‘Alma and the Wolf’ (2025)

‘Alma and the Wolf’ is a psychological horror film that follows Ren (Ethan Embry), a quiet coastal town police officer investigating a mysterious wolf attack. Simultaneously dealing with personal issues, the situation begins to spiral when Ren’s son goes missing.

Opening on Ren responding to a possible 12-28 call from the station, he drives towards Buena Vista Dunes. Finding Alma wandering by the side of the road, clutching the wrapped up remains of her pet dog, Ren takes her to the police station. Explaining that she was confronted by a hoard of goats and a wolf, Alma breaks down and also admits she had been drinking, an ongoing issue she is struggling with. Desperate for retribution, Alma asks Ren to kill the wolf, even though it is against the law.

Parting ways, Ren heads to his son Jack’s (Lukas Jann) baseball game. Incredibly proud Ren boasts to his new colleague Murph (Jeremie Harris) about Jack’s athletic prowess, hoping for his son to sign on and play at a higher level. Constantly drinking, Ren embarrasses himself in front of Jack and his ex-wife after the game.

Later on, Alma goes to the police station to ask Ren out, to which he eventually agrees. Forgetting that it was his night with Jack, Ren feels bad about leaving his son by himself, where Jack is happy to hear his father has a date. Spending the night with Alma, Ren receives a call the next morning informing him that Jack has gone missing.

Interspersed with ghostly visions of a man sized wolf walking upright on his hind legs, the film gradually twists and turns, with tonal shifts mirroring a fever dream. As the search for Jack goes on, Ren insists that the wolf which had terrorized Alma is responsible for Jack’s disappearance, growing increasingly paranoid and anxious, receiving odd visions and prophetic dreams featuring the wolf creature.

Unraveling, Ren also notices people around him becoming sick with a mysterious illness, being physically ill and repeating the same phrases. What the increasingly psychotic sequences lead to turn out to be Ren grappling with his own psyche.

It is revealed that most of the information presented to us is that of an unreliable narrator. Instead of being an upstanding officer of the law, Ren is an alcoholic. Unable to cope with having lost his job, going through a divorce and growing increasingly distant from his son, Ren has spiraled and succumbed to a cycle of self destruction.

Having gone on a bender and confronted Jack about his future career as a professional baseball player, on learning that Jack does not want to play baseball but instead wants to pursue music, Ren drowns his son in a fit of rage. Having blocked out his crime, Ren’s mind slowly lets the truth resurface through the supernatural and mysterious beast dwelling within the woods.

An effective metaphor for destructive behavior and chronic alcohol abuse, ‘Alma and the Wolf’ first allows us to speculate on the origin and aims of the violent beast hiding in the shadows. The film plays around with the folklore and gives us mixed clues about what the wolf may want or how to stop it.

Seemingly invulnerable however, the wolf haunts Ren and slowly eats away at the man. Surrendering to the wolf’s influence, Ren is eventually forced to confront his past and actions, revealing to himself the horror of having drowned his son. Traumatized, Ren is unable to face reality, with the final moments of the feature showcasing the beast to have taken everything from him, as Ren opts to steal a deputy’s gun as he is being arrested and takes his own life.

The whirlwind of slightly abstract and undecipherable sequences may turn some viewers off, as Ren slowly breaks down in his search for the truth. What works for the feature however is the fact that the apparently unrelated non sequiturs do come together in the end. With an open mind and a thirst for the truth, ‘Alma and the Wolf’ plays beautifully if the viewer allows for the movie to says its piece and give it time to relay what it will.

A tragic depiction of how alcoholism acts as a destructive and potentially deadly force of evil, the film represents the addiction as an unstoppable force. Unable to reason with it and having to watch as the ‘wolf’ takes everything from you, the film lays bare the devastating effects of alcoholism, warning to not entertain the beast at any cost.

Beautifully disorienting, the film leaves one in a haze of confusion and fear as we’re asked to try and understand the beast and its nature. Disallowing for any leniency however, we are warned not to oblige the horrific creature and keep clear of engaging with such a devastating force. Serving as the ultimate warning against over-consumption, ‘Alma and the Wolf’ presents a dark cautionary tale that instills fear and tries to appeal to our better nature.

Score: 3/4