The Beast Within: reviews

What the critics say average 5.3 from 33 outlets

• 10 What a Scream PodcastYgraine Hackett-Cantabrana The Beast Within is a deeply distressing portrayal of generational trauma through the eyes of Little Red Riding Hood. Read
• 7.5 The Mercury NewsRandy Myers The Beast Within is a supernaturally laced thriller, but seems as if came from a painful, dark personal place where the horrors are human and the wounds remain open forever. Read
• 7.0 The Daily BeastEmma Stefansky It’s been a while since we’ve gotten a good werewolf movie, and while The Beast Within may not be destined to be a classic, it has more up its sleeve than a pair of hairy claws. Read
• 7.0 Keith & the MoviesKeith Garlington At its heart, this patient and measured horror thriller has human interests that stretch well beyond genre. Father-daughter relationships, loss of innocence, and generational trauma are just some of the thematic through-lines. Read
• 7.0 Screen DailyNikki Baughan In the end, however, Willow’s slow realisation of what her father is, and exactly what it means for her family, is as much about facing up to real-world horrors as it is about slaying the beasts who lurk in the dark. Read
• 6.7 Assignment XAbbie Bernstein Lycanthropy as a family secret. Read
• 6.5 Cinema CrazedEmilie Black ... a film that grows on you as you are watching it. Read
• 6.5 CGMagazineBrendan Frye As it stands, The Beast Within is an imperfect but intriguing entry in the werewolf canon, worth a look for its strong performances and atmospheric chills. Read
• 6.0 The Hollywood ReporterJordan Mintzer The first rule of a good werewolf flick, or any horror flick for that matter, is to keep the audience on the edge of their seats, whereas Farrell mostly keeps us guessing. Read
• 6.0 Bounding Into ComicsChris Sawin The film prioritizes an unsettling environment and powerful performances over a high body count and full-on creature reveal. It’s a worthwhile watch if you enjoy films with a slow buildup, but may leave those hankering for straightforward bloody horror hungry and drooling for more. Read
• 6.0 Bloody DisgustingMeagan Navarro A poignant horror fairy tale that’s at its strongest when exploring the psychological fallout, but it’s one that struggles to seamlessly blend the Gothic fantasy with authentic coming-of-age drama. Read
• 6.0 Heaven of HorrorNadja Houmoller As it turns out, this is a brilliant new take on the subgenre and offers some different insights. Read
• 6.0 Bad Feeling MagazineGabriel Sigler The issue with The Beast Within is the lack of any suspense: Noah is a violent and despicable character right off the bat, which drains the supernatural reveal of any bite. That caveat aside, the film features strong performances from the entire cast, especially Caoilinn Springall as the daughter at the heart of this chaotic family. Read
• 6.0 CinemagaviaAna Aliaga Díaz 'The Beast Within' is an attempt at social storytelling hidden behind fantasy and horror. Caoilinn Springall's performance stands out and creates some of the film's best moments of tension. The film gets lost in trying to be universal, though, and never quite fuses the two stories it is telling. Read
• 5.8 Dennis Schwartz Movie ReviewsDennis Schwartz Though chillingly atmospheric, there's not much of a story. Read
• 5.5 Geek Vibes NationBrandon Lewis The Beast Within yearns to be more than a small-scale monster horror flick, desiring to explore challenging, interesting ideas about identity, family, and even free will. Read
• 5.0 IGNKenneth Seward Jr. Despite having an interesting take on werewolves, The Beast Within proves to be a middling experience. Read
• 5.0 Screen RantFerdosa Abdi This story isn't the flashiest werewolf tale, but it is worth seeing thanks to a fresh perspective. As flawed as the story may be, the story from a child's eyes offers a new and unique entry point for the subgenre. Read
• 5.0 The Blu SpotJeff Beck What we end up with is an almost entirely forgettable werewolf outing that had something it wanted to say, but was entirely too late to do it. Read
• 5.0 Next Best PictureSara Clements The characters here are pretty flat, and the saving grace could have been the internal struggle of “good wolf” vs. “bad wolf” that the film promises Noah to go through. You never get any sense that Noah is a good man. Read
• 5.0 The Hollywood OutsiderAaron B. Peterson Director Alexander J. Farrell imbues The Beast Within with a creative take on werewolf lore, and despite the rather middling first hour that claws away at the film’s true potential, still warrants a watch to truly appreciate the final act’s commitment to its fascinating and thrilling ideology. Read
• 4.5 Alliance of Women Film JournalistsAlexandra Heller-Nicholas The Beast Within isn’t a terrible film, but sadly it is not a particularly great one either, so ham-fisted is its approach to its central themes. Read
• 4.5 CinemalogueTodd Jorgenson This slow-burning British psychological thriller struggles to build consistent suspense to match its atmospheric visuals. Read
• 4.2 IndiewireVikram Murthi The Beast Within has nothing much to offer except the domestic violence allegory at its center, so Farrell repeatedly emphasizes, spotlights, and underlines it in red, just in case anyone was unclear about what the film was really about. Read
• 4.0 Common Sense MediaJeffrey M. Anderson It's certainly possible to pull off a fresh take on the werewolf formula, but this movie doesn't quite make it; it's atmospheric, to be sure but also slow-paced and lacking in surprises or scares. Read
• 4.0 In Review OnlineDaniel Gorman If you excised the film’s brief prologue and the film’s final few minutes, you’d have a straightforward, reasonably powerful family melodrama. Which reminds us what a problem it is that this is supposed to be a horror movie. Read
• 4.0 VarietyDennis Harvey The actual ideas that might lift this above ordinary genre fare fall short, while the vivid tension and anxious character identification needed to excel on a humbler plane never quite arrive. Read
• 4.0 Flickering MythRobert Kojder It’s the closest the film comes to functioning as compelling, otherwise hampered by the tiny scope of its blatantly obvious metaphor bludgeoned into the viewer five minutes in. Read
• 3.8 Movie NationRoger Moore The performances are more effective than affecting, although every player has her or his “moment.” There are interesting ideas thrown in, but they’re bandied about, not really addressed or dealt with. Read
• 3.0 ColliderRobert Brian Taylor The Beast Within, a human tragedy awkwardly disguised in wolf's clothing, stumbles badly. Read
• 3.0 MovieWebJulian Roman The title's double entendre has poetic intent but doesn't fill the common sense void in a flawed narrative. Read
• 2.5 Film Freak CentralWalter Chaw There are so many issues in orbit around domestic violence–the danger of staying, the danger of running, the way violence might pass on generationally–that are portrayed without due consideration, and the tension of whether Willow will finally die from an asthma attack begins to feel more like exploitation than like thoughtful exploration. Read
• 2.0 Decine21José María Aresté A clumsy horror film written and directed by Alexander J. Farrell with his co-writer Greer Ellison, with the werewolf myth in the background. It never wraps the viewer in the mystery it is after, because you don't understand how the characters behave. Read