“To Kill a Wolf” Kills the Mood

To Kill a Wolf (Kelsey Taylor, 2024) 2 out of 5 stars

Kelsey Taylor, the director of the 2019 short film Alien: Specimen, makes her feature debut with To Kill a Wolf, which pays thematic homage to the classic Little Red Riding Hood story, albeit with a realistic twist. It tells the story of a reclusive Woodsman (Ivan Martin, Boston Strangler), who lives off the land and away from mankind. One day this Woodsman stumbles upon a young woman, Dani (Maddison Brown), unconscious in the woods, and takes her in. Reluctant to have Dani stay, the Woodsman tries to take her home.

To Kill a Wolf immediately establishes itself as a dramatic and suspenseful take on Little Red Riding Hood, depicting the characters as real-life individuals, using the “wolf” as a metaphor for a male predator. Dani is a lost girl seeking shelter from an abusive home, and the Woodsman remains as a modern rendition of the protector against evildoers. It’s when Taylor leans into the classic motif that To Kill a Wolf is at its strongest.

Where the film unfortunately falls is in its absolute insistence on taking as much time to get to the meat of the story as possible. Taylor chooses to make the wolf purely metaphorical, leaning in to dialogue-filled moments and brief tension once the viewer realizes who the “wolf” of the story is. But sluggish scenes, merely adequate characters, and a lack of any sort of intensity weigh the film down. Taylor weaves a very ordinary tale utilizing parallels to extraordinary ideas, and the plot plays out in both a convenient and predictable manner.

While To Kill a Wolf has moments that satisfyingly reflect its source fable, it drags and never shocks nor leaves the viewer with any long-lasting impression. There are simply too many mundane moments to be able to connect with the characters involved, and very little takes place beyond a few expository flashbacks. While viewers may enjoy the hyperrealistic rendition of the classic fairy tale, the average moviegoer will probably find To Kill a Wolf rather uninteresting.

Adam Vaughn

Adam Vaughn is a graduate of the Film & Moving Image program at Stevenson University, with a focus in Cinematography and Production. He also has a minor in Theater and Media Performance. Adam works as a freelance photographer and videographer, focusing his craft on creating compelling photographic and cinematic imagery. Adam is excited to join the Film Festival Today team and explore the world of cinema and visual arts.