Countless series and movies from various countries appear on Netflix every week. The Netflix charts are a good factor to see what is currently popular. However, quality does not always prevail there. A new fantasy movie starring Jean Reno seems to illustrate just that.
Which movie is it about? On October 23, 2024, the movie The Werewolves of Düsterwald was released on Netflix. The fantasy film strongly resembles Jumanji, as a French family plays a mysterious version of the game Werewolf.
The film was directed by François Uzan. You might know him best as the screenwriter of the Netflix series Lupin starring Omar Sy. The well-known actor Jean Reno also stars in the film. The film seems to be finding a larger audience, as it is currently in first place on the film charts in Germany.
You can find a trailer for the film here:
A party game turns into Jumanji
What is The Werewolves of Düsterwald about? A French family wants to play the well-known game Werewolf. The game is reminiscent of Among Us. A village must find out who the werewolf is that is snatching its victims at night. The focus of the game is on the discussions and the work to find the werewolf.
In the film itself, however, the family’s version of the werewolf game seems to be anything but normal, as in Jumanji, the family is suddenly transported to a medieval world. There, the unknown werewolf is a real threat, and the family must survive this circumstance.
The Werewolves of Düsterwald is a fantasy comedy, and one shouldn’t expect a real horror show from it.
What are the initial reactions to the film? Although the film is currently ranked number 1 in the Netflix charts in Germany, there are hardly any reviews and the opinions of regular users seem to be unhappy. On Rotten Tomatoes, there are too few reviews for both a critic and a user score. It seems especially the cinematic implementation of the game is problematic:
- Jason W writes:
After playing the original party game […] many times, I was looking forward to this adaptation. It’s a clever idea, but unfortunately, it was poorly executed.
- Charlermat P also criticizes the implementation:
Did not utilize the elements of the game well. The characters are annoying.
The few positive voices praise the film as a family film:
- Ian H sees the problem more in the expectations of some viewers:
I’m not sure what people expected from this film, but it’s a good, heartwarming family movie.
- Marie B also praises the film as a family film:
An absolutely great film. D&D meets Jumanji with Shrek-like humor. Good comedy and many laughs. […] Personally a great family film.
On IMDb, the ratings of the film do not look any better. With just over 2,400 reviews, the film has a score of 5.4 out of 10 stars.
However, if you don’t expect much and want to watch a light film in the background, you can do so with The Werewolves of Düsterwald. One shouldn’t expect much from the current number 1 on Netflix. If you have no objections to documentaries, you should watch a heart-wrenching story from the WoW community: WoW: An emotional documentary on Netflix touches the community – Players pilgrimage to the memorial of the deceased.
