Whannell returned to write, each received a slightly larger budget than the last. The Insidious movies proved that Whannell could still deliver compelling horror narratives without relying on gore and so-called “torture porn,” which opened up further career opportunities. Whannell made his directorial debut with Insidious: Chapter 3 in 2015. The success of Upgrade, followed by the even greater success of The Invisible Man, has solidified Whannell as a prominent figure in Hollywood. Now, he’s entrusted with high-budget studio horror movies based on renowned intellectual properties like the Universal Monsters
Leigh Whannell Wolf Man Saw Horror Movie Filmmaker Evolution References Filmmaking Career
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