Tag Archives: Werewolf movies

Retrospective: Full Moon High (1981)

09 Saturday Oct 2021

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Director Larry Cohen was renowned for directing and producing exploitation movies such as The Stuff and It’s Alive, often with a satirical edge to grip the audience.
I was looking forward to watching Full Moon High coming in with high expectations, especially with the casting of both Alan and Adam Arkin in the mix but there were a few things that didn’t click into place for me. The movie is filled with that zany mad-cap humour that is typical of American filmmaking back in the day, but it feels strangely offbeat in this setting.

Adam Arkin plays teenager Tony, who is drifting aimlessly through life and disconnected which feels in large part due to his father, Colonel Walker, a man who is brash and ego-centric. When Tony is forced to accompany his father to Transylvania, he is left to his own devices, which unfortunately leads to him being bitten by a werewolf and gifted with the curse of an ever-lasting life. What he does with his life is the question though. Will he learn from his ways or be doomed to repeat the same mistakes all over again?

The cyclical theme is well in abundance here, as Tony returns to his old stomping grounds to reinvent himself, and finds that he wants to rekindle his school years.

Easier said when done, as he is doomed to get his lycanthrope on every full moon, and constantly trapped inside the body of a highly sexualised being.

That and the need to hide his identity from past friends and girlfriends is a constant issue for Tony.

The energy of Full Moon High doesn’t let up however it never feels like there are any downbeats in the movie to take a break from the relentless humour or attempt there at on display. If it wasn’t for the aforementioned Arkins, I may have been inclined to turn off, but they at least are engaging enough to bring you to the logical conclusion.

Maybe it’s just me and that Full Moon High simply isn’t my humour, but the struggle remained throughout the film and I have to mark this down as one I could have easily let pass me by and I would have been content to have let that happen.

  • Saul Muerte

Movie Review: Werewolves Within (2021)

27 Monday Sep 2021

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Since its US release back in June, there has been a fair bit of buzz around Werewolves Within, enough at least to put it on the Surgeons of Horror radar and wait patiently for the release here in Australia. 

Josh Ruben, who directed the admittedly underwhelming Scare Me (at least from a horror perspective) gets to tap into his stronger, comedic roots here and use this genre to amplify the horror elements when they arise.

Helping to craft his vision is a number of comedic performers in Sam Richardson (Veep, Promising Young Woman), Milana Vayntrub, and Catherine Curtin (Orange Is The New Black, Stranger Things)

Based on the multiplayer VR game of the same name which casts players in a medieval town with the aim of figuring out which one of them is the werewolf, Werewolves Within shifts focus in Beaverfield, a remote American town. 

When forest ranger Finn Wheeler (Richardson) is assigned to Beaverfield following a reprimand, he soon finds something lurking in the woods when a local dog is killed, forcing the locals into a panic and holing up at the local inn. Wheeler must try and unite an already divided town against a common enemy if they are to survive the night.

The Diagnosis:

It’s understandable why Werewolves Within resonates so well with its audience.

The film is deliciously coated in a comedic resonance thanks in part to Mishna Wolff’s screenplay and the talent who lift the words off the page and give it life on screen.

Sam Richardson and Milana Vayntrub have great chemistry together and feed off each other’s energy, much to the delight of the audience.

While the horror elements are few and far between, leaving most of the angst between the human counterparts as they fend for their own sense of wellbeing, Josh Ruben knows enough about timing to draw you in, tantalise your senses, and gift you with an enjoyable film.

  • Saul Muerte

Movie review: Teddy (2021)

11 Wednesday Aug 2021

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There is something that I find instantly appealing about French films and the way it both challenges and delivers in-depth personality.
There are times that it misses the mark, sure… but there is genuinely a unique appeal to the country’s artistic lens.
This is why you shouldn’t be deterred by this quirky take on an age-old tale set in the heart of a rural French town.
While it certainly isn’t an out and out scare fest, there is something reminiscent about the film that taps into Guy Endore’s The Werewolf of Paris. 

The writing/directing partnership of the Boukherma brothers Ludovic and Zoran inject some decent humour into this coming of age tale, centred around no-hoper Teddy (Anthony Bajon), the town’s laughing stock.
Teddy may have resigned himself to making ends meet at the local massage parlour, but he has grand plans to save up and build a home for him and his girlfriend Rebecca (Christine Gautier).
These plans turn sour though when Teddy is attacked by a wolf that has been roaming the woods and then the stuff of lycanthropy come to the fore, starting with the amped up sexual appetite, and leading into the bizarre such as hair growth on his tongue and protruding from his eyeball.

As much as he tries to hide these strange bodily changes, it soon overcomes him and right at a time when Rebecca appears to be losing interest in him.
The one person who seems to understand his plight and warns about the dangers of the monster lurking within, is his foster parent, Pepin (Ludovic Torrent) an admittedly slow-thinking man.

What the Boukherma brothers do remarkably well is own the grit and realism of both the setting and the characters including the actors who portray them.
Particular applause has to go to Bajon’s portrayal of the titular character, perfectly capturing the heartache and desperation.
When you’re already down, there’s no place to go but deeper and embrace the animal within.

The Diagnosis:

Yes there are flaws.
But some of those blemishes are part of Teddy’s attraction and at times the film borders on genius.
It’s a bold approach to a mythological tale and while it doesn’t necessarily scare, it does provide a quirky, and sympathetic slant that will satisfy those into curiosity.



– Saul Muerte

Teddy is currently streaming on Shudder ANZ

Retrospective: La Noche de Walpurgis (1971)

16 Sunday May 2021

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I’m only just learning now that La Noche de Walpurgis, which celebrates 50 years since its release this year, is actually the fifth instalment of a 12-part series called The Hombre Lobo series about a werewolf called Waldemar Daninsky.

Supposedly, these movies have little to connect one another apart from the afore-mentioned lycanthrope and its star, Paul Naschy. So it’s probably a goog thing that I was unaware of this when I sat down to watch this instalment.

Naschy coincidentally picked up something of a cult following due to his numerous portrayals of classic horror movie characters, which earned him the title, The Spanish Lon Chaney.

Here though, Naschy sticks to the debonair Daninsky, a charismatic gent by day, hairy wolf by night.

Made for the paltry sum of $120,000 and it shows, especially the first scene which is incredibly camp and should not be judged for the tone of the rest of the film… kind of.

We witness two doctors examining Daninsky’s corpse and mockingly jest that the removal of the silver bullets that killed him would resurrect him once more. When this actually does happen, said doctors are shocked at the figure transforming before them, before being mauled to death.

This made sense now knowing that it followed on from the previous film in the series, The Fury of the Wolf Man.

Director León Klimovsky does his best to hide the obvious blemishes through stylised shots and creating an eerie atmosphere, which is typically European and predominantly shot in slow motion, which sort of works in places.

The crux of the film itself follows two students, Elvira and Genevieve who go in search of a tomb belonging to a medieval murderess, who happens to be a vampiress called Wandessa (Patty Shepard). Inadvertently Elvira resurrects Wandessa by bleeding onto the corpse. Wandessa then goes on a killing rampage in her wake to build her disciples of creatures of the night. The only thing that can stop them is the noble-hearted lycanthrope, Daninsky. But at what cost?

La Noche de Walpurgis is exactly what you expect from a low-budget European 70s film, but it was a hauntingly visual treat that actually boasted some decent effects considering.

  • Saul Muerte

Retrospective: The Wolf Man (1941)

08 Saturday Aug 2020

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The introduction of The Wolf Man would mark the last of the iconic stable monsters to come out of Universal studios during its golden age of horror. Along with it comes arguably one of the production houses’ most tragic characters in Larry Talbot. Talbot’s heartfelt sorrow is all the more pained due to his magnificent portrayal by Lon Chaney Jr, who after impressing in Man-Made Monster finally got to take on a lead-role as the doomed hero. 

In many ways the feature would serve as a signature to the passing of the torch from the old to the new with Chaney Jr ably supported by Claude Rains (The Invisible Man) as Larry’s father Sir John, and Bela Lugosi (Dracula) as Bela the Gypsy. The latter is all the more on the snout as Bela harbours the secret of being a lycanthrope and literally bites Talbot, transforming him and turning him into the monster. 

The strength of the cast doesn’t end there though, and this is part of the beauty of this film and why quite honestly, it still resonates today. With Ralph Bellamy (Rosemary’s Baby), Patric Knowles (Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man), Evelyn Ankers (The Ghost of Frankenstein), but none more striking than Maria Ouspenskaya as Maleva, The Gypsy Fortune Teller.
Her role would lend significant weight and drama to Talbot’s plight and add a dash of the mysticism behind the mythology. She would reprise her role once more in Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man. 

Curt Siodmak would return once more as the screenwriter, in arguably his finest work, which is partly to do with him drawing from his own tragic history of segregation and oppressed Jew under the Nazi regime, a topic that doesn’t get lost in the narrative as Bela and Larry are both marked by the pentagram as part of their curse.

In this story, Talbot returns to his ancestral home to reunite with his estranged father.
Whilst there, he becomes infatuated with a local girl, Gwen, only to succumb to a wolf attack.
At first, Talbot believes that his plight is all too real, but when he heals so swiftly, he starts to question his own sanity, before the physical changes begin to occur.
From here, he withdraws from the world, not knowing who to turn to, afraid of what he might do.

Now that mythology is the stuff of legend, and many have transpired to go above and beyond where it all began with numerous tales of the shapeshifting beast.
The effects have come in leaps and bounds since this film, but a huge nod must go out to make up guru Jack Pierce who would produce the now infamous look from his own personal kit, including yak hair that was glued to Chaney Jr’s face in a laborious procedure.
The Wolf Man would go on to feature in a further four sequels, all featuring Chaney Jr (the only actor to play the role), which is part of its appeal, and one of the key characteristics of Talbot is his ‘nice guy’ personality that is conflicted with this plague. 

The film is iconic and despite being nearly 80 years old, is still solid.
A testament to the talent involved in its creation and Siodmak’s screenplay. As my journey through the Universal horror archive, this was a welcome shift in the positive direction.

  • Saul Muerte 

Movie review: Bonehill Road

25 Saturday Aug 2018

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When director Todd Sheets set about fulfilling his dream passion project of filming a practical effects werewolf movie (that was reminiscent of the classic movies of yesteryear such as The Howling or An American Werewolf in London) via an Indiegogo crowd funding, he hardly expected it to gain the massive traction that it finally generated.
The interest and backing from like-minded individuals keen to see a film produced similar to the ones they grew up loving with an old school mentality approach even gained interest from Indiegogo, citing the campaign as a benchmark in crowd sourcing.
The movie is ultimately a B-movie horror, but that term isn’t necessarily something to look down upon, as Bonehill Road is elevated by Sheets’ choice as both writer and director.
The creature effects are impressive and trigger the perfect amount of nostalgia along the way, but it’s the heart of the story that is it’s strongest point and the journey that our two leads, Emily and her daughter Eden are forced to go through in their fight for survival.
They flee from an abusive husband/father only to jump out with the pan and into the fire when they encounter a murderous psychopath who has a number of women tied up in his home. In this one moment, Bonehill Road turns from your typical werewolf flick to a story about female empowerment. A genius stroke from Sheets as it makes the movie not only contemporary and relevant in todays climate, but also cuts to the pointy end of sexual oppression that is so often overlooked in the news and media. The women must bond together in their suffering and rise up against the constant wave of male dominance in order to survive. It’s a shame then that the Gramps character has to make an entrance to help initiate a rescue. It may have been cool to have a gender swap here to and have Granny coming in to aid, and leverage off the classic wolf story, Little Red Riding Hood a touch. Then again, that road has already been travelled to a degree with Neil Jordan’s A Company of Wolves, so who am I to judge?

When the werewolves do come and they do as a pack, as our victims are hold up inside the house, they attack from every where, heightening that feeling of societies judgement and vitriol towards victims of sexual and domestic violence comes crashing through the walls with no direction or safety on the apparent horizon.

Throw in the casting of a name in the horror circuit with Linnea Quigley (Return of the Living Dead) as one of the fellow kidnapped victims and Sheets provides some further leverage in bringing in a wider fan base to Bonehill Road, proving that not only is he one of the most likeable directors in the business but also one of the smartest.

 

The Diagnosis:

Todd Sheets brings a bout of old school werewolf horror to the B movie scene packed with practical effects, and offers a strong heart that beats with purpose offering a fresh take on a tried and tested genre.

 

  • Saul Muerte

Movie review: Another WolfCop

04 Wednesday Jul 2018

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Back in 2014 Lowell Dean followed up his debut feature 13 Eerie, (a straight up horror sci-fi starring Katharine Isabelle), with a more comedy focused horror vehicle about deadbeat alcoholic cop, Lou who is transformed into a werewolf by a strange cult run by shape-shifters.

To say that it was a little off kilter is something of an understatement, but this was part of its appeal. WolfCop provided a quirky, light-hearted comedy with some amped-up, injected B-Horror.
It was a film that was a much-needed addition to the horror landscape with its heart and fur blazoned proudly on its sleeve.
So it was little surprise that it developed a decent following and even less surprising that Dean would look to follow up WolfCop for further instalment, this time titled Another WolfCop.

Returning as the booze-addled lycanthrope, Leo Fafard provides the same shtick that we came to love from the predecessor, but with the chains a little more unleashed.
Coming back to the role of Tina is Amy Matysio who somehow keeps a straight face effortlessly throughout all the mayhem that ensues.
Also returning is Jonathan Cherry as Willie Nelson, which might sound odd for those that have watched WolfCop before, but Dean does his level best to crowbar Willie’s resurrection in order to utilise the same chemistry that made that film so enjoyable the first time around.

Whilst that chemistry is still evident, it feels a little strained in places indicating that the ink may have run dry in the comedy stakes.
I hope that this isn’t the case as I do enjoy the adventures, as wild as they appear, and like the idea of WolfCop being a returning franchise.

Some of the humour slips into crass territory and feels vaguely familiar. It’s only when Kevin Smith appears on the scene as the town mayor that the slight shift in comedy makes sense.
Whilst I have loved Smith’s work in the past, Another WolfCop comes across as a distant cousin to Yoga Hosers or Tusk in places, which isn’t his finest hour.
You do tend to forgive this decision, but only partially as fans of the franchise will be willing to be dragged through the crazed antics in order to see WolfCop ripping it up again.
And hey, any reason to see Yannick Bisson (Murdoch Mysteries) ham it up as the villain of the piece is a good a reason as any.

 

The Diagnosis:

More alcohol fuelled anarchy from the WolfCop team that delivers a hefty punch, but the impact that lands isn’t as memorable as the first outing.
Having said that, it’s still a fun ride and worth it to see Lou Garou and the gang delve into another deranged journey.

 

 – Saul Muerte

Movie review: Werewolf of London (1935)

25 Sunday Jun 2017

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IT SEEMS ALMOST criminal that this movie has been somewhat forgotten albeit from the hardcore cinephile.

Werewolf of London will forever be cemented in history as the first mainstream Hollywood feature to centre on lycanthropy and as such contains all the ingredients that would inspire more well-known horror films down the track, chief among these would be An American Werewolf In London.

The film centres on Wilfred Glendon (Henry Hull), a wealthy English botanist who ventures into Tibet in search of the rare mariphasa plant.

Whilst on his expedition, Glendon is attacked by a werewolf but lives to tell the tale, but must carry the curse inflicted upon him.

Glendon’s quest was not a complete failure as he was able to obtain a sample of the mariphasa plant and as luck would have it contains the antidote (albeit a temporary one) to the traits of lycanthropy.

Upon his return to London, Glendon meets a fellow botanist, Dr Yogami, with a peculiar background, and just do happens to also be a werewolf.

A conflict arises between the two of them, particularly as Glendon learns that Yogami was the same werewolf that bit him in Tibet.

As his condition escalates, Glendon ventures transformed into the streets of London raising havoc and carnage and attacking and killing people along the way.

Glendon’s plight increases further when Yogami steals the plant sample for himself.

The rage boils over and an almighty clash arises, resulting in Glendon overpowering his foe.

Now succumbed to the curse, Glendon is drawn to his one true love, Lisa (Valerie Hobson) and is finally ploughed down when he is shot and killed in his attempt to murder her.

His dying words are ones of  gratitude, as he transforms back to his former self, a tragic tale, which would be conveyed to its cinema going audience and many werewolf tales to come.

Hull’s performance is impeccably sound as Wilfred Glendon and captures both his profession and eventual transformation with great believability.

In fact, one could go on to argue that it is because of his performance and believability grounds this movie into reality and harnesses his despair even further.

Credit must also go to Jack Pierce, the man responsible for Boris Karloff’s make-up as The Monster in Frankenstein, and would produce the make-up here too, although a minimal version from what he had intended.

According to accounts from Hull’s family, he had insisted on pairing back effects so that his face could be more visible and recognisable.

Despite Pierce’s disapproval, Hull would succeed in getting what he wanted with the support of studio head, Carl Laemmle.

Pierce would however get to flex his creativity once more, six years later on Lon Chaney Jr in The Wolf Man, but event that didn’t go down too well and Pierce fast got a reputation that was unlikeable among his peers.

Despite all this, director Stuart Walker was able to steer the ship and deliver a solid movie as a result, which can feel a little dated by modern standards.

Classic horror enthusiasts may enjoy the trip back to where it all began, but it is tame compared to the films being generated today.

  • Paul Farrell

 

 

 

Podcast: Full Moon Sessions – Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf

12 Wednesday Apr 2017

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Crazed lycanthropes. Check.

A Wiccan cult lead by a vivacious vamp. Check.

A random dwarf. Err…Check.

And Christopher Lee donning some awesome shades whilst blending into a night club scene. Hell yes.

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French born, Australian film director, Philippe Mora takes the original movie, based on the Gary Brandner novels, takes it by the scruff of the mane and literally shakes the living shit out of it, so that it’s hardly recognisable anymore.

There is a notion that sequels are made to improve upon or enhance a franchise, but here, Mora takes the essence of the original and adds his unique flavour to the mix.

With Sybil Danning serving as his muse by playing the enchantress, Stirba, Howling 2 is a feast on the eyes and plays with your senses.

It’s an acquired taste that has gained a cult following as a result.

And would mark a strange and interesting direction that would prove to not be the last of the franchise, nor the last time that Mora would return to the director’s chair, as he would steer the follow up, Howling III: The Marsupials.

Check out more in the Full Moon Sessions podcast below to get the point of view from The Surgeons.

  • “Howling Mad Moon” MacGuire

Podcast: Full Moon Sessions: The Howling (1981)

12 Thursday Jan 2017

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THIS YEAR, the Surgeons of Horror team would like to raise our heads to the power of the moon

With the power of the full moon, it’s time to bask in it’s cool glow in honour of all things lycanthropy with a monthly feature called the Full Moon Sessions.

Each month, the team will look into a werewolf movie and dissect them with some warm-hearted discussions to delve into the reasons why the film was a success and it’s overall appeal.

This month we launch with The Howling, one of three movies released in 1981 centred around the werewolf alongside An American Werewolf In London and Wolfen.

The Howling directed by Joe Dante who would spore a career out of creature features would initially turn heads with Piranha, a self-admitted Jaws rip-off.

Off the back of this, The Howling, would be his launchpad to success with The Gremlins, The Burbs, and Innerspace to name but a few.

The movie itself, based on a Gary Brandner novel of the same name, follows Karen White (Dee Wallace), co-anchor and on field reporter who through an investigation involving a serial killer unearths a dark cult immersed in American society.

The traumatic confrontation with the serial killer leads Karen to seek psychiatric help through a retreat known as ‘The Colony’, but all is not as it seems.

A cult following gathered from the back of the movie’s release at the height of the horror movie bang in the 80s and the home video boom, but after 30+ years, how does the movie stand up?

Does it still have an impact today? And can it stand out in it’s own right and away from the long shadow of An American Werewolf In London?

Check out the Full Moon Sessions podcast below to get the point of view from The Surgeons.

https://player.whooshkaa.com/player/episode/id/99898?visual=true

Also available on iTunes

  • “Howling Mad Moon” MacGuire