By KEVIN HOOVER
Directed by Seth Breedlove
Small Town Monsters
When it comes to cryptids, folks fall into three categories. There’s the “Of course they’re real!” bunch, armed with enough proof to bolster such claims and willing to die on the hill of Mothman and his ilk. Then, there’s the “Not a chance” collective; They don’t believe in what they can’t see, so you best bugger off with all that Bigfoot nonsense. Finally, the “Maybe” crowd is noncommittal to both yay and nay. This sort, while never having seen a cryptid themselves, most likely know someone who knows someone who has had an encounter. Plus, there was that one time when, out in the middle of nowhere, they smelled a musky odor or heard the unsettling bellow of something that defied explanation. Dear RUE MORGUE reader, should you belong in the first grouping, seek out Small Town Monsters and support them in any way you can, and that includes purchasing a copy of their latest release, THE SKINWALKERS: AMERICAN WEREWOLVES 2. However, if you’re of the maybe-or-definitely-not lot, this film isn’t going to change your mind. In fact, in a rare departure from the studio’s usually exceptional documentary fare, this may very well be one you give up on before reaching the finale.
There’s an established recipe for shooting the cryptid documentaries that Small Town Monsters has been at the forefront of developing for the last several years, and it’s masterfully executed across the majority of their catalog. When followed to the letter, the result is a tasty dish that wins awards, stokes the conversational fires of cryptid enthusiasts and often introduces a worthy new slant of investigative journalism into the mythos of the respective creatures they feature. Unfortunately, AMERICAN WEREWOLVES 2 and its 2022 predecessor throw a spoonful of salt into the whole sweet mixture. Gone are the expert insights from veteran cryptozoologists. Gone is the VO narrative that threads viewers through the rich tapestry of legend and lore surrounding each beast (often provided by RUE MORGUE’s own Lyle Blackburn). Instead, this film turns its camera on layperson witnesses – and witnesses alone.
A witness shares her first-hand account of encountering a skinwalker
AMERICAN WEREWOLVES 2 continues the first film’s dissection of werewolves, widening its umbrella to include discussions of hellhounds, the shapeshifting Rougarou and various other biped canines. Typical Joes and Janes take front and center, sharing personal accounts of run-ins with the wolf-beasts that have made them into believers. Theirs are the kind of stories that often travel in tandem with any cryptid conversation: old ladies seen late at night by road-weary motorists are there one minute, replaced by a sinister critter the next; sacred Native American lands plagued at the perimeter by fanged Lycans, summoned by magical pursuits gone awry. The stories are fascinating and beg the question, “If so many people, unrelated and unconnected, can corroborate similar details, then surely these things exist, right?” But it’s not the individual narratives that drag down the product. It’s how those narratives are presented. When one witness is finished, the next steps into fthe rame to discuss their ordeal. Rinse and repeat around nine or ten times, and therein lies the issue. While there are some oddly unrelated Nat Geo-style historical facts sprinkled in between, they do nothing to disrupt the mundanity of the affair. The most devoted and detail-hungry of werewolf connoisseurs may hang on to every word, hoping to suss out some as-of-yet undiscovered clues, but the ask is too great of the casual cryptid fan.
It’s a shame that the core of the product is a challenge to get through because the peripheral elements are such an accomplishment. The Small Town Monsters crew continually outdo themselves in production values. Compare any of their earlier films to their latest projects and the jump in quality is not merely incremental – it’s drastic. Seeing as how getting ahold of substantiated proof of a werewolf is a difficult chore, the team does its best in presenting hand-drawn representations and CGI-generated imagery of the creatures, informed by discussions with their witnesses. The decision to film interviewees in their homes and in the same locales where they had their experiences adds a layer of context that’s desperately needed. And as good as the slick visuals are, the real star is the music. Those of us lucky enough to have been around in the late ’80s and early ’90s will instantly resonate with the unmistakably eerie Unsolved Mysteries-style melody that serves as the score for most of the film.
Year after year, hundreds of cryptid-crazy crowdfunders chip into Small Town Monsters’ annual Kickstarter campaign. And the results are some of the best cryptid indie documentaries to ever materialize. Seth Breedlove and his team are experts at what they do, and we implore you that if the spirit of independent film sparks inside of you even one little flicker, consider donating to the studio’s yearly efforts. If the idea of listening to a constant stream of stories sans any input from renowned cryptozoologists sounds like a good afternoon, then pick up a copy of THE SKINWALKERS: AMERICAN WEREWOLVES 2, but for everyone else, other films in the company’s catalog are a better time.
THE SKINWALKERS: AMERICAN WEREWOLVES 2 is now available for purchase directly from Small Town Monsters and on major streaming services.
