Having thoroughly enjoyed the original Ginger Snaps for its unique blend of horror, coming-of-age themes, and sharp social commentary, I found myself drawn to complete the trilogy, wanting a sense of closure to the compelling narrative that I was now invested in.

Luckily, the second installment, Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed was available to stream so I thought I'd give that a watch to see if it lived up to the original.

Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed - Cult Film Review

Well, the film is pretty much a straight continuation from the ending of the first story with the focus on Brigitte (Emily Perkins). As she grapples with the death of her sister and her own impending transformation, she navigates the social and systemic complexities of the rehabilitation center, all whole being the relentlessly pursued by a new, more feral werewolf.

While the raw, visceral energy of the first film was somewhat tempered, Unleashed delves deeper into the psychological torment and isolation that comes with the curse. Having watched the film it reminds me of the American McGee's videogames Alice and sequel Alice: Madness Returns which takes us on a more gothic and psychological version of Lewis Carroll's original tale. Here, Ginger is gone in body but not in spirit as Perkin's Brigitte struggles along trying to prove that she is not mad while, Ginger, like an evil Jiminy Cricket, teases and aims to turn her as she navigates the facility trying to prove that she isn't a drug-addled mental health patient.

The film's staging is more cinematic with lots of careful staging and stylised angled shots. The make-up budget has improved proved as Ginger and Brigitte look more glamorous, even though Perkins' character is supposed to be an addict to the antidote. Sure, there are fewer werewolf money shots and far fewer animatronic tranformations but the whole production looks very good, probably because it is mostly set in a dilapidated rehab clinic.

Perkins is excellent in her role as a young woman who is struggling to keep the curse at bay while everyone else thinks she is mad. She plays wide eyed confusion very well and her swivel eyed looks for escape are amazing but I must mention the performance of a very young Tatiana Maslany as Ghost. Even in this early role, Maslany's talent for embodying complex, often troubled characters is evident. Her portrayal of Ghost, a seemingly innocent but deeply disturbed young girl, adds a layer of unsettling tension and unpredictability to the narrative. It's fascinating to watch this performance now, knowing the incredible range she would later display as a star in the critically acclaimed series Orphan Black, where she masterfully played multiple distinct clones, and more recently, her entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as She-Hulk. Her presence in Ginger Snaps 2 serves as a compelling early showcase of the acting talent that would thrive later.

While perhaps not reaching the cult classic status of its predecessor, Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed is a worthy, if grimmer, entry into the trilogy. It provided a necessary continuation for those invested in the characters' fates and offers a chance to see burgeoning talents like Tatiana Maslany in earlier roles. Sure, it has some questionable material that was of its time, like when a psychologists notes 'Lesbian?' when Brigitte talks about the horrific side effects of turning into a werewolf but, for the most part, nothing too egregious. Overall this film is a great watch and has stood the test of time pretty well.

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There are some films that just stick with you, even if you've only ever caught glimpses of them. For me, one such film has always been Ginger Snaps, now considered a bit of a Canadian cult horror gem. Released at the turn of the millennium, the film became a whispered legend among a couple of my friends. However, for years, my experience with it was frustratingly fragmented. Back in the late 90s, my friend Carlena had a knack for finding the most obscure and strange film, she was doing a Film Studies degree after all, so her house was our unofficial cinema, a place where we'd huddle around a flickering TV, armed with popcorn and a healthy dose of teenage bravado. Ginger Snaps was one of those VHS tapes that made the rounds. I remember catching unsettling scenes – a bloody nose, a tail transformation hand, the intense dynamic between the two sisters – but never the full narrative. Life, as it does, always seemed to interrupt. Now, nearly 25 years later, I've sought to rectify this oversight in my filmography. Armed with a proper streaming service (Amazon Prime) and an uninterrupted evening, I settled in to watch Ginger Snaps from start to finish. Now, let me tell you, it was every bit as good, if not better, than those fragmented memories suggested.

For the uninitiated (or those with fogged remembrances), Ginger Snaps follows the morbidly fascinated, death-obsessed sisters Brigitte (Emily Perkins) and Ginger (Katharine Isabelle). Their pact to die together before hitting sixteen is violently interrupted when Ginger is attacked by a werewolf on the night of her first period. What follows is a brilliant, bloody, and darkly humorous exploration of lycanthropy as a metaphor for the horrors of puberty, female adolescence, and the terrifying changes the body undergoes.

What truly elevates Ginger Snaps beyond a typical creature feature is its sharp, intelligent script. It doesn't shy away from the grotesque, but it uses the horror to amplify its themes. The bond between Brigitte and Ginger is the beating heart of the film, a complex tapestry of co-dependency, loyalty, and burgeoning resentment as Ginger's transformation pushes their relationship to its breaking point. Perkins and Isabelle deliver phenomenal performances, embodying their roles with a raw authenticity that makes their bizarre predicament feel eerily real.

The practical effects, a hallmark of horror from that era, hold up remarkably well, adding a visceral punch that modern green screen and CGI often misses. The transformation sequences are genuinely unsettling, a slow, painful unraveling of humanity that mirrors the awkward, often painful experience of growing up. But while it's undeniably a horror film, it's also laced with a biting wit and a surprising amount of heart.

Finally seeing Ginger Snaps in its entirety was like finding the missing pieces to a captivating, gruesome jigsaw puzzle. It's a film that was ahead of its time in many ways, tackling feminist themes within the horror genre long before it became a more common trend. Sure, it is of its time so some of the dialogue is a bit too edge lordy and clunky as was the style at the time ('On the rag' and 'He wants to get down your pants, stupid!') and the casual way a drug dealing dropout can attend a girl's PE lesson and talk to a student does not show the teaching profession in a good light, but it's smart, stylish, and genuinely unsettling, proving that horror doesn't need a massive budget to be impactful. In fact, many film genres, especially horror, can actively benefit from the economy of design due to budgetary constraints.

If, like me, you've only ever experienced Ginger Snaps in tantalizing fragments, or if you've never seen it at all, I implore you to give it a full watch. It's a cult classic for a reason, a howling good time that's as relevant today as it was when Ginger first started to shed her skin.