The morbid opening that shows our leads in various photographs where they've staged all sorts of gory deaths introduces us to two sisters; Ginger (Katharine Isabelle); a pretty sexy loner and Brigitte (Emily Perkins) her lesser attractive sister. Together they are disenchanted sisters who are anti-social, sarcastic and have a death fetish. They aren't liked in high school - and they don't care.

However, one night while walking in the park Ginger is bitten by a werewolf (who we assume smelled the blood of her first, late period) and all Hell breaks loose as she changes the way she acts while having a huge bloodlust. It's up to her sister to try and save her.

Packed with lots of intelligent black humour and with two unknown leads that are very very good this is an engrossing and witty horror flick that's directed with kinetic energy and is original enough to be one of my most recommended horror films of 2000. The sarcastic script doesn't pull any punches and that's a big reason this works so well.

Mimi Rogers is amusing as the girls' naïve mother. Finale gets a bit too chaotic for my liking.

Followed by Ginger Snaps: Unleashed and one more sequel.

Directed By: John Fawcett.
Written By: Karen Walton.

Starring: Emily Perkins, Katharine Isabelle, Kris Lemche, Jesse Moss.

Picture Ratio: Widescreen.

Picture Quality: Looking good for a low-budget Canadian movie.

Extras: American's feel ripped-off in this department as Artisan in all their wisdom released this as a bare bones disc (in Full Screen!). On the very well put together Canadian edition (which I reviewed) there's trailers, TV spots, bios, audition tapes, rehersals, a making of featurette, an effects featurette, still galleries, two commentaries and a bunch of deleted scenes. For suffice it to say this is a loaded disc with all sorts of interesting extras (heck, I even learned the opening shot of this movie was done in the city I lived in most of my life).