Nahual

This is a low budget and fairly predictable Spanish language take on the Werewolf genre that somewhat transcends its limitations because of some solid acting, good jokes and incorporation of Mesoamerican folklore.

It's the tale of Katia Montero, a middle-aged Colombian-American social worker who decides to take a vacation to an unnamed Central or South American resort after experiencing a traumatic event while at work in Chicago. As unexplained disappearances and deaths proceed to pile up around her hotel, she gradually comes to realise that she is becoming a Nahual/ Naghual- a shapeshifting monster from Central American indigenous tradition that can switch between feline and human forms.

There is creaky CGI. Unconvincing gore. An actor in a cheap-looking fur suit jumps out at people a lot. But there are also some neat ideas, a bunch of laughs and some smart satire on sex tourism and anti-indigenous racism.

It's also pretty cool that a bunch of the main characters are middle-aged women, considering how poorly represented that demographic is in cinema as a whole. The main actors are all great, whether they're playing heroic, villainous or comical roles.

I'm a sucker for horror movies that do something a little different from what I'm used to, and this is definitely one of those movies. It's a bit messy, but I really enjoyed it.