Oct 062004
 
two reels

In 1815, sisters Brigitte (Emily Perkins) and Ginger (Katherine Isabelle) find themselves lost in the wilderness.  Rescued by a native hunter, they are brought to a fort which has been under attack by werewolves.  In the middle of the night, Ginger is bitten, and Bridget must keep it a secret or the few remaining men will kill her.

An odd type of prequel, Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning offers up two brand new characters, who happen to be named Brigitte and Ginger, and are played by the same actresses as in the two previous films.  They have approximately the same relationship with each other and similar personalities to their previous (well, by a timeline, later) selves.  I first assumed that they would be ancestors of the girls in Ginger Snaps, but as this story plays out, that’s unlikely.  Think of it as a game.  “Hey, what would Batman be like in the middle ages?  How would Luke Skywalker win if he were born in pre-WWII Germany?  What would happen if those Ginger Snaps girls were really around in the early 19th century?”

The story rehashes the events of the first film, with a completely different tone.  Again, the two girls swear to stick together, forever.  Again, most other people are worthless or adversarial.  And again, Ginger gets bitten and Brigitte tries to save her.  But humorous moments are few and far between.  The atmosphere is oppressive, and that’s the problem.  There’s little to give the viewer a rest from the doom and gloom.  Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning has been criticized for the 21st century attitudes and language of the leads, but without the occasional anachronism to lighten the mood, it would be unwatchable.

It’s a good looking film.  The Canadian landscape is rich, the cinematography more skilled than in the first film, and the werewolf effects are some of the best ever filmed.  It has one striking shot, with Ginger in her long cloak, standing in the fort’s open gate, her arms spread wide and…  You’ll just have to watch.  But it perked me right up.

I was caught up with the story early on, and loved the addition of leeches as a way to test for lycanthropy.  But with the drab middle and repetition, I was ready to write this one off.  However, the ending improves matters.  The climax is reasonably exciting, and characters make the choices I’d like to have seen in Ginger Snaps.

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