The Wolf and the Lion movie review

MOVIE TITLE: The Wolf and the Lion

This French/Canadian film is now available on Video on Demand

RATING: PG

LENGTH: 1 hour 39 minutes

IN A NUTSHELL:

BrianHitzone37 is one of my subscribers and I love my subscribers! He asked me to review this movie. I’m always happy to take requests! I’m also really happy he recommended this movie because the movie had really slipped under my radar. While critics gave it a staggering low score of 27% on Rotten Tomatoes, audiences loved it and ranked it a high 90%!

The film is directed by Gilles de Maistre, a French filmmaker. The story is about 20-year-old Alma, who returns to her childhood home after her grandfather dies. He took care of their little island in the heart of the majestic Canadian forest and now it belongs to kind-hearted Alma. She accidentally rescues two helpless cubs: a wolf and a lion. They forge an inseparable bond, but their world soon collapses as the forest ranger discovers the animals and takes them away. The two cub brothers must now embark on a treacherous journey to be reunited with one another and Alma once more.

At the end of the movie, you learn that the film was based on a true story. The real wolf and the lion are living together in a protected sanctuary in Canada.

THINGS I LIKED:

The only member of the cast I recognized in the movie was Graham Greene. I’m always happy to discover new actors.
Other than the animals, the star of the movie is the beautiful Molly Kunz. I had never seen her in anything before. She won’t win an Academy Award for her acting in this movie, but she was still lovely to watch as Alma. She actually plays the piano in real life. I’d like to see what else she can do.
There is beautiful music throughout the entire movie and, in fact, music is used as a healing device for many of the characters.
The animals are real and completely beautiful and adorable.
Stunning nature and cinematography.
It’s quite a sight to see a lion and a wolf playing together in the snow. I wanted to see more of them and less of the humans.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

The emotion is definitely heavy-handed and you feel lectured to about animal rights and welfare.
The plot is extremely predictable.
Some of the humans are really dumb. Their conversations and decisions are often aggravating to watch.
While you definitely feel sympathy for the animals, the story is a bit problematic because it makes the average person think that raising wild animals in your home is a good idea.
Some of the acting is really bad.
I would love to have seen the cubs as babies a lot longer. They grow up in the blink of an eye and we miss a lot of potential cute moments.
The resolution at the end of the movie is kind of vague and rushed. There are so many unaddressed loose ends.
There isn’t any backstory on the characters, so you really only care about the animals.