Teen Wolf

Although it's hard by any objective standard to classify 1985's Teen Wolf as a "good movie," the star vehicle for a young Michael J. Fox written by Jeph Loeb and Matthew Weisman is undeniably entertaining.

The story centers around average high school student Scott Howard (Fox) who discovers he's a werewolf. Rather than hiding this fact, which gives him speed, agility, and power for the first time, Scott brings out the wolf on the basketball court making the sorry team instantly better, and turning himself into a celebrity - something his best friend Stiles (Jerry Levine) is only too happy to exploit for profit.

If you remove the werewolf, Teen Wolf is a pretty generic high school film. We get a good kid, the hot girl he lusts for (Lorie Griffin), her evil boyfriend (Mark Arnold), and the girl (Susan Ursitti) who likes him. Between scenes of the werewolf surfing on top of a van and playing basketball, there's also Scott learning a life lesson about accepting himself for who he is.

For those that want to take it seriously Teen Wolf is going to be a mixed bag, but for younger viewers there's an undeniable charm to the film. Although panned by critics the film did fairly well at the box office and earned a sequel and animated series. Released on Blu-ray in a new Collector's Edition, extras include a new digital transfer of the film, trailer, gallery, and a feature documentary longer than the film itself.

[Shout! Factory, $34.93]