Indie Horror Hall of Fame: The Wolf of Snow Hollow

For his follow-up to the utterly brilliant dramedy Thunder Road, multi-hyphenate Jim Cummings ventured into the world of horror to introduce us to a new breed of lycanthropic storytelling in The Wolf of Snow Hollow. A quirky and darkly comedic romp about a small town plagued by a series of grisly murders that may or may not be the work of a bloodthirsty werewolf, this film has become a regular watch in my home over the last few years. With an approach that feels a bit like if David Lynch made Super Troopers (this is meant as the biggest compliment possible), Cummings has crafted something very special with The Wolf of Snow Hollow that stands out as a truly exemplary genre-bending comedy that continues to delight with subsequent rewatches.

At the start of the film, we meet a young couple who have set out for an idyllic weekend away in the snow-laded mountains. But before they can get cozy, the young woman is attacked, and paw prints discovered at the crime scene indicate that the perpetrator behind her gruesome death is a lycanthrope. When Officer John Marshall (Cummings, who also stars in the film) shows up at the crime scene, he’s not fully convinced that there’s a werewolf at large, and insists that there’s got to be a more logical explanation to what’s happening. But as the creature begins to amass a serious body count in Snow Hollow, John isn’t sure what to believe anymore — all he knows is that he’s got to put an end to these murders before it’s too late for this community that he’s sworn to protect.

As a small-town mystery, The Wolf of Snow Hollow weaves an intriguing whodunit where it’s not just about who is behind these murders, but just who might be transforming into a bloodthirsty beast every night and attacking random women, too. As a portrait of life in this world seemingly tucked away from the world at large, Cummings perfectly captures the interbred nature of intimate communities in Snow Hollow where everyone seems to know everything about everyone, and it paints a truly vivid portrait where every resident of this snow-laden municipality feels fully realized and integral to the film’s overall story as well. It might seem silly to make a Gilmore Girls comparison here, but there are some Stars Hollow vibes going on in Snow Hollow just with a bit of a Stephen King twist to them (this is also a huge compliment).

Cummings’ character, John Marshall, is the anchor of The Wolf of Snow Hollow, and he’s not exactly the prototypical hero we typically see in these types of stories, but he’s still endlessly compelling nonetheless. John’s life is a huge mess — he’s struggling with his sobriety, he’s stressed out about his dad Sheriff Hadley (Robert Forster) who has been hiding some pretty serious health concerns, his ex-wife hates him, his relationship with his 17-year-old daughter Jenna (Chloe East) is strained at best and the whole town is convinced he can’t hack it as a cop, let alone as a deputy sheriff.

John’s journey in Snow Hollow is wrought with frustration, where he utilizes his dry and cynical sense of humor to contend with the fact that everyone seems to blame him for what’s happening in this sleepy town, and then utter devastation when he is forced to come to terms with his shortcomings. There’s a fine line between comedy and tension that fuels Cummings’ performance in Snow Hollow, and I think it’s why I adore this movie so much. Life itself is rarely just one genre, and I think the way the story here demonstrates the endless pathos of human existence, regardless of the circumstances, is just fantastic (his acting here makes for a great companion piece to Cumming’s stellar work in Thunder Road as well other recent films like The Beta Test and The Last Stop in Yuma County).

While the entire cast rips along in The Wolf of Snow Hollow, Riki Lindhome truly steals the show here as Officer Julia Robeson, John’s right-hand woman who is often underestimated because of her gender but always seems to be a few steps ahead of everyone else. Lindhome gives a beautifully restrained and subtly hilarious performance here, which makes Julia an interesting juxtaposition against Cummings’ boisterous and reactionary character in the film. And to no one’s surprise, Forster is absolutely great in Snow Hollow as well, playing a man who is not only forced to face his own mortality head-on, but his legacy as the face of justice in the titular town as well.

It is such a shame that this is the final performance from the legendary actor, as we never like saying goodbye to any of the greats, but Snow Hollow is a fitting swan song for Robert Forster all the same, showcasing just why he was such an understated force to be reckoned with throughout his career.

I don’t know if The Wolf of Snow Hollow is a film that will work for everyone as it has a very deliberate sense of pacing and dialogue delivery to it, which could throw some folks off. Plus, the way the mystery wraps up here is genuinely surprising and may not completely align with expectations either. But as a film fan, that’s the kind of thing I will always appreciate because I want movies to push me in directions I could have never expected. Beyond that, I also adore how Cummings found a way to breathe new life into a well-known subgenre in horror with Snow Hollow that features a ton of wholly unexpected moments — basically, think Silver Bullet (another film that is an all-timer for me as a horror fan) by way of the Coen Brothers.

As someone who has a lot of love for horror comedies in general, The Wolf of Snow Hollow is easily one of my favorites to come along in the 21st century, and it’s a film I will always champion whenever I can.