ginger snaps

On paper puberty is terrifying: bleeding, cramps, hormonal impulses, tufts of hair sprouting in strange places. Without parental guidance, one might be actually convinced that it was all part of some Cronenbergian transformation into an entirely different organism. Which is in fact exactly what happens in Ginger Snaps (2001), a clever Canadian horror / satire which walks the same black comedy high school halls as Heathers but with a bit more maturity.

Ginger (Katharine Isabelle) and Brigette (Emily Perkins) are pair of morbid sisters who relish their role as social outcasts, swearing a lifelong suicide pact if things ever get too hairy. And they do when Ginger is attacked by a werewolf in their suburban neighborhood. This comes on the heels of Ginger’s “monthly visitor” which she gets for the first time, changing her from a mousey misfit into a sultry seductress tempting the hottest guys in school. Almost overnight, the sisters’ relationship sours as Brigette is left to determine whether hormones are to blame for their social schism…or if Ginger is suffering from another type of curse altogether.

Directed by John Fawcett and written by Karen Walton (who now have a cult hit with TV’s Orphan Black), Ginger Snaps is brilliantly tuned in to the female psychology. The film bounces between sarcasm and serious emotions with remarkable ease, subverting the werewolf and teen movie genres simultaneously. Walton’s script rarely concedes to horror movie conventions, allowing the supernatural to accentuate the story, not overwhelm it (until the effects heavy finale). The tragedy of Ginger and Brigette outgrowing each other is what makes the film work.

That said, there’s enough blood and fur to keep undiscriminating horror fans interested as well. And you certainly don’t need personal experience to get a kick out of Ginger’s female frustrations or sexual urges (in Walton’s script, lycanthropy is transmitted like an STD). Ginger Snaps is ingeniously subversive but never too smart for its own good. In high school speak; it’s a nerd who can drink you under the table.

Scream Factory’s blu-ray / DVD combo-pack collector’s edition is seriously stacked. Above and beyond the hour-long documentary explaining the genesis and production of the film, there are a series of interviews with actors and effects artists, two commentaries, audition tapes, effects reels, trailers TV spots and a fascinating study of puberty in the horror genre. This is how you turn a cult title into a classic!