Wolf Girl
(aka - Blood Moon)
(Fox Region 1 NTSC DVD)
(2001)
review by Catwalk

Wolf Girl is the story of Tara Talbot (Sanchez), the main attraction in a traveling Freak Show, whose quest for a cure goes down an unwanted path.  She’s accustomed to her act as the furry, savage wonder, but never content.  Tara soon falls in love with a teenage geek (Tiefenbach), who administers an experimental treatment on her.  That’s when her feral instincts become dominant, even as she begins to appear more “normal”.

Wolf Girl boasts some very captivating visuals, centering around the Freak Show.  The ringleader is Harley Dune, played by the evil Tim Curry.  (Not that Tim Curry is always evil, but just like Leonard Nimoy, when he has a goatee, he’s bad Tim Curry.)  Other members of the sideshow include Christoph/Christine (Jones), Fingers Finnian (Jordan Prentice) and Athena the Fat Lady (Darlene Cates).

What’s a poor girl story without a villain?  Nothing, so in this case instead of an Evil Stepmother, Tara and Ryan face a gang of bored, violent miscreants nicknamed the Neaderthals.  Led by the venomous Krystal (Shelby Fenner) and her competitive pretty boy asshole partner, Beau (Ashmore), the gang seeks to torture and embarrass anyone they feel superior to.  (On a side note, Ashmore is in danger of becoming typecast.  He’s a good “jerk who really isn’t as tough as he wants to be”, and may be this generation’s Billy Zabka (who was the mean Johnny Lawrence in “The Karate Kid” and later the idiot Chas in “Back to School”.  He’s since been cast into the oblivion that is Sci-Fi Channel Saturday movies.)

As the film progresses, the flaws of the Neanderthals are learned, giving them some depth but not decreasing the desire to see them gutted.  

Wolf Girl could easily be mistaken for any Steven King made-for-TV movie.  The original score by Chritophe Beck is moving and elegant.  The casting of veterans Curry and Warren adds a steadying presence.  Tiefenbach is the ideal awkward kid, and Sanchez is absolutely fearless in her actions as the title character.

Notable trivia fact:  When Harley introduces the Wolf Girl, he uses the same dialogue used to introduce the title character in The Elephant Man.

Scott McClelland, who plays the Amazing Pin-Cushion, is actually the owner of “Carnival Diablo: The Ultimate Sideshow”. (http://www.carnivaldiablo.com/)