The Wolfpack (2015) (English Language)

Review

90min

Genre:      Documentary, Drama, Fact-based

Director:   Crystal Moselle

Cast:        Bhagavan Angulo, Govinda Angulo, Jagadisa Angulo…more

Country:   USA

Documentary recounting the remarkable story of the Angulo brothers, a large group of teenage siblings who use their obsession with movies to connect to the outside world after being confined to a small New York apartment for their entire childhood by a bizarre isolationist father.

In her directorial debut, jack of many cinematic trades Crystal Moselle manages to capture a unique microcosm of modern day New York which manages to work as bizarre coming of age story and ode to the redemptive power of film, wrapped in a true story of fear of the modern world which results in an oppressive family unit, part isolationist cult and part hippie commune thanks to the oddball family patriarch.

‘The Wolpack’ begins with the Angulos as teenagers having already begun to rebel against their imprisonment along with their mother by tentatively venturing into the streets of New York, accompanied by director Moselle they experience things we might take for granted like going to the beach for the first time or seeing their first film in a cinema, Moselle spent years interviewing the family and combines all this footage with home video shot by the Angulos, including remarkably faithful recreations of the many thousands of films they have grown up with.

The result is a bizarrely captivating story that provokes thought and raises questions about the father and the oppressive family dynamic, we’ve all heard of isolationist American cults, but how could something like this happen smack in the middle of one of the most overpopulated cities in the world?

‘The Wolpack’ is certainly not without its faults, perhaps expectedly for a debut film, it’s very rough around the edges and the theme starts to wear thin as the novelty wears off, there is no real arc for the characters as they’ve already achieved emancipation and Moselle only really delves skin-deep into the emotional turmoil within the family.

Perhaps the most off-putting element is the feeling that not all is what it seems, maybe it’s just us but we get the sense that dramatic “liberties” may have been taken with the story and something just doesn’t seem right, nevertheless if you take what you see at face value and despite its limitations, ‘The Wolpack’ is strange enough to hold your attention throughout.

The Bottom Line…

Despite its faults ‘The Wolpack’ is a uniquely captivating little debut documentary, thanks largely to the extraordinary true story of isolation, fear, oppression, emancipation and redemption, on a journey fuelled by the liberating power of cinema.

‘The Wolfpack’ is out in UK cinemas on Friday the 21st

_________________________________________________________________________________

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple (2006)

Shocking account featuring previously unseen footage of the events in isolated “Jonestown” Guyana in 1978 where preacher Jim Jones, the head of religious cult “The Peoples’ Temple”, organized the mass suicide of over 900 people through drinking poisoned punch.

Directed by Stanley Nelson and starring Rebecca Moore, Janet Shular and Tim Carter among others.

Comments

comments

Comments are closed.