DVD review (region 2)
Directed by James Isaac
Starring Jason Behr, Elias Koteas, Rhona Mitra
Release date Out now

In accordance with Navajo legend, a boy named Timothy has the power to break the curse of the Skinwalkers (that's werewolves to you and me) when he turns 13. Two rival packs of Skinwalkers - one intent on protecting the boy and ending the evil that afflicts them, the other who sees lycanthropy as a gift and will kill to preserve it - fight for their opposing futures…

With a back catalogue consisting of just two films prior to this, one of which was the widely slated Jason X, you'd be forgiven for not expecting much from director James Isaac. And sadly, you'd be right. While Skinwalkers is by no means terrible, there’s absolutely nothing here that we haven't witnessed in the slew of Hollywood horrors of recent years.

The story sounds promising at a quick glance, but its execution is far from inspiring. Isaac has obviously taken his cue from far more successful movies such as Night Watch and Dog Soldiers, and as such he sacrifices plot for action on more than one occasion - after all, why make a swift escape from the bad guys when you can stop the van, have another shoot-out and watch Grandma get pumped full of lead?

We wait half an hour for our first glimpse of a werewolf, and what we’re eventually offered wouldn't look out of place in the earlier seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer - dodgy facial prosthetics that amuse more than they alarm and character teeth that simply look uncomfortable in the actors' mouths.

The cast, for the most part, make the most of an incredibly trite script. Yet you can't help but feel that this film could be subtitled 'The Things People Do to Pay the Bills' when it comes to the likes of Elias Koteas and Rhona Mitra (playing Timothy's uncle and mother respectively), both of who have previously proven they're worthy of far better than this lacklustre effort. Jen Evans

VERDICT: 3/10
For all its promise, Skinwalkers turns out to be a real howler.