Cursed (2005)

A werewolf loose in Los Angeles changes the lives of three young adults, who, after being mauled by the beast, learn they must kill their attacker if they hope to change their fate to avoid becoming werewolves too.

Director:

Wes Craven

Writer:

Kevin Williamson

Stars:

Portia de Rossi, Mya, Jesse Eisenberg

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Portia de Rossi	...	Zela
Mya	...	Jenny
Shannon Elizabeth	...	Becky
Kristina Anapau	...	Brooke
Daniel Edward Mora	...	Jose (as Daniel Mora)
Solar	...	Zipper
Jesse Eisenberg	...	Jimmy
Milo Ventimiglia	...	Bo
Jonny Acker	...	Earl
Eric Ladin	...	Louie
Christina Ricci	...	Ellie
Joshua Jackson	...	Jake
Derek Mears	...	Werewolf
Nick Offerman	...	Officer
Ken Rudulph	...	Newscaster

Storyline

Ellie has been taking care of her younger brother Jimmy since their parents death. One night after picking him up from a party they are involved in a car accident on Mullholland Drive. While trying to rescue a woman from the other car a creature attacks and kills her, also injuring both Ellie and Jimmy. After some research Jimmy realizes the creature could only have been a werewolf.

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Plot Keywords:

werewolf | car accident | attack | death | dog attack | 

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Taglines:

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

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Genres:

Comedy | Horror | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for horror violence and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site TFM [fr]

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 February 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Wes Craven's Cursed

Filming Locations:

Hollywood Center Studios - 1040 N. Las Palmas Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$116,070 (South Africa) (5 August 2005)

Gross:

$116,070 (South Africa) (5 August 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dimension Films, Outerbanks Entertainment, Craven-Maddalena Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min 99 min (unrated)

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Some footage used in the previews was used only in brief flashes during a dream sequence. This footage is seemingly unrelated to the rest of the film.

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Goofs

Zipper the "weredog" destroys the front door when attacking Jimmy and Bo, but later when Ellie and Jimmy come home, the door is intact.

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Quotes

Ellie: You're a monster!
Jake: Join the club.

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Connections

Referenced in Welshy Reviews: Scream 4: Part 1 (2011)

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Soundtracks

"This Is a Forgery"
Written by Christopher Carrabba
Performed by Dashboard Confessional
Courtesy of Vagrant Records

User Reviews

Remember, Werewolf movies are almost never scary...

I've been waiting to see Cursed for a very long time, probably more than a year, since the first time I heard about it. I expected a great movie, with Wes Craven at the helm why wouldn't it be a great film? I went to the opening day matinée showing and this is how I sum it up.

Cursed fails to capture the audience's attention for a few main reasons. First and foremost, it follows too much standardized formula and fails to think outside the box. Watching Cursed, you can almost predict exactly what will happen and when it will happen. The script could have been improved with a few minor changes which would have changed the entire direction of the film. Instead you have an A-Typical werewolf film with the protagonists fighting to save them selves from the "curse". Sorry folks, this story has been done in other horror films more times than I can count, and not just in werewolf films!

One element I didn't care for was when the brother, Jimmy, suggests being a werewolf could be cool. This is exactly where the story should have gone from that point onwards. But as quickly as he says being a werewolf could be cool, he falls back to the standard "gotta kill the head werewolf and end this curse" attitude. The movie would have been better if Jimmy had welcomed his "curse". Had that one change in plot occurred the story could have gone off in several darker and more interesting plot lines.

I can't fault the CGI effects for a change. I am strong opponent of CGI technology as the effects usually look awful.In Cursed the effects are better than normal, although they are still no where near the traditional "An American Werewolf in London" make-up and prosthetics quality.

I did enjoy the humor in the film. Cursed does offer several very funny moments and a few corny ones too. Without the humor the movie would have been an utter waste of time. The humor helps detract from the poor plot line which you can tell was attempting to be clever like Scream, but failing miserably.

I wonder if Wes Craven was even on the set when this film was made. It seemed to lack of the trademark qualities of a Craven film. Whatever the case may be it is obvious he did not do his research in what makes a great werewolf film.

Werewolf films, to be effective, must have several good transformation scenes, graphic mauling and mutilations and an innocent protagonist who is seduced by the curse. Cursed really has none of these qualities.

Overall I did enjoy the film, but I also expected the movie would fail to "wow me", which it did. It seems to me that the problems with Cursed were mostly script and plot related. Don't expect to be scared, but try to have a little fun with what it is.

Remember, werewolf movies are almost never scary...especially if they throw in a happy ending!