"Late Phases" actually turned out to be much better than I had anticipated. When I found this movie, I had not even heard about it, but given the cover and the synopsis of the movie, I decided to give it a go. Plus, it is a horror movie which is always a nudge in the right director for me.The storyline told in "Late Phases" was actually rather intense. It is the kind of story that you quickly get yourself immersed into. And it was a rather nice approach and twist on the werewolf genre, which just added to the enjoyment of the movie.There is a good build up of tension throughout the movie and the cast that they had assembled here delivered great performances. Especially Nick Damici, because he really carried the movie quite phenomenally with his performance.The characters in the movie were also good, they were nicely detailed and fleshed out. And of course brought very nicely to life on the screen by the cast.There are some nice effects in the movie. And while "Late Phases" is not a movie that is heavily relying on special effects, the team does make good use of these special effect they did put into the movie.A great story with good performances, and an ending that was rather good and in spirit with the movie. If you haven't seen "Late Phases" already, and if you get the chance to do so, I would suggest you take the time to watch it.

A blind Vietnam veteran takes on werewolves that are terrorizing a retirement community, to which he has just moved. Nick Damici was very good in the lead role but I couldn't help but wonder what Clint Eastwood or Charles Bronson would have been like too. As much a drama as a horror, a lot of the film focuses on relationships, in particular between father & son. This, coupled with a long middle section that is horror-less, may not appeal to all horror fans but I liked the fact that it certainly is not a typical werewolf flick. Acting is generally good. As for the creatures, well there's a reasonable transformation scene but the werewolves themselves reminded me of the lesser Howling efforts.

Puzzled by a series of bizarre animal attacks, a blind war veteran begins to suspect that a werewolf resides in his retirement community in this offbeat take on the horror subgenre. While the film has some unnerving attack scenes and very graphic transformation effects, much of the horror is implied and the film manages to be unsettling with overt horror kept at a minimum. Nick Damici is excellent in the lead role with a world-weariness that reflects the film's title (late phases of life) and yet also a passion for a life that he does not realise himself until the werewolf threat surfaces. Indeed, while the werewolf combat scenes are few and far between, it is the scenes of Damici investigating the mystery, consulting a gun salesman and so on that highlight a newfound zest for life despite his earlier claims that he is ready to die. The film has lots of effective dark humour too, such as the police who dismiss the animal attacks as somewhat expected (!) given how defenseless old people are and do not think twice about them. Damici also does a great job making light of his blindness where possible. For all its virtues, the film falls apart a bit towards the end as the werewolf attacks heighten; the sentimental note that the film ends on also does not quite feel right. There is, however, a lot to like in the idea of a blind person being the best equipped to take on a werewolf with all other senses heightened as a result of not being able to see. The film is blessed with several solid supporting turns too, especially from Ethan Embry as Damici's worried son and Tom Noonan as the local priest.

If you like films such as the original Halloween, this is a good entry in the modern library that respects the classic ideal of horror films rather than a blood-spattered slash-fest. Werewolf movies are far and few between, compared to vampire movies, and this is definitely quite a good entry. In spite of complaints of "B" movie effects I found the fact that you don't actually see the monster till the 3rd act (late in the movie) a plus. Great horror movies rely upon atmosphere, music, and the actors to bring us into the story and this film does a damned good job of bringing us into the story through the main character. I highly recommend this to horror fans that want a suspenseful film that builds to a poignant finish rather than a non-stop slash fest.