Ginger Snaps Is Still the Best Werewolf Movie Ever

Way back in the dark ages, just after the world ended with the Y2K bug, a horror film was released that turned werewolf fiction on its hairy head: Ginger Snaps.

It's one of the few movies guaranteed to make about half the earth's population squirm with discomfort, anxiety, and possibly even abject terror. In fact, one of the central themes it explored when it was released in the year 2000 might be so controversial today that I can easily imagine it instantly getting the ban hammer from various religious groups, parents' organizations, and even local governments.

If you're male and reading this, you may want to avert your eyes and return to your regularly scheduled flexing in the mirror because exploring this film means we're going to talk about one of men's deepest, darkest fears: menstruation🩸.

Now that half of you ran away, let's take a (mostly spoiler-free) look at one of the best werewolf movies ever made.

Some of you may think what I said above is a joke, but oh no, it's not at all. I'm bloody serious. I'm MALE (pounds chest), and from birth, I was indoctrinated into the patriarchy (not by choice) and taught all the things that come along with that. Here are a few examples:

• It's a MAN's world! That's right. We own it. God is a MAN and gave us MEN the world. It's a birthright or whatever. After all, Adam was made from pure grit, gumption, guns, and alpha badassness, but eve was made from, like...a pink princess dress and, I don't know...make-up?
• And since Adam was made first, we MEN are really the creators and responsible for all life as we know it. That whole "childbirth" thing 😵‍💫🤢 🤮...sorry, where was I?
• Anyway...blood is like...MANLY, as long as it's flying around because of MEN throwing punches or flinging bullets and shit.

Now, before I go on, we all have to do the Trust Dance of the Manly Brotherhood of Men.

​

With that out of the way, let's continue.

• girls are weak. Pffft. Obviously.
• Anything involving girl blood is 😵‍💫🤢🤮
• Sorry, I just blacked out for a minute there. Where was I?
• Oh yeah! Literally, anything having to do with "that time of the month" is the most vile, disgusting aberration known to MAN.
• Also, cooties.

I've now had my MANLY MAN CARD revoked from spilling secrets. The above doesn't quite cover the entire rulebook forcibly jammed into my brain since birth, but it covers at least some of the parts relevant to the film Ginger Snaps.

It's hard to talk about a movie without spoiling it, but that's what I will attempt because I want you to drop everything and watch it. So, let's jump right into...

The Story (Spoiler Free)

Meet Ginger and Brigitte Fitzgerald, two goth-adjacent teen sisters from the suburban abyss of Bailey Downs—a place so soul-sucking that even the lawns weep at night.

These girls are inseparable, the ride-or-die kind of siblings who bond over dark photography, blood-soaked "accident" dioramas, and their mutual disdain for everyone and everything around them. Truly, they've turned their angst into a full-blown art form.

Life for the sisters takes a howling left turn when Ginger has a nasty run-in with the local "wildlife." Ginger survives the attack, but things get...complicated. Hairy. Hungry. Hormonal.

As Ginger starts changing in ways that go way beyond what they've been taught about puberty, Brigitte scrambles to figure out how to save her sister—or maybe contain her—before things spiral completely out of control. The clock is ticking, the moon is rising, and the body count is about to go up.

The film is a werewolf story on the surface, but lurking just beneath the furry surface is a raw and unflinching exploration of the monstrous reality that is growing up as a teenage girl. Sure, you could say it's about puberty, but on steroids—and with claws. The film doesn't shy away from the messy, unglamorous truths about that transformation.

Oh, and before you ask, yes, there's a high school mean girl with a satisfying resolution. Also, the sisters' mom is obliviously well-meaning but deeply cringe—and the kind of supportive parent you'll wish you had growing up. And there's enough blood to fill a GWAR concert.

Okay, I don't think I spoiled anything big there. You could probably find out that much from the film trailer.

Themes With a Big T

The film is full of Themes™, but it doesn't beat you over the head with them. They're naturally worked into the movie. In fact, those themes are why it became a cult classic and why people are still talking about it decades later. Ginger Snaps isn't just about hairy transformations and chomping on throats (though it has plenty of both). It's a hormone-fueled deep dive into the chaos of adolescence, wielding its themes like a silver bullet straight through the heart of societal norms, all while entertaining us with a brutal allegory for what it means to grow up as a teenage girl in a world hellbent on misunderstanding you.

At its hairy core, the film zeroes in on female adolescence with all its bloody, unpredictable, and downright terrifying twists. You've got menstruation as a literal plot point; puberty weaponized into a horror trope, and the raging duality of craving independence while still being shackled to expectations. It's a wild, unapologetic middle finger to sanitized, cookie-cutter portrayals of teenage girls in media.

And I'm here for it.

Tae and I have it on regular rotation here at the house.

The movie even cleverly contrasts Ginger's ordeal with that of Jason McCardy (played by Jesse Moss), a teenage boy who also starts suffering from lycanthropic puberty. While Ginger wrestles with her newfound power and a tempest of emotions, Jason devolves into a walking stereotype of testosterone-fueled idiocy. His "transformation" manifests as aggression, oozing pimples, and the kind of hormonal recklessness we were all warned about but never really saw.

And then there's the theme of self-destruction because Ginger's transformation isn't just physical. Watching her unravel is like staring into the abyss of every bad decision you made as a teenager, only with a soundtrack of growls and snapping jaws.

See?

Lots of Themes.™

And I just scratched the surface.

A Sampling of the Cast & Crew

So the story of Ginger Snaps began with the director, John Fawcett, who wanted to make a werewolf movie unlike any other—a body horror film about a teenage girl. He was inspired by David Cronenberg's body horror and wanted to strip away the "magic" of werewolves and make them more biological, grounded with gritty realism and a slow and painful transformation. The film's unique, furless werewolf design was John Fawcett's idea, which introduced some creative solutions to hide zippers and seams in the werewolf suits.

If you've never seen Ginger Snaps but John Fawcett's name sounds familiar, you may recognize him as an executive producer for the critically acclaimed sci-fi series Orphan Black, which won numerous awards for its intricate storytelling and Tatiana Maslany's standout performances. Fun fact: Tatiana Maslany played a ghost in Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed.

John Fawcett took the idea to a writer named Karen Walton.

Karen Walton initially dismissed the idea as "terrible," but John eventually persuaded her with his vision. Karen's feminist perspective brought real depth to the characters and story, subverting tropes of teenage girls in horror. Interestingly, Karen Walton went on to write and produce for Orphan Black with John Fawcett and has worked on quite a few other things, including Queer as Folk. Karen Walton has been recognized with several prestigious awards, including the Nell Shipman Award (2018), the Margaret Collier Award (2016), a Crystal Award for mentorship, and the Denis McGrath Award for her contributions to screenwriting.

​Emily Perkins, who played Brigitte Fitzgerald, nailed the awkward, self-doubting younger sister forced to navigate the chaos caused by Ginger's transformation. Katharine Isabelle brought Ginger Fitzgerald to life with an arc from a rebellious older sister into a full-blown predator. At the beginning of the film's creation, Katharine was 17, and Emily was 22, even though Katharine played the older sister. The two actresses knew each other before filming, were at the same agency, and even auditioned together. They even grew up in the same area and attended the same schools at different times.

​Kris Lemche played Sam, the drug-dealing botanist. His plant knowledge made him an ally to Brigitte and her mission of containing the chaos. Jesse Moss played Jason McCardy, an overconfident boy whose confidence totally crumbles after encountering Ginger post-lycanthrope. You may also recognize Jesse Moss from Tucker and Dale vs. Evil.

​Mimi Rogers played the mom Pamela Fitzgerald, collaborated on her character's own wardrobe, selecting items like Scotty dog sweaters and pumpkin earrings, and improvised memorable moments like spraying stain remover on bloodied clothing. You may also recognize Mimi Rogers from all sorts of things, including Bosch or Mad Men.

The film faced some strange challenges during its production, like the fact that it was after the Columbine shooting, and the dark themes of the script made casting and funding difficult, with some roles cast outside Toronto in places like Vancouver. Not only that, but they ended up filming on a tight budget during freezing Canadian nights.

Still here?

Seriously, drop everything and go watch Ginger Snaps.

It's bloody brilliant, and you won't regret it. 🐺

Relevant & Related

• What are you waiting for? Check out the Ginger Snaps film trailer here, and then go watch the movie.
• Here are other movies in the (short) franchise you can also check out: Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed and Ginger Snaps Back: The Beginning.
• Emily Perkins's husband, Ernest Mathijs, wrote a book titled John Fawcett's Ginger Snaps that explores more about the original film.
• Read even more about the film from Alice Bolin in Puberty, the horror movie: "Ginger Snaps" is more than a teen gore-fest. It's the best werewolf and menses-themed feminist flick of all time.​
• Here's a little 4-minute featurette with a few short interviews from the cast and crew.
• A bit more with Emily Perkins talking about the Unleashed movie.
• And a 2019 interview with Katharine Isabelle. Even more here.
• Also, don't miss Ginger Snaps (2000) | Blood, Teeth and Fur—a full-length behind-the-scenes on the original film.
• Lastly, a 1-minute funny story from Katharine Isabelle accidentally scaring a family during the filming.
• Read a 5-part interview with Emily Perkins at Radio Free Entertainment.
• While we're on the subject of werewolves, you may also want to look at the 2002 film Dog Soldiers.

You might enjoy these other articles:

• ​The Invention of PG-13​
• ​The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)​
• ​Cooking With Vincent Price​
• ​Coffin Joe of Brazil​
• ​Milicent Patrick & Her Enduring Design of the Creature from the Black Lagoon​

I also wrote an immersive horror story featuring werewolves and threw one of my friends headlong into it so the story unfolded in real life. After the story ended, I documented the entire thing and put it up online. Check it out at Absolution: An Experiment in Immersive Storytelling.