Written and Directed by Jim Cummings
Starring Jim Cummings, Riki Lindhome and Robert Forster
Running Time: 1 hour and 23 minutes
MPAA rating: R due to Violence, Bloody Images, Some Drug Use, Language

by Rosalie Kicks, Old Sport and Nikk Nelson, The Cinema Freak of Nature

“There is no such thing as werewolves. They’re imaginary.”

Old Sport -

This is a bold statement, but I’m just gonna throw it out there and not worry about the consequences: Jim Cummings is our generation’s Orson Welles. This guy doesn’t mess around. Jim has moxie. He makes things happen. He writes. He directs. He stars. He doesn’t edit his films. This is good. This is YES. His most recent endeavor, The Wolf of Snow Hollow is, frankly, one of the most wonderful werewolf flicks I ever did see. With movies such as Happy Death Day, Crawl and Ma, the horror genre has, in my opinion, been making a return to its zany cheesy creepy phase that was experienced in many of my beloved eighties slashers and I am totally here for it.

Set in the wintry village of Snow Hollow, Jim Cummings plays deputy John Marshall, a recovering alcoholic that finds himself in the midst of a werewolf problem. With a summary that describes the film as a small mountain town plagued by dead bodies after each full moon, it could be surmised this is just a run-of-the-mill monster flick. This conclusion couldn’t be more wrong. Along with the meaningful story, I’d be remiss not to mention the incredible cinematography work from Natalie Kingston. In my experience, seeing photography work like this is not something found in horror pictures too often. She manages to capture the village in an artistic and engaging way.

Similar to Jim’s feature debut, Thunder Road, his sophomore flick, contains a heavy, emotionally charged plot as well. There is meat to this story, it isn’t just a scrappy skeleton. The character of John is complex and saddled with complications that go beyond a werewolf on the loose. His father, Sheriff Hadley (Robert Forster) is ill, John has gone through a messy divorce, his relationship with his daughter is fractured and the residents of the quaint Snow Hollow lack confidence in his detecting abilities. Then, of course, there is the issue of trying to convince the residents that, welllll, werewolves don’t even exist.

If anyone can pull this type of story off it is Jim.

The Cinema Freak of Nature -

I had no idea who Jim Cummings was. Ben and Rosalie were excited about The Wolf of Snow Hollow (2020) because of him. I was excited because, one, werewolf, and two, Robert Forster. Seeing his last performance was something I felt to be a matter of duty. And, woof, his turn as a dying man is visceral and heartbreaking. If Tarantino revived Forster’s career, Cummings did something just as important and lovely. He gave him a high note to go out on. Not too many actors get that. So now, for better or worse, I am ride or die for Jim Cummings. And what a ride it will be. I agree with Rosalie’s bold statement. There’s something going on with Jim Cummings that has a revolutionary feel to it. And in this age of dying movie theaters, and soon to be, I’m betting, dying giant movie studios, Jim will be there to remind us that all of those things can die but cinema never will. I can’t say enough about The Wolf of Snow Hollow. Instantly one of my favorite werewolf movies of all time, right up there with Wolfen (1981)--which, I think, Jim Cummings has definitely seen and drew from a lot making this one. It’s just the right amount of subversive to make the genre fresh. Jim knows exactly how and for how long to show the monster--a trick I see even seasoned filmmakers completely bungle--and add to everything, Jim’s personal performance is incredible. He plays an immensely human character, which may sound weird, but if you watch this and/or another feature of his, Thunder Road (2018)--which I did immediately after finishing this film, you’ll see what I mean. His energy reminds me of a young Ben Stiller directing Reality Bites (1994) and The Cable Guy (1996) and starring in Permanent Midnight (1998) and Zero Effect (1998). I’m not worried about Jim going Hollywood. If for no other reason, it’s starting to look like he won’t have a Hollywood to go to.

Old Sport -

To echo Nikk regarding Jim’s portrayal of the Snow Hollow deputy, I too found it to be human, but also extremely vulnerable, raw and at times outlandish (which was awesome). With the heightened, necessary and warranted scrutinization of police tactics specifically aimed at people of color, I think it should be expected that some would question JIm’s characterization choices. In both of his feature films, Jim inhabits the starring role which depicts him as an officer of the law. This comes at a time when many of us, (myself included) are pondering the mere existence of law enforcement as it stands today: a fascist organization with zero accountability. I believe there has to be another way, a more safe, humane way.

With that said, I think, in watching Cummings’s films, I don’t get the impression that he is placing these individuals of power in a positive light. In seeing the way in which he chooses to share these characters, I have found they are indeed flawed. I believe that Jim is not condoning the system, he instead is challenging us to question it. With John, he suffers from not only emotional baggage but addiction. Throughout the film, John’s unraveling is witnessed due to lack of sleep, turning back to the bottle, his lack of experience in terms of violent crime and neglect from a broken system. There is a scene in which the officers are at a local diner hashing and devising a plan on how best to catch what is believed by them to be a bloodthirsty animal preying on their community. Jim has other theories that run in the vein of logic. What’s clear is that they are ill-equipped to handle a scenario such as this. This is a sleepy village and, sure, very little can prepare you to hunt down a serial murderer regardless if it is an animal or not- but these dudes are outta their league. A problem that I believe is faced in many towns across the United States. In the end, when it is time for a new Sheriff in town, unlike what happens in our nepotism filled real world, Jim paints another version: the job going to the most deserving, who just so happens to be a female. I don’t think the answer is to stop portraying cops in the land of entertainment and Hollywood, I think the answer is to show them transparently (as hinted at in an interesting short recently featured at Fantastic Fest, Thin Blue Variety Show). By doing this, it may help people realize the true monsters walking our streets.

As for Jim, much like Nikk, I ain’t worried about him. He is not on that yellow brick road to tinsel town, he is forging a new path. One that is free of producers ruling with an iron fist, inflated budgets and empty meaningless stories. I do, however, have a concern with his teeth. I think Jim Cummings might be a vampire guys, which I find most thrilling. For if he is immortal, it may mean that I never have to worry about not having a Jim Cummings’s picture to look forward to in my lifetime.

Cinema Freak of Nature-

To Rosalie’s theory, I am torn between what I feel to be my civic duty in destroying all creatures of the night and what Jim Cummings could do, filmwise, with immortality.

And I forgot to mention Riki Lindholme, who I’ve loved since the IFC series Garfunkel and Oates, as Officer Julia Robson. Her role in this one is stellar--very reminiscent of Frances McDormand in Fargo (1996). I was so happy to see her get a role that was polar opposite her quick turn in the recent Under the Silver Lake (2018) where she did a fantastic job but the role ultimately, in my opinion, wasted her talent.

In select theaters and on demand Friday, October 9.

*Hear The Cinema Freak of Nature as a guest on MJ’s I Saw it in a Movie podcast, co-hosted by Old Sport and Red Herring.*