Wolfs, directed by Jon Watts, is a crime thriller starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt. Distributed by Apple Original Films, this film was initially planned for a wide theatrical release and was eventually whittled down to a straight-to-streaming release on Apple TV+.
This pivot in distribution strategy felt like a major red flag considering the high expectations fans had for Wolfs.
Those who went into this viewing experience still expecting a top-tier, best-picture contender probably ended up disappointed.
However, there was enough to like that makes it a solid streaming watch.
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- Photo Credit: Featured still from "Wolfs" via Apple Studios
Despite a string of horrible decisions, by both Watts and Apple Original Films, the movie still ended up being a relatively fun watch with a few good laughs and some absolute magic between Clooney and Pitt.
However, compared to the expectations that come from a movie with leads of this caliber, it largely missed the mark. The debate over streamers vs. theatrical releases is going to rage on for years. Wolfs is going to be front and center in this debate.
This is a film that I think suffered from its release details. It would have been much more enjoyable in a theater setting. Much of what worked about this movie, which is a short list, was subtle.
Many hilarious offhanded comments between Pitt, Clooney, and Abrams kept the vibes of this film light and enjoyable. Some of Clooney and Pitt’s physical acting through facial expressions were absolute gold.
Whether it’s from being on our phones, fighting for couch space with our dogs, or a quick glance out the window to see what your neighbors are up to, these are the things one can miss while watching from home.
This film centers around two fixers, played by Pitt and Clooney, who were hired to cover up the same high profile crime. Its clever title, which is probably the only clever thing about the movie, is a reference to the fact that both of these characters see themselves as a lone wolf.
Amy Ryan plays a senator who has a much younger man up to her $10,000 per night hotel room. When things go awry she calls Clooney’s character to make this incident go away.
Meanwhile, the proprietor of the hotel sees Ryan’s troubles on an illegal camera hidden in the suite and sends Pitt’s character in to do the same job.
After they both show up, a hilarious struggle for control between the two alphas ensues. This struggle continues for most of the remaining ninety minutes of this film.
Some of the time it works, most of the time it does not. There are moments of great chemistry, not just between Pitt and Clooney, but between them and Austin Abrams.
There are also stretches that fall completely flat.
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- Photo Credit: Featured still from "Wolfs" via Apple Studios
The script, like many straight-to-streaming films, felt half-baked, while relying on its stars to carry the day.
There was a kernel of a great idea at the heart of this film that probably could have been accessed with a few more rounds of development by a true film studio.
The basic premise of the crime these two fixers were trying to cover up was straightforward enough, but as the film progressed Watts introduced quite a few twists and turns and conspiracies that at best fell flat. At worst, these twists were hard to follow and took away from the viewing experience.
Watts hit almost every fixer movie trope without really adding anything of his own to make this movie stand out. In fact it was really hard to tell what this movie was trying to be.
At times it was going for the serious crime thriller vibes, other times it felt like it was purely a comedic film, and almost every fathomable combination of those two genres. Movies have blended genres well for decades.
Sometimes you end up with great movies like Seven Psychopaths and In Bruges. Sometimes you end up with Kevin Hart movies.
Wolfs was perfectly in the middle of that spectrum. Not a masterpiece that we’ll talk about for years and not a total disaster.
Yet, like adding salt to a bland dish, Clooney and Pitt were able to be charming enough to keep me off Reddit and Instagram while watching.
Their chemistry plus the real winner of this movie: Austin Abrams’s comedic chops. While silly and ridiculous at times, Abrams played off of these two major stars really well.
He had a major hand in keeping this movie from going completely off the rails.
Ultimately, this movie is a solid way to kill a Friday night but would’ve been completely unremarkable without the presence of such acting giants.
Don’t expect to start figuring out which of your Letterboxd top four to cut, but don’t expect to hate it either. Your enjoyment of Wolfs is going to be a matter of your expectations.
