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Released by: Magnolia Pictures
Released on: October 20th, 2015
Director: Crystal Moselle
Cast: Mukunda Angulo, Visnu Angulo, Govinda Angulo, Bhagavan Angulo
Year: 2015
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The Movie
The Wolfpack is a fascinating and touching documentary about a family of brothers who live isolated in a New York City apartment, with movies serving as their only source of contact with the outside world. The story of the Angulo family is told here by filmmaker Crystal Moselle, but it's the Angulo family who are the true stars of the story, the titular "Wolfpack" who are home schooled and held inside by their overbearing father throughout much of their formative childhood years.
Moselle's entry into the boys' lives takes place after an unspecified "incident" begins the Angulo siblings slow, but steady emergence out of their social shells. We the audience are let into the boys' stricter childhood years via some VHS home movies, depicting some behavior which some might perceive as slightly "cult-ish," but is certainly creepy when viewed at almost any angle. The back story behind patriarch Oscar Angulo, his wife and their youngest daughter is kept comparatively vague, probably at the behest of the family, yet the information we are privy to is fascinating enough on its own to make a pretty compelling film.
The Angulo boys are nothing if not likable in their social awkwardness, as they stage elaborate home reenactments of their favorite films, complete with hand written scripts and homemade props. Their obsession with cinema encompasses nearly every moment of their lives, and they often speak as movie characters, or reference famous lines of dialogue from the films of Quentin Tarantino, Stanley Kubrick or David O. Russell. Still, one can't help but feel for them as something as simple as going to a movie theater becomes a dress up, inaugural affair. Their innocence and wonder at the world only increases as their trips outside become more and more frequent, although there are also moments of darkness which successfully undercut the film, never letting us forget the uniqueness of the Angulo's situation.
Moselle equips her film with a good amount of visual style, with strong, atmospheric lighting and sometimes claustrophobic framing. The soundtrack is equally haunting, moving from stark, Brian Eno-esque minimalism to even utilizing a Black Sabbath track to wondrous effect. It would be nice if Moselle let us in a bit more on what brought the Angulos to their breaking point prior to their meeting with the director, but this is such a uniquely harrowing story, that this can be forgiven in the long run, so inspiring is the story.
Video/Audio/Extras
Magnolia's Blu-Ray of The Wolfpack is presented in 1.78:1, 1080p high definition with a 5.1 DTS-HD master audio track. The picture looks extremely sharp, with deep, rich blacks and strong colors which pop during the more artfully shot scenes. The dialogue between the family is always audible, and the subtitles, when utilized, are error free. In other words, there are no complaints with the A/V quality of The Wolfpack.
The extras really shine here, as well, as we are treated to more recent interviews with both Moselle and The Wolfpack themselves, most of whom appear comparatively well adjusted and successful crafting lives and careers after breaking out of their sheltered home life. Interview questions include how they feel about the finished documentary, how it's affected their lives and their favorite movies of all time.
There's also a featurette which documents The Wolfpack as they visit Hollywood for the first time, promoting a screening of the doc at the Cinefamily theater. It's fun to see how the brothers react to meeting their idols like William Friedkin and David O Russell, as well as the almost universally positive response many have to their viewing of the film.
Finally, there are two short films included here, directed by and starring The Wolfpack, both of which contain plenty of future promise. Titled Mirror Heart and Window Feel, both are fairly brief in length but bursting with visual energy and passion. They're both very arthouse in tone, exploring anthropomorphic expressions of internal emotions and ideas via some brilliantly creative, homegrown costumes and makeup. A "making of" Mirror Heart and the original theatrical trailer for The Wolfpack round out a very satisfying extras selection.
The Final Word
The Wolfpack was a film I was immediately interested in viewing the moment I heard about it, and I was thankfully not disappointed. This documentary won't be for everyone's taste, but I really felt the resonating heart and love here, and hold this one as a pretty high recommend.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
