Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Teddy’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains minor spoilers for the motion picture, ‘Teddy’.

​It is definitely safe to say, that the werewolf subgenre in horror, has grown a touch stale. Not because the concept is boring or anything like that, but because the stories that populate this universe, continuously follow a fairly specific formula. One where a good person finds themselves confronted with the fact that they are going to become a werewolf and that a grand and powerful and downright primal evil that resides within them, will soon be coming to the surface of their psyche and that of course, leads us to a grand struggle within the story. Wherein the person must fight hard to always keep the good in control and well, it makes total sense as to why this particular formula is embraced by storytellers in print and on screen.
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Because this affords a grand exploration on the nature of good and evil and how darkness is within all of us, and that we must fight it, in order for humanity to have a better tomorrow. But while that is a tried and true and uplifting formula in the end, it just doesn’t quite resonate like it used to. For we are coming to learn that it isn’t enough to try and be good, we in fact… must figure out how to end evil before it takes hold and well, that realization is starting to lead to stories that are shaking up the werewolf subgenre. The kind that offers up a different kind of analysis on good and evil, and these stories are becoming so prevalent that the horror streaming service, Shudder, is about to debut a different kind of werewolf film this Thursday, one that utterly flips the script on the tropes normally present within this subgenre in Teddy.

Now, in this particular film we are introduced to a young man named Teddy who is uh… in a strange place in life. For he never finished grade school, and he’s just not happy with his mundane life. Sure, he has a girlfriend that genuinely cares for him, but he’s stuck in a job that he hates, his family offers him little emotionally and he has minimal dreams for the future, and he has few friends for that matter as well. Mainly because the town he lives in shuns him at every turn. But at long last, Teddy’s life is about to become quite interesting and dynamic by way of a chance encounter with a mysterious creature in the woods. One that bites him and forces his body to change in ways that make it clear that Teddy won’t be one-hundred percent human for much longer and well… that might suit him in ways he never imagined. 

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Which is a plot that at first glance doesn’t seem to be all that different from any other werewolf flick out there. After all, a fair chunk of these movies features everyday people who realize they’re about to become a furry monster in a painful manner. But the difference here is that Teddy isn’t some good-hearted and cheery fellow that is about to see his life change for the worse. No instead, Teddy is kind of a jerk. He’s rude, flippant and doesn’t respect all that much and it becomes clear along the way that he harbors a lot of anger in his soul. Something that is a direct result of how he’s viewed by the townsfolk and how his life has gone and once we come to that particular realization, does the genius of this motion picture come to light.
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For this is in essence, a movie about the marginalized people of the world. The ones that we write off and scoff at on a regular basis and denounce as silly or crazy and whatever other moniker fits the moment. Which is important because… that’s the kind of person that is giving rise to the populist and nationalist movements that are sweeping the globe. All because they are eager to be seen and recognized and be part of society in some form or fashion and well, it is our desire to see them go away that creates the monster in question… one that we are uncertain how to put in a proverbial cage and that makes for some powerful commentary and moments in this film. The kind that really do show us how the anger within has brought such people to the forefront of the conversation. Which means that for the first time in this writer’s memory, we are privy to a werewolf story where the evil is outright embraced so that someone who thinks they are a nobody, can become a somebody. 

If anything, it makes this movie quite brilliant in nature, since that really is a fresh take on the subgenre and what it stands for and it really does offer up a fine understanding of what creates folks that feel the need to lash out at the world and be heard. As to how we stop such matters, well… that’s the only thing the movie doesn’t ponder upon, likely because that will take far more drastic measures as a society. But there’s nothing wrong with looking at immediate causes in such an intelligent light. But what matters most, is that this is also a solid horror film as well. Since it does feature some genuinely eerie moments and some gross ones as well, and of course… it knows how to use humor to break up the heavier stuff and well, in the end, all of these elements make this a delightful and refreshing movie for certain. One that quite frankly, you should see when it debuts on Shudder this Thursday. Because you can never go wrong with an entertaining horror film that asks you to ponder on the nature of the world in an intelligent and compelling manner.

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