Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

"Wolf" by director Mike Nichols can best be described as a werewolf movie for a mature and adult audience. And the director also managed to pull off an entertaining movie without resorting to gore, visual transformation into a werewolf and of course without young men running around without shirts.The story told in this 1994 movie is about Will Randall (played by Jack Nicholson), an aging publisher who finds himself bitten on the hand by a wolf that he accidentally hit with his car. And as young publisher Stewart Swinton (played by James Spader) snatches a job position from Will, he finds himself fighting for his job and also fighting a personal battle against the beast that starts to emerge within him.It is a nicely told story that progress in a good pace and it is helped along quite well by the performances by the cast ensemble, as well as the characters in the movie being quite detailed and nuanced. Jack Nicholson was really well-cast for this movie, given his charm and appearance. And James Spader also did add something good to the movie. Furthermore, then the cast list also included talents like Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Plummer, Richard Jenkins and David Hyde Pierce.I was especially impressed with how well the movie turned out to be, despite lacking the traditional transformation scenes from human into werewolf, which is usually seen in the werewolves movie genre. There were some scenes where there was a slight change from man into something more bestial. And that worked out so very well in favor of the movie. And it made the character look more bestial and added a good flavor to the movie.All in all, "Wolf" is not your average werewolf movie, and if you want a werewolf movie which offers more than just gore and visual effects then "Wolf" is a good choice. It does cater to a more mature audience.

Jack Nicholson plays a middle-aged book publisher, bitten by a wolf during the full moon, who undergoes a physical and psychological transformation just as his life seems to be falling apart around him. A different kind of werewolf movie but an interesting one. Nicholson does a good job, despite being somewhat miscast for the role of a nebbish. Once the transformation begins and this man starts to show his newfound wolf side, it's a role right up Jack's alley. James Spader is a treat as the sleazy villain. Michelle Pfeiffer looks as pretty as ever and has decent chemistry with the much-older Nicholson. The script is clever and fun. Rick Baker's low-key makeup won't please many horror fans but I think it was perfectly suited for this type of film. Really this isn't the kind of werewolf movie for the average horror fan who wants strong visuals and lots of violent action. It's not scary, either, in case that wasn't obvious. It's a werewolf movie for people who want something outside of the ordinary.I really liked this one and I gotta say I didn't expect to when I first saw it years ago. I'm not a big Mike Nichols fan. The kinds of films he made are not the kinds of films I tend to enjoy. I'm not saying they are bad films or that he was not a talented director. He made some classics that I did like to watch, although the idea of rewatching any of them is not particularly appealing to me. So, take my opinion on Nichols into account when I say that this is my favorite Mike Nichols movie. No, I'm not saying this is a better film than "The Graduate" or "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" or anything crazy like that. But I enjoy watching this movie more than any of his relationship dramas. The interesting thing is that, underneath the supernatural elements, this is a story about a man's mid-life crisis. That's exactly the sort of movie you expect Nichols to make, only this time the story is told in a less prosaic way by making it a werewolf movie with the subtext and dark humor that comes along with that.

Returning back to work after an accident, a publisher is suddenly endowed with a strange series of powers and abilities from the encounter and gradually realizes he's become a werewolf and must keep it in check before harming others.Frankly this one turned out to be quite enjoyable is problematic effort. When this one works is basically in the first half here, as this here is when it builds all the details about his affliction and condition turning into his real-life with the outburst of hair, the main change in attitude and overall personality change into being more ruthless and vindictive towards others as a result of this, and along with the sensory enhancements it paints a rather intriguing air while subtly hinting at the change. Due to this set-up, the early scenes of the transformation come off nicely as the deer attack out in the woods or jumping the hoodlums mid-change while in the park serve as fine introductions to the change, and coupled with the growing evidence really completes the picture. That also manages to make the big action- packed finale quite fun as there's a large, drawn-out brawl here through the barn and gets quite bloody as well. These here help it out, although there are quite a few problems here. The majority of these flaws here come from the film's inability to come to terms with what it wants to be, as the classy nature of this one is really troubling by holding down the true horror nature of the story. It really holds back here on the creature, both in the make-up and the creature' overall behavior as the wolf make-up is slightly haphazard with contact lenses and splotchy hair around the edges of his face being the only signifiers of the change which looks utterly lazy as a horror film while being too dark for the mainstream crowd. There's even the lame behavior of jumping around on wires for just about anything here resulting in superhuman leaps for an all-around weak main creatures that's all based on not appearing too controversial for the mainstream crowd, as if it's apologizing for being a horror film. There's not a whole lot of good will associated with a film if it doesn't accept what it really is, and is what really harms this one the most here. The last flaws here is the bland, unappealing pacing here that really doesn't offer much as this is mostly filled with utterly bland subplots, a really bland romance that unravels quite slowly that it really takes forever to get anywhere and never set-ups up too many horror scenes here in this section by keeping the whole thing downgraded in favor of these other elements that turn it away from a horror film. There here are what really hold this one back.Rated R: Graphic Language, Violence and mild violence-against-animals.

Wolf is not your average run of the mill movies concerning werewolves. The movie is reminiscent of the old Lon Chaney, Jr. film 'The Wolf Man (1941)' yet two stories are nothing alike. 'Wolf' is a unique kind of wolf-man film. It's nothing like 'American Werewolf in London' nor is it like the movie 'Bad Moon'. Wolf is a one of a kind werewolf movie that you would have to watch in order to get the full grasp of it's unique style and story.I love this movie - it is one of the best werewolf movies I have ever seen. And it is one of best movies that Jack Nicholson and Michelle Pfeiffer has ever made - in my opinion. Both film stars are outstanding in this film. 'Wolf' is better than the comedy-drama 'The Witches of Eastwick' (which stars both Nicholson and Pfeiffer). - and I enjoyed WoE too.This is such an underrated but good werewolf film. 8.5/10