In Teen Wolf, Michael J. Fox unexpectedly changes from an average teenager into a suave werewolf; having already made the transformation from TV star to movie star a month earlier with Back To The Future, the young actor puts in an effortlessly charismatic turn that goes a long way to making this otherwise corny and predictable teen fantasy a reasonable amount of fun.
Fox plays dweebish high-school basketball player Scott, such a loser that he can't even see that his extremely cute longtime friend Boof (Susan Ursitti) has the serious hots for him; instead, he pines after slutty head-cheerleader Pamela (Lorie Griffin), which brings him to blows with her boyfriend Mick, his rival on the basketball court.
Scott's luck changes, however, when he discovers that he is a werewolf: as his alter ego, Teen Wolf, he is confident, talented and popular, scoring the hoops, scoring with the ladies, and scorching up the dance-floor. But for Scott to be truly happy, he must be content with who he really is under the fur—and so when his basketball team makes the championship finals, Scott leads the way while Teen Wolf takes a back seat, much to the surprise of his loyal fans.
Teen Wolf could definitely have benefited from a few more solid laughs, but with an engaging central performance from Fox, likable supporting characters, lots of 80s atmosphere, and a general good-natured approach, the film has a charm about it that is almost impossible not to like. It's a feel-good movie—nothing more, nothing less—and as such, it does its job well.
Fox plays dweebish high-school basketball player Scott, such a loser that he can't even see that his extremely cute longtime friend Boof (Susan Ursitti) has the serious hots for him; instead, he pines after slutty head-cheerleader Pamela (Lorie Griffin), which brings him to blows with her boyfriend Mick, his rival on the basketball court.
Scott's luck changes, however, when he discovers that he is a werewolf: as his alter ego, Teen Wolf, he is confident, talented and popular, scoring the hoops, scoring with the ladies, and scorching up the dance-floor. But for Scott to be truly happy, he must be content with who he really is under the fur—and so when his basketball team makes the championship finals, Scott leads the way while Teen Wolf takes a back seat, much to the surprise of his loyal fans.
Teen Wolf could definitely have benefited from a few more solid laughs, but with an engaging central performance from Fox, likable supporting characters, lots of 80s atmosphere, and a general good-natured approach, the film has a charm about it that is almost impossible not to like. It's a feel-good movie—nothing more, nothing less—and as such, it does its job well.