Reviewed by Kevin Scott, MoreHorror.com
The Beast of Bray Road (2005)
Directed by: Leigh Scott
Written by: Leigh Scott
Cast: Jeff Denton (Phil Jenkins), Thomas Downey (Quinn McKenzie), Sarah Lieving (Kelly), Noel Thurman (Pamela Fitske)
One of the many great things about being a horror fan boy and reviewing movies is finding these great little gems that go in your back pocket to pull out for those moments when you want to make a stellar, but obscure recommendation. A suggestion that will almost surely merit a response kind of like “That movie was awesome! I can’t believe that I haven’t heard of it before.” I have two genre films that are my go to recommendations. An amazing zombie comedy flick called “Hide and Creep” that’s up on YouTube in its entirety, and this very solid werewolf flick.
“The Beast of Bray Road” is steeped in some actual folklore surrounding an allegedly real creature that roams the backwoods of Wisconsin, particularly around a small community called Elkhorn. The sightings of the creature really became prolific in the late 1980’s and early 90’s, and were investigated by a local reporter. The reporter was understandably skeptical at first, but then become an advocate of the existence of the beast, even writing a book about it. Was it to cash in, or an attempt convince the rest of the world. We may never know, and I kind of hope we don’t.
Folklore is the great granddad of the filmed horror that we love so much, and “Beast of Bray Road” is lovingly crafted and seasoned with a little sensationalism to bring the folklore to life.
The framework of the plot for the film has some tropes that are used really well here. The local sheriff investigates a rash of locals being murdered, and can’t come to any logical conclusion on just who or what might be committing the murders. An expert crypto zoologist comes in from out of town, and the unlikely pair set about to discover that whatever it is is also part human as well.
I’m gonna go ahead and voice my prejudices right away, and say that I will never love a werewolf movie where the werewolf looks like a wolf, as much as I will one where the werewolf walks on two legs and resembles a man-wolf-devil. “The Howling” and “Dog Soldiers” set the bar. I’m pleased to say that the Bray Road beast walks on two legs, and is in human form from time to time. I’m calling this a werewolf movie, but since the origins of the creature of legend is speculated, the actual beast in the film is a cool hybrid of werewolf and yeti. It looks great, and surpasses what the constraints of the budget might have been. We also get some solid carnage from the victims with buckets of blood, and ripped off appendages.
Please, please check this one out. For all the reasons that I stated above, and for some plot twists in the writing that will catch you off guard. You can thank me later.