Stevieboy666 A blind Vietnam veteran takes on werewolves that are terrorizing a retirement community, to which he has just moved. Nick Damici was very good in the lead role but I couldn't help but wonder what Clint Eastwood or Charles Bronson would have been like too. As much a drama as a horror, a lot of the film focuses on relationships, in particular between father & son. This, coupled with a long middle section that is horror-less, may not appeal to all horror fans but I liked the fact that it certainly is not a typical werewolf flick. Acting is generally good. As for the creatures, well there's a reasonable transformation scene but the werewolves themselves reminded me of the lesser Howling efforts.

Nigel P Compared to zombie and vampire films, the curse of lycanthropy is under-represented at the box office. Perhaps this is due to the perceived need for a budget big enough to provide convincing man-to-wolf transformations. And yet micro-budgeted UK project 'Silverhide (2015)' and this prove that, with imaginative storytelling, the curse of the werewolf can still provide solid entertainment.Immediately, this story is interesting. Characters are funny and rounded, with blind Ambrose McKinley (Nick Damici) and his over-cautious son Will (Ethan Embry) winning instantly the interest. Ambrose handles the clumsy way the good folk around him overcompensate for his blindness with amusing bluntness ("We're the police, sir." "Yeah, I can smell the doughnuts."). That's where the secret lies, in my view, of good fiction – if we care about the characters, find them in some way empathic or appealing, then we're with them when the drama begins.And it isn't long before a huge shaggy creature, only partially glimpsed, destroys the lives of many of the characters we care about. Looking as if it has strayed from the set of 'Dog Soldiers (2002)' – there's a lack of CGI here – the creature mainly impresses with blurred and brief imagery. These scenes contrast well with the over-riding atmosphere of late-summer contentment in this picturesque community.As to who is the actual wolf-man, the suspects are effortlessly presented. It seems any resident in the otherwise quiet retirement community is a possibility. They all seem good natured, wholesome people, but occasional furtive glances, asthmatic conditions resulting in heavy breathing similar to that which Ambrose heard during his initial meeting with the creature, indicates that none of the quirky characters is above suspicion.There is a transformation scene here, and Director Adrián García Bogliano captures it very effectively, with a swooping camera that gives the impression of the entire scene being one continuous take. When seen in all their glory, the resulting creatures are more rubber-looking than the previous brief glimpses lead us to believe. However, in classic style, we are by this time so caught up in the compelling and original treatment that it really doesn't matter. Pleasing to see that, although there is much humour within the character interaction, the horrors are treated entirely seriously. Music is provided by the excellent Wojciech Golczewski, who so memorably went on to score 'We Are Still Here (2015)'

Red-Barracuda A blind war veteran moves to a retirement community. He soon he realises that the area is plagued by werewolf attacks.Along with the Spanish comedy-horror Attack of the Werewolves (2011), Late Phases is among the best werewolf movies of the past few years for me. It benefits in a large part from having an interesting protagonist very well played by Nick Damici. He is a well-developed character whose spiky nature is used as an effective inroad for the audience quickly getting to know the community where the action takes place. His blindness also adds an additional angle, where he is simultaneously more vulnerable to the physical dangers but is more attune to what is going on under the surface. This latter element is typified by a mystery thread to the plot which is quite common in werewolf films whereby we try to find out who in the cast is the lycanthrope.The film benefited also from having a retro feel to it. I was almost put to mind of the kind of thing John Carpenter might have made back in the 80's if he had directed a werewolf movie. The music certainly harked back to that era with its moody synth heavy sounds being a very effective mood setter. Quite a few people seem to have a problem with the werewolf make-up in this one but I must say that I disagree. Pleasingly the film-makers opted to go for costumes and physical effects as opposed to cheap CGI and the result – to me at least – was quite organic looking monsters. There was one transformation scene, and while it didn't bring anything new to the table exactly, it was executed very well in my opinion. My favourite individual moment, however, was the scene where a werewolf leaps into the air and crashes down on a car windshield. It was an unusual and menacing moment which really stayed in the memory.All things considered, I have to put this down as a fine effort. With strong acting, a decent script, some good atmosphere and a few memorable werewolf scenes, I think this can definitely be considered a superior effort in its respective sub-genre.

morrison-dylan-fan Despite seeing him mentioned a number of times on the IMDb Horror board,I for some reason have never gotten a chance to catch a glimpse of film maker Adrián García Bogliano.Taking a look at the 3 Horror flicks chosen for viewing on a Film Festival thread,I was thrilled to find Bogliano's first English language title,which led to me deciding to make this my first Bogliano phase.The plot:Falling out with his son Will,crusty, blind Vietnam war veteran Ambrose McKinley is sent to a retirement community. fiercely independent,McKinley gets on the wrong side of everyone in the neighbourhood.One night someone (or something) breaks into his house and kills McKinley's dog. Calling the cops (who tell him that there is a full moon) McKinley is told that his dog was killed by an animal with large claws,which have dug into his wall. Listening in on local residence,McKinley discovers that a series of disappearances have taken place. Believing that a werewolf is attacking the community, (sure it is…grandpa!) McKinley looks towards his neighbours,and finds them to be in complete denial. Never letting blindness blind him from the memories of the Vietnam War,McKinley decides that he must face one final horror.View on the film:Limiting the werewolf action to 15 minutes,the screenplay by Eric Stolze brilliantly puts horror fur on a tough Neo-Noir's wolfs tail. Entering the community as an outsider, Stolze takes McKinley's glasses off to reveal a leather-face Noir war vet who is the only one prepared to step into the shadows of the neighbourhood. Getting everyone else in town "off my lawn!" Stolze cooks up deep-fried Noir steaming with nervous superstitions that block anyone else from seeing the nightmare unfolding over McKinley's eyes.Crossing the pond for the first time,director Adrián García Bogliano displays an extraordinary confidence. Clawing into the Noir anxiety, Bogliano and cinematographer Ernesto Herrera cut McKinley's lawn down with razor sharp shards of light burning up the drops of blood on a wolfs fur. Bringing Robert Kurtzman (of legendary visual effects team K.N.B.) in to give the horror a real bite, Bogliano cleverly blends the horror shocks into the bubbling Neo-Noir unease,as pitch black shadows line the walls of McKinley's final battle. Nervous that he would be unable to portray blindness, Nick Damici (who wrote the Neo-Noir Cold In July) gives a magnificent performance as McKinley. Confronting anyone who tries to give him pity, Damici turns McKinley's skin brittle with stubborn force to attack the Noir horrors that have their claws in him.