'Teen Wolf: The Movie': Was the Paramount+ film worth the wait?

It's been more than five years since MTV's Teen Wolf series came to an end but now Paramount+ is brining us back to Beacon Hills with Teen Wolf: The Movie (available on the streaming platform in Canada and the U.S. on Jan. 26).

What's clear from the very beginning of the film is that we're very much back to the familiar with this movie, an extension of the six-season series. The film still features our favourite stars like Tyler Posey, Shelley Hennig, Tyler Hoechlin, Crystal Reed, Holland Roden and Colton Haynes, to name just a few familiar faces.

Drama is very much front and centre for this Teen Wolf movie, with the film leaning into some overly dramatic moments. Over the course of two hours and 20 minutes, Teen Wolf: The Movie really aims to cover every possible storyline. There's a lot going on but if you're a fan of the original series, there are a lot of Easter eggs, flashbacks and callbacks that our nostalgia-loving hearts desire, but we won't spoil those special moments for fans before they can watch.

What is 'Teen Wolf: The Movie' about?

There is a lot of ground to cover in Teen Wolf: The Movie, with multiple intersecting storylines within the film, but a large amount of focus is on Scott McCall (Posey), who is very much still the alpha.

Directed by Russell Mulcahy, who worked on several episodes of the Teen Wolf series, the movie begins about 15 years after the end of the show. At the outset, we see these high school friends have gone their separate ways, while Derek Hale (Hoechlin) is now a single dad to his own teen wolf son Eli (newcomer Vince Mattis).

But the supernatural always finds its way to Beacon Hills and now the threat of the riddle-loving menace Nogitsune is back.

Scott, Lydia (Roden) and Malia (Hennig) are coerced into seemingly bringing Scott's ex-girlfriend Allison (Reed) back to life, after she died in his arms in Season 3, but it's all connected to the Nogitsune wanting to revive the Oni and create chaos.

Do you need to watch the 'Teen Wolf' series before watching 'Teen Wolf: The Movie'?

While some reboots can stand on their own for people who aren't as familiar with its originating content, that's not the case for Teen Wolf: The Movie.

You not only need that emotional connection to the characters to really engage with this new story, but there are so many connections to elements of the old series, it's very likely new viewers will be lost in this plot. It's a complicated story generally, so it would be nearly impossible to actually follow along without a good grasp of the history of the show and the characters.

Even if you watched most of the series but didn't quite make it to the end, we recommend a rewatch beforehand.

Is the 'Teen Wolf' movie worth watching?

There is no doubt that Teen Wolf: The Movie brings us back to the glorious days of teenage-driven dramas from the 2000s and 2010s, but it's really that nostalgia element where this film lives.

It's exciting to see these characters again, to relive the love story between Scott and Allison, for example, but the narrative is a bit too cluttered to really sink your teeth (or fangs) into throughout the film.

Admittedly, Teen Wolf always had a relatively large cast a quite a few storylines on the go in the original series, but Teen Wolf: The Movie feels like more of a rushed, mad-dash to fit as much in as possible.

The story definitely has similar beats to the original series, but we have to say we did miss Dylan O'Brien's charismatic character Stiles in the movie.

In terms of the cast that we do get to see, they're able to give us the same feelings we got from their performances in the series. Posey as Scott is as engaging as he was all those years ago. Hoechlin is a highlight as Derek and it's great to see his relationship with his son Eli evolve throughout the film. Of course the return of Allison is a delight for fans of the Teen Wolf universe, but that connection to the mythology and the Nogitsune may raise the eyebrows of die-hard Teen Wolf fans.

The cast still very much oozes that same Teen Wolf energy, but we could have used a bit more wit and levity in this story, and we just wish it wasn't so overstuffed with oftentimes chaotic, intertwined plot points.