My first Album as a wee babyK
Top of the list because its just that awesome goes to The Wolfman from 1941 starring Lon Cheney Jr and Bela Lugosi. Lon Chaney Jr. and Claude Raines are absolutely astounding in this, one of the very first tales of the lycanthropes. Upon the death of his older brother, Larry Talbot returns to his father's estate in Wales. He falls in love with a girl in the village named Gwen, and he goes with her and her friend Jenny Williams to get their fortunes told at a nearby gypsy camp. After talking to the mysterious gypsy, Jenny is attacked by a wolf. Larry tries to save her. He kills the wolf but is bitten in the fight. Jenny, however, is killed. Afterwards an old gypsy woman tells him that Bela, a werewolf bit him, and now he too will become one! At first he thinks this is all nonsense, but as more murders are committed, he comes to believe that she may be right about him. youtu.be/AnGhskFaOf0
Werewolf of London 1935
He's the hairy-handed gent who ran amuck in Kent
Lately he's been overheard in Mayfair
Better stay away from him
He'll rip your lungs out, Jim
I'd like to meet his tailor, because a scarf, tweed sport coat, and jaunty cap are NOT appropriate attire for a supernatural murder machine. Seriously.
Wilfred Glendon (Henry Hull) is a wealthy and world-renowned English botanist who journeys to Tibet in search of the elusive mariphasa plant. While there, he is attacked and bitten by a creature later revealed to be a werewolf, although he succeeds in acquiring a specimen of the mariphasa. Once back home in London he is approached by a fellow botanist, Dr. Yogami (Warner Oland), who claims to have met him in Tibet while also seeking the mariphasa. Yogami warns Glendon that the bite of a werewolf would cause him to become a werewolf as well, and said plant is only a temporary fix to the disease. The main cast is very solid with Henry Hull portraying the tortured scientist to no fault and Valerie Hobson distinguishing herself as his young wife with an actual backbone and not just the usual damsel in distress. The supporting cast is filled with an eclectic memorable group of characters that fill most scenes with lighthearted humor. While the movie doesn't rival the iconic Wolf Man it's still a great little horror picture.youtu.be/6UP5d5ogJEY
Frankenstein meets the Wolfman 1943 starrinf Lon Cheney Jr Bela Lugosi and the hardest working man in horror, Lionel Atwill. Graverobbers open the grave of the Wolfman and awake him. He doesn't like the idea of being immortal and killing people when the moon is full, so he tries to find Dr. Frankenstein, in the hopes that the Dr. can cure him, but Frankenstein is dead and only his Monster is alive and this one wants to live, not to die like the Wolfman.
While it's a sequel to both The Wolf Man and The Ghost of Frankenstein, it ends up being more of a Wolf Man film then anything else for multiple reasons. Bela Lugosi is the Frankenstein Monster for the first time while Lon Chaney Jr. returns as Larry Talbot (The Wolf Man) in a really great performance that rivals the original.
Larry Talbot was one of the most tragic characters in the Universal Monsters series in the original Wolf Man film, but here it's augmented. Talbot being brought back to life first searches for a cure to get rid of the werewolf. When the hopes for a cure fade, he then just wants to be permitted to die as it seems the curse has made him invulnerable to death. Chaney gives a great tortured performance that really steals the film from everyone else.
Lugosi on the other hand had his performance cut out of the film of sorts. The end of Ghost of Frankenstein has Ygor's (Lugosi) brain implanted into the monster giving him the power of speech again (Lugosi's voice) and making him near blind as a side effect. Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man was filmed with the monster speaking and references to him being nearly blind, in post-production however Lugosi's dialogue was cut out of the film and no one mentions the monster being blind. This is why he acts so peculiar in the film and where the iconic Frankenstein Walk actually comes from. The stiff almost zombie like walk with outstretched arms became part of the monster's mythos but it's only done because he was supposed to be blind in this film.
Some of the events from Ghost of Frankenstein are still mentioned, and nothing is done or said to contradict them either. No one acknowledges the fact that Ygor is actually in the body of the monster is all. Truthfully I don't think anyone from Ghost that had that knowledge survived anyways. There are a couple of scenes though where you can tell the monster is saying something but there's no dialogue.youtu.be/L1JBkJ9o78k
1957 I was a teenage werewolf reads like Michael J Fox's entire theatrical career, only starring Michael Landon. Tony Rivers (the Little House on the Prairie alum, Michael Landon) is a teenager who has a real anger management issue. He's always ready for a fight and flies off the handle at even the slightest upsetting moment. A sequence of campy and unfortunate events lead him to seek help with a psychotherapist, who turns out to be a, ready for it… mad scientist! He is obsessed with the possibilities of reverting man to his animal state and, after a few sessions which seem to be helping, brutal animal-like killings begin to occur in the town and Tony fears that he has become … a werewolf, too! Hey McFly! youtu.be/7jZS2Yn_vRQ
The Cramps - I Was A Teenage Werewolf youtu.be/u3hisYcaL1E
1961 Curse of the Werewolf
This film has one heck of a first act that goes to pretty dark places. This film came out in 61, so I'm not concerned with spoilers, but if you are, stop reading now.
The film opens with a homeless peasant just arriving at a new town, a town that is being forced to celebrate the king's marriage. The peasant ends up at the castle, and he begs for food from the marriage feast. Of course, the king and all his cronies are straight up douche bags, and they make fun of the peasant, going as far as to buy the peasant for the king's wife. After the peasant gets a little cheeky, the king throws the peasant into the dungeon where he whiles away the years being taken care of by the jailer and the jailer's young mute daughters. Well time passes, the peasant is now and old man who has spent so long imprisoned that he has basically become like an animal. The jailer is dead, but his mute daughter is still around, and she's now a stone cold fox. The king however has become a leprosy ridden recluse, who likes to fool around with the servant girls. The mute girl is having none of that though, so the king throws her into the dungeon with the now animalistic peasant. Despite all the kindness that the mute girl showed to the peasant, the first thing he does is brutally rape her, only to die almost immediately after. The mute girl is left to then kill the king, escape the castle, and die giving birth to the peasants son, a werewolf. This is one heck of an opening, and a pretty interesting origin story of how a werewolf comes to be. The explanation they give of what a werewolf is, is also pretty hip, but describing that is meant for another review.
Aside from the first act, the rest of the film is pretty standard. It is still solid, don't get me wrong, but there is a bit of a lull in the film that brings it down a bit. The first act though, is more than enough reason to seek this film out. youtu.be/6KOinmKEKzE
Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs - Little Red Riding Hood youtu.be/b_K5b-JNc7E
The Beast must die! From 1974 Wealthy big game hunter Tom Newcliffe has tracked and killed practically every type of animal in the world. But one creature still evades him, the biggest game of all - a werewolf. This movie is ridiculous '70s horror hokum but I can't resist! I had an idea about this movie, that there's another story lurking underneath one that involves Calvin Lockhart being on a massive cocaine and LSD binge which has brought about his extremely paranoid state and allowed his delusion about a werewolf being amongst them to come to fruition. He then essentially proceeds to terrify his poor house guests subjecting them to unfounded accusations! It certainly explains Lockhart's performance! Well the lsd part anyway.youtu.be/x0SOM1ALyxo
Los Lobos - Will the Wolf Survive? youtu.be/lJVsUMKftMo
Wolfen 1981 Albert Finney, Edward James Olmos, and Gregory Hines do a pretty decent job of adding to the genre. As a city cop is assigned to solve a bizarre set of violent murders where it appears that the victims were killed by animals.
In his pursuit he learns of an Indian legend about wolf spirits. I am not particularly fond of bastardized Native American mythology. However, Wolfen was a great movie. Albert Finney is awesome as always, Gregory Hines is funky and the girl was kinda cute. But what really made this film great was the incredible visual effects.
Wolfen is well filmed in general but add on top of the fine cinematography outstanding special effects and you have a unique, highly watchable film. Predator reused some of these same effects a few years later (as well as, seemingly, borrowing some of the tonal elements and some of the music). It's a pity this film came out the same year as 'An American Werewolf in London' in that AAWIL got all the plaudits and this one went by pretty much unnoticed - this is a really good film nevertheless.
It's really not a standard werewolf movie. In fact, it's almost not a werewolf movie at all. What it is, though, is a pretty awesome police procedural with supernatural elements. In a way, Wolfen is ultimately a serial killer story.
It's a weird film, to be sure, but there is a ton to love about it. Albert Finney is awesome as New York detective Dewey Wilson. It's entertaining to contrast his role here with Hercule Poirot from Murder on the Orient Express. The characters are both detectives, but couldn't be more opposite. It's amazing to me that it's the same guy.
It's shot well, with an awesome sense of authenticity to all the visuals. New York City feels very...New York City. The run-down and abandoned areas of the Bronx offer up some really great and memorable images. The James Horner score is also excellent and a great asset.youtu.be/9CVtWfYOdbg
The Misfits Wolfs Blood youtu.be/Rt_RgvJjpYA
1981 The Howling, Karen White, a respected news reporter, decides to go undercover on a mission to capture a dangerous psychopath. However, it goes wrong and it very nearly costs her life before the police burst in and shoot the killer. Karen is left scarred by the experience, so she visits a respected psychologist who recommends that she spend some time at a peculiar retreat called "the colony" … but while there her dreams get worse, and at night she hears a disturbing howling in the woods around her. The film is still relatively scary even for today's much more stringent standards. The effects in both are outstanding, both showcasing some of the most fantastic transformation sequences without the typical over-use of CGI. Some tributes are obvious like having characters watch The Wolf Man on television while others are very subtle as having numerous characters use the last names of directors who had made werewolf films. The best however has to be some props from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre finding their way into Walter Paisley's (Dick Miller) bookstore. youtu.be/LGt8e7BpTXA
I used to think the Howling had the best transformation, then I saw an American Werewolf in london and had to change my mind, then I saw Hemlock Grove, and yeah. Trumped in every way. youtu.be/YNieysjSZW4
Now I can't bring up An American Werewolf in London without including it on my list. Also made in 1981 John Landis took well-known Dr. Pepper ad alum David Naughton and made him a monster. Literally. In fact, using his considerable talents from such horror exploits as the Thriller video, he honestly created the most recognizable and well known werewolf transformation scene ever; even going so far as to be copied in today's cinema by more CGI effects. Watching the agony as David goes through the horrid pains while literally watching the clock, and then becoming, ever so slowly, the beast to the sounds of CCR's 'Bad Moon Rising' is just shy of amazing. David Kessler and Jack Goodman are two Americans who are making a three-month tour of Europe. While camping through the Yorkshire moors, they are attacked by some kind of large wolf. Jack is torn apart and the beast begins to attack David when the locals intervene and kill the monster. But while he is recovering in a London hospital, David has haunting dreams and visions of his dead friend, who insists that at the next full moon he will become a werewolf. Watching Jack literally fall further apart each time David sees him is also pretty funny. youtu.be/UFLQS12z8K4
Creedence Clearwater Revival: Bad Moon Rising youtu.be/5BmEGm-mraE
!["Selene" by caldwellart](http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/043/f/c/__Selene___by_caldwellart.jpg ""Selene" by caldwellart")
The company of Wolves made in 1984 The setup is painfully simple: A teenage girl in a country house falls asleep while reading a magazine (with a cover story entitled "the shattered dream" — a bit of a hint to some of the themes of this movie, I'd suspect). She has a wretched dream involving wolves which appear to take place in the very woods that are visible from her bedroom window! It begins with a girl being chased down by a pack of wolves and killed, then we move to her funeral and discover she had a sister. The sister is your typical innocent girl just blossoming into womanhood, and her wise old grandma tells her stories about men changing into wolves, with the message that all men are beasts, which I strongly disagree with. but is saved by the little bit of Fairy Tale lore thats mixed in. youtu.be/QXwt61IAuqQ
Three days grace - animal I have become youtu.be/xqds0B_meys
This next movie was actually my first introduction to the "modern" wolfman stories, before this I had only ever really seen the old Lon Cheney films growing up. However Silver Bullet came out on VHS and eventually made its way to our local corner store / bait and tackle / deli / movie rental back in the 80's and is what got me into reading Stephen King as this film is based on his novel "Cycle of the Werewolf" about the small city of Tarker's Mill is startled by a series of sadistic murders. The population fears that this is the work of a maniac. During a search a mysterious, hairy creature is observed. This strange appearance is noticed once a month. People lock themselves up at night, but there's one boy who's still outside, he's preparing the barbecue. This movie is funny, silly, and all sorts of corny with a baby-faced Corey Haim makes for a great kid hero, while Gary Busey (as his likeable crazy uncle) and TWIN PEAKS' Everett McGill (as a creepy minister) provide ample support. This is simply a good 90-minute horror story, with nice atmosphere and a terrifically exciting last act. youtu.be/WQ24mMwi9Mk
Motorhead Snaggletooth youtu.be/qWEyjb7baDo
Do you have one of those movies that you play when your really really sick, that no mater how crappy inside and out you feel you can put it on and instantly feel better? That movie that makes you feel like a kid again and brightens up your whole day? Well for me my favorite childhood film is/was/ and always will be Teen Wolf! starring Michael J Fox as the clumsy, shy, and temperamental Scott Howard. I couldn't tell you all the aspects of the film that add up to make it my absolute favorite, but I do love each of the characters like old friends; from the loyal and wise beyond her years Bouf, the hilarious because he's trying so hard and obviously failing to be cool Styles, his weird and mobmentality cronie Lewis who is always afraid and untrusting of Scott, to Mr. Howard who is an honestly good man, hard working and great father, even good old Rusty Thorn who seems to have a bladder like a peanut, each character and more are awesome. I know its a typical 80's flick but as an 80's child I love it and will keep watching it, and why it inevitably will WIN IN THE END! youtu.be/30sYk9B4OqU
Up next is one of my top 5 favorite Werewolf movies starring Jack Nicholson and Catwoman Michelle Pfeiffer in 1994 To sum up the plot, Jack Nicholson is playing a meek, mild mannered but successful businessman in a publishing firm who's about to lose his job to a younger more ass-kissing colleague. He gets bitten by a wolf, which starts to change him both physically and by making him more vicious and ruthless. While falling in love with the daughter of a rich client. worth a watch for Nicholson's performance, who at one point during one of his earlier transformation scenes could easily have been cast as Wolverine in a mid-90's X-Men film. Some side-burns, wild hair, those sharp teeth, pointed eyebrows and daggers for eyes, he'd have been perfect. youtu.be/e0ksI05fS30
Ninja's versus Pirates, Roobutts versus Aliens, Vampires versus Werewolves, well this next movie takes the concept of Vampires v. Werewolves and makes a dmaned trilogy out of it. Also it contains the pin up of the day Kate Bekinsale! Really though the one who makes this movie for me is Bill Nighy "Ssssselene You've got red on you" youtu.be/IoqgQn3kcKE
The Cult - Brother Wolf, Sister Moon youtu.be/35qJ0UdJjLo
2000 Ginger Snaps This movie is by no means 'cutesy' or a chick-flick despite what the title might have you believe. It is a pure and true horror movie and it is relatively gory from the get go when the family discovers the dog has been literally shredded and left in bits and chunks all over the place. In a way it's not really that gratuitous. The whole movie is a metaphor for adolescence, which in itself is a pretty scary thing to have to go through, I suppose. There are these two morbid sisters, Ginger and Brigette, who are afraid of growing up so much that they actually have a suicide pact together. They are obsessed with death, and for art class they take photos of each other in disturbingly realistic fake death poses. Ginger begins going through puberty, has her first period, and whoosh! Cue the werewolf attack. Very well done. I particularly liked Ginger Snaps back as a "begining of the family curse" period (snerk) piece set in canadian territories during the 1600's. youtu.be/hYyyMVANjTM
2001 Brotherhood of the Wolf In 18th century France, the Chevalier de Fronsac and his native American friend Mani are sent by the King to the Gevaudan province to investigate the killings of hundreds by a mysterious beast. As schizophrenic as they come. It's nearly 2 and half hours long, and straddles the line between martial arts/period piece/creature feature/buddy flick. At times the directing is beautiful and makes excellent use of the color pallette and diverse locations. At others it is immensely annoying, with slow-mo action sequences and obnoxious camera tricks that were all the rage in the early 2000's. But there are positives to take away from this glorious mess of a film. Some solid, if not terrific, performances abound. Vincent Cassel does what he does best-- act dastardly. Within 10 minutes of him being on screen, you're a fool if it doesn't register "Yep, he's the villain!". But hey, if it ain't broke don't fix it. The ever-voluptuous Monica Bellucci is exactly as we've come to expect her in this. But despite having few lines the real star is Mark Dacascos, as an Iroquois indian who happens to speak French and possess keen martial arts skills, for reasons unbeknownst to me. And still, that is this film in a microcosm-- it's absolutely all over the place, but if you're willing to suspend all belief, and forgive the sub-par CGI of the "beast", it can be a lot of fun. youtu.be/htPOD1JHQIU because yum Monica Belluci!
Radiohead Wolf at the door youtu.be/dvBPCm25z4I
Honorable mentions for Kiddy movies with werewolves goes to Monster Squad from 1987 and Harry Potter Prisoner of Azkaban. Honestly HP did a really great job of hinting at the obvious even if you hadn't read the books and bringing a new generation of kids into the fold of how truly terrifying and sympathetic the Werewolf truly is.
up next is the 1997 movie American werewolf in Paris, a typical teen movie from the 90's however it had an excellent soundtrack, featured a search for Morrisons grave, wonderful sets and best of all the sexiest man and voice since Jim Morrison Mouth by Bush youtu.be/hfq6Mq4q0qw
2002 Niel Marshalls Dog Soldiers A squad of British soldiers on training in the lonesome Scottish wilderness find a wounded Special Forces captain and the carnaged remains of his team. As they encounter zoologist Megan, it turns out that werewolves are active in the region. They have to prepare for some action as the there will be a full moon tonight...youtu.be/9fiy4A3sbd4
Bjork Hunter youtu.be/A8A9e4Lp0N0
Song of the day is actually a full Album Ozzy's Bark at the moon youtu.be/FdzHXBMcZdc
The last movie on my list today is not a great movie to say the least, however it does manage to combine every movie on this list in some form as if the director did his research or loved this genre of horror film that he knew what elements to add. It also helps that it has a wonderful setting in Prague, and an even better soundtrack. youtu.be/jZIozdJiPyw
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