I thought I would take a slow news day to talk about a movie that may be below the radar. I recently rented a copy of Wyvern, a recent movie made for the SciFi channel's Sci Fi Saturday's (I believe it was made pre-ScyFy) that has been released on DVD.
Let me give a little background on the Sci Fi Saturday's movie series. A couple of years back, the SciFi channel tried to lure sci fi and horror fans with a string of original movies. (Most of them deal with monsters or disasters of some sort; there was one about Bats, Sharks, Earthquakes, and at least two movies about frankenfish). Some were hits, some were misses (to be honest, most are misses). Wyvern, from their "Man Eater series" is one of their best.
Wyvern tells the story of a Norse mythological dragon that is released from the ice by global warming and terrorizes a small Northern Alaskan town (Beaver Mills) on the day of the Summer Solstice. The film is clearly a genre flick. With formulaic precision, the dragon picks off the townspeople until the remaining survivors are trapped in a diner (the oddly named, "Beaver's Pelt"). The hero (a guilt-ridden big rig trucker who blames himself for the death of his brother) must find a way to save the day and rescue the town beauty (owner of aforementioned restaurant). Although not as quirky in a lot of ways, Wyvern definitely has a Tremor's vibe to it.
What makes this movie different (and better) is the well-written script by Jason Borque (Shadow Company), who presents a town right out of Northern Exposure (in fact, the cast includes several of the same actors from Northern Exposure, who pay homage to their characters from the show). Borque hits all the required beats for a monster movie, but also provides a deeper background to the characters (as well as a subtle commentary on global warning). The CGI works well and is not as cheesy as other SciFi channel outings.
The actors do a good job and are not distracting with Nick Chinlund (Ultraviolet) as the hero, and Erin Karpluk (Being Erica) as the female lead. I should also add that Don Davis (Stargate) plays a quirky colonel and this is his last movie role before his unexpected death in 2008. By the way, that's Tinsel Korey (Emily in Twilight New Moon) on the cover. She plays a radio DJ in a supporting role.
Should you run out and by Wyvern? Not really. But, if you really want to see a "monster terrorizing a small town" genre flick, this is better than most. And if you happen to see that ScyFy is playing it again (they tend to do that a lot), it's worth a sit through.
If they are playing those Frankenfish or Snakehead movies, you are on your own.
Let me give a little background on the Sci Fi Saturday's movie series. A couple of years back, the SciFi channel tried to lure sci fi and horror fans with a string of original movies. (Most of them deal with monsters or disasters of some sort; there was one about Bats, Sharks, Earthquakes, and at least two movies about frankenfish). Some were hits, some were misses (to be honest, most are misses). Wyvern, from their "Man Eater series" is one of their best.
Wyvern tells the story of a Norse mythological dragon that is released from the ice by global warming and terrorizes a small Northern Alaskan town (Beaver Mills) on the day of the Summer Solstice. The film is clearly a genre flick. With formulaic precision, the dragon picks off the townspeople until the remaining survivors are trapped in a diner (the oddly named, "Beaver's Pelt"). The hero (a guilt-ridden big rig trucker who blames himself for the death of his brother) must find a way to save the day and rescue the town beauty (owner of aforementioned restaurant). Although not as quirky in a lot of ways, Wyvern definitely has a Tremor's vibe to it.
What makes this movie different (and better) is the well-written script by Jason Borque (Shadow Company), who presents a town right out of Northern Exposure (in fact, the cast includes several of the same actors from Northern Exposure, who pay homage to their characters from the show). Borque hits all the required beats for a monster movie, but also provides a deeper background to the characters (as well as a subtle commentary on global warning). The CGI works well and is not as cheesy as other SciFi channel outings.
The actors do a good job and are not distracting with Nick Chinlund (Ultraviolet) as the hero, and Erin Karpluk (Being Erica) as the female lead. I should also add that Don Davis (Stargate) plays a quirky colonel and this is his last movie role before his unexpected death in 2008. By the way, that's Tinsel Korey (Emily in Twilight New Moon) on the cover. She plays a radio DJ in a supporting role.
Should you run out and by Wyvern? Not really. But, if you really want to see a "monster terrorizing a small town" genre flick, this is better than most. And if you happen to see that ScyFy is playing it again (they tend to do that a lot), it's worth a sit through.
If they are playing those Frankenfish or Snakehead movies, you are on your own.
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