I made a commitment over the Summer to try and binge watch as many werewolf films as I can. Some of them were great, some of them were good...Most of them were bad. Going into Full Eclipse, an HBO Original Movie from the early 90s that hardly anyone seems to remember, my expectations were staggeringly low. Thankfully, I'm here to tell you that Full Eclipse has no right being as good as it turned out. While it does suffer from several cons common of Made-For-TV movies, the film's developed characters, interesting themes, strong performances and (At moments) genuine suspense make it well worth a watch for fans of the werewolf movie genre.
Much like the previously reviewed Spawn (Which I also loved), the most glaring and distracting issue with Full Eclipse is the special effects. However, while Spawn suffered from laughable CGI, Full Eclipse suffers from laughable practical effects. Whoever thought that werewolves with Wolverine-esque bone claws was a cool idea seriously needed to take a long time back at the drawing board. They're goofy, distracting, unconvincing and constantly make me think of the X-Men rather than The Wolf Man whenever they show up. The film also suffers from a pretty lackluster transformation sequence. If you go to werewolf films specifically to watch a memorable, frightening and realistic transformation from man-to-werewolf, you're not going to find that here. The budget just simply didn't allow for very convincing or effective practical effects.
What really saves Full Eclipse and elevates it to the upper tier of werewolf films is the acting. Bruce Payne completely steals the show here playing one of the most underrated villains of the 90s. Payne has such a natural charisma, charm and likability as Officer Adam Garou that for the first 2 acts, he genuinely had me on his side. He's the kind of villain I both sympathized with and had difficulty rooting for the hero to overcome. Payne's helped by some great character writing that keeps his seemingly generous and selfless, while also making him an intimidating threat. It's not until the 3rd act hits and we see the massive ego and power trip this character is on that he truly becomes a monster worth our hatred. Payne plays that revelation frighteningly, while never seeming like a different character from the idealistic, security obsessed Police Officer we were tricked into loving in the beginning. To Garou, the dashing hero he was in the first 2 acts wasn't a ruse. It's the rest of the world who doesn't understand his efficiency and isn't strong enough to handle his ethics. This kind of sympathetic, relatable villain was rare in action films of the 90s and what Payne pulls off with him is rather impressive.
While Payne is easily the best performance in the film, Mario Van Peebles is an excellent lead and I really found myself gravitating towards the character of Officer Max Dire. Peebles does an excellent job portraying a deeply confused and lost soul overwhelmed by a feeling of complete and total powerlessness. Powerlessness in his crumbling, failing marriage, powerlessness in an increasingly dangerous job, powerlessness keeping his fellow officers safe and powerlessness to his best friend's recent suicide. After the tragic death of his friend and partner, the realization sets in that the increased stress and hardship of his life as an L.A cop could very well mean that he's the next one to swallow the bullet. Peebles has a real wide eyed fascination to the world of possibilities, power and purpose that Adam Garou offers him, his impassioned delivery and subtle facial acting really invest me in the journey of a cop trying to re-discover his purpose in a time of existential crisis.
This brings me to another point of praise for the film, how unpredictable it is. The character arcs of both Garou and Dire manage to avoid the various cliches that plague both werewolf films and cop films while still feeling natural and logical. They act like actual characters rather than stock archetypes in a cop or werewolf film. The film is surprisingly inventive in terms of subverting the cliches of its genres and I wasn't easily predicting plot points left and right like I thought I would be doing. Genuine effort was put into the characterizations of this movie.
Thematically, the film has a lot more depth than one might expect for a movie about werewolf policemen. Full Eclipse does a wonderful job commentating on the seduction and superficial appeal of fascism, the kind of emotional and mental state that would allow someone to accept such a blatantly corrupt and unethical authoritative police state. Compliance to that level of absolute power is a very slow and steady progression of acceptance and the film really makes an effort to show just how easily any of us could find ourselves in Dire's subservient and complicit position to brutal authority if any of us were in his position.
Credit should also be given to the action of this film. It's wonderfully bombastic, inventive and electrifying, allowing for some very creative and enjoyable over-the-top sequences straight out of a 90s John Woo film. Those who appreciated the hyper-stylization of the action in Face/Off are very likely to enjoy the action showcased here. The appeal of the spectacle is several degrees more than what you'd expect from such a small production.
The miniscule budget and resources of Full Eclipse hold it back from its full potential, but this is still a highly entertaining and surprisingly smart werewolf film with some outstanding performances. Come for the premise, stay for the acting.
Much like the previously reviewed Spawn (Which I also loved), the most glaring and distracting issue with Full Eclipse is the special effects. However, while Spawn suffered from laughable CGI, Full Eclipse suffers from laughable practical effects. Whoever thought that werewolves with Wolverine-esque bone claws was a cool idea seriously needed to take a long time back at the drawing board. They're goofy, distracting, unconvincing and constantly make me think of the X-Men rather than The Wolf Man whenever they show up. The film also suffers from a pretty lackluster transformation sequence. If you go to werewolf films specifically to watch a memorable, frightening and realistic transformation from man-to-werewolf, you're not going to find that here. The budget just simply didn't allow for very convincing or effective practical effects.
What really saves Full Eclipse and elevates it to the upper tier of werewolf films is the acting. Bruce Payne completely steals the show here playing one of the most underrated villains of the 90s. Payne has such a natural charisma, charm and likability as Officer Adam Garou that for the first 2 acts, he genuinely had me on his side. He's the kind of villain I both sympathized with and had difficulty rooting for the hero to overcome. Payne's helped by some great character writing that keeps his seemingly generous and selfless, while also making him an intimidating threat. It's not until the 3rd act hits and we see the massive ego and power trip this character is on that he truly becomes a monster worth our hatred. Payne plays that revelation frighteningly, while never seeming like a different character from the idealistic, security obsessed Police Officer we were tricked into loving in the beginning. To Garou, the dashing hero he was in the first 2 acts wasn't a ruse. It's the rest of the world who doesn't understand his efficiency and isn't strong enough to handle his ethics. This kind of sympathetic, relatable villain was rare in action films of the 90s and what Payne pulls off with him is rather impressive.
While Payne is easily the best performance in the film, Mario Van Peebles is an excellent lead and I really found myself gravitating towards the character of Officer Max Dire. Peebles does an excellent job portraying a deeply confused and lost soul overwhelmed by a feeling of complete and total powerlessness. Powerlessness in his crumbling, failing marriage, powerlessness in an increasingly dangerous job, powerlessness keeping his fellow officers safe and powerlessness to his best friend's recent suicide. After the tragic death of his friend and partner, the realization sets in that the increased stress and hardship of his life as an L.A cop could very well mean that he's the next one to swallow the bullet. Peebles has a real wide eyed fascination to the world of possibilities, power and purpose that Adam Garou offers him, his impassioned delivery and subtle facial acting really invest me in the journey of a cop trying to re-discover his purpose in a time of existential crisis.
This brings me to another point of praise for the film, how unpredictable it is. The character arcs of both Garou and Dire manage to avoid the various cliches that plague both werewolf films and cop films while still feeling natural and logical. They act like actual characters rather than stock archetypes in a cop or werewolf film. The film is surprisingly inventive in terms of subverting the cliches of its genres and I wasn't easily predicting plot points left and right like I thought I would be doing. Genuine effort was put into the characterizations of this movie.
Thematically, the film has a lot more depth than one might expect for a movie about werewolf policemen. Full Eclipse does a wonderful job commentating on the seduction and superficial appeal of fascism, the kind of emotional and mental state that would allow someone to accept such a blatantly corrupt and unethical authoritative police state. Compliance to that level of absolute power is a very slow and steady progression of acceptance and the film really makes an effort to show just how easily any of us could find ourselves in Dire's subservient and complicit position to brutal authority if any of us were in his position.
Credit should also be given to the action of this film. It's wonderfully bombastic, inventive and electrifying, allowing for some very creative and enjoyable over-the-top sequences straight out of a 90s John Woo film. Those who appreciated the hyper-stylization of the action in Face/Off are very likely to enjoy the action showcased here. The appeal of the spectacle is several degrees more than what you'd expect from such a small production.
The miniscule budget and resources of Full Eclipse hold it back from its full potential, but this is still a highly entertaining and surprisingly smart werewolf film with some outstanding performances. Come for the premise, stay for the acting.