“Brotherhood of the Wolf” is one of those movies that tries to touch on multiple genres at the same time and largely succeeds. Part historical, part martial arts, part horror, part love story and part mystery, “Brotherhood” mixes these genres skillfully for an entertaining and enjoyable movie.

The movie takes place in France in 1764, as Gr‚goire de Fronsac arrives to hunt down a beast terrorizing the countryside. The beast is reported as being a very large wolf-like creature, and it has claimed multiple victims so far. With his Indian companion Mani, Fronsac digs into the mystery and tales surrounding the beast and starts to uncover a far more intricate puzzle.

This story is based upon reportedly real events, or at least up to the point of a wolf-like beast terrorizing the area. The legends hold that the real beast was never found or accurately identified, so “Brotherhood” uses the tale well weaving its own deeper plot in and comes out as enjoyable, interesting and at times, tense.

Presented in anamorphic widescreen, “Brotherhood” looks great, with all the richest of the sets and locations showing through. Even the dark and moody scenes are rich with detail and the transfer really helps show them off. Perhaps the best though, is the stylistic and dynamic filming used for the movie, which really brings some scenes alive and offers a unique experience.

The sound quality also compliments the movie well, with a nice Dolby 5.1 track that offers some strong surround elements. The DVD includes both the original French soundtrack, which is excellent, and an English dub that is decent, for those wanting to go that route.

Sadly, Universal skimped on the rest of the DVD after the movie itself. There are virtually no extras, and out of those present, only one section is of interest. This is a section of deleted scenes, presented by the director. After that, the only thing to look at are a trailer and production notes, with cast and filmmaker biographies.

This lack of extras is a real disappointment, as “Brotherhood” is the type of movie you really want to see more about. A commentary or “making-of” extra would have really complimented it well and helped make the picture more enjoyable. Especially with all its history, some viewers may not know the stories behind some of the legends and politics that drive the film.

For those looking for a fully-packed DVD, a three-disc special edition was released in Canada and can easily be ordered over the Internet, although the extras are in French and a few, such as commentaries, lack subtitles. Offering the same quality, but far more extras, it is a set some may want to consider, unless your only interest is the movie itself of which Universal offers an excellent version here.