Ginger Snaps

2000 Horror

In the generic Canadian suburb of Bailey Downs live Ginger (Katharine Isabelle) and Brigitte (Emily Perkins), 15-year-old sisters committed to introversion, menstruation anxiety, and terminal misanthropy. Three years late for their first period, they spend their time staging gruesome death scenes for their own amusement, amidst the willful ignorance of their relentlessly perky mother (Mimi Rogers). On the night Ginger finally gets her period, the sisters are attacked in the woods by a ferocious creature that may have some connection to "The Beast of Bailey Downs," a predator currently disemboweling its way through the local dog population. The girls survive the attack, and Ginger's wounds heal quickly, but her attitude grows even more bizarre, as hair sprouts from her scars and a tail grows from her spine. Adding to the terror, she starts dating boys. A panicked Brigitte forces herself to befriend Sam (Kris Lemche), the high school pot supplier, whose brand of ganja may be the only cure for Ginger's troubling ailment. more..

Director: John Fawcett

Starring: Katharine Isabelle, Emily Perkins, Kris Lemche,Jesse Moss, Danielle Hampton

Reviews

  • A ferocious, funny, gory, and astute Canadian horror parable.

    Lisa Schwarzbaum - Entertainment Weekly

    26 April 2013

  • A quietly subversive my-sister-is-turning-into-a-werewolf movie that doesn't wimp out at the end.

    Derek Elley - Variety

    26 April 2013

  • The best teenage werewolf movie ever made.

    Mick LaSalle - The San Francisco Chronicle

    26 April 2013

  • Isn't for everyone, but horror fans with strong stomachs will find it a memorable monsterfest that rarely loses its bite.

    David Sterritt - Christian Science Monitor

    26 April 2013

  • Because the characters are so well established -- Ms. Perkins is particularly good as the shy, resentful Brigitte -- the film can have fun with its own premises without turning into an empty camp exercise.

    Dave Kehr - The New York Times

    26 April 2013

Awards

  • Best DVD Release

    Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films (2002)

  • Film - Pretty Funny Writing - Orignal

    Canadian Comedy Awards (2002)

  • Best Achievement in Cinematography

    Genie Awards (2002)

     
  • Best Movie

    International Horror Guild (2002)

  • Emily Perkins

    Málaga International Week of Fantastic Cinema (2001)