Tag Archives: Werewolf

Movie review – Wolf Manor (2023)

10 Friday Feb 2023

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There is enough talent in front of the screen in what is essentially a labour of love mixed with pangs of nostalgia over Britain’s celluloid history of lycanthrope horror. There is a healthy mix of nods to Hammer Films and the Gothic films produced under their banner and the Peter Cushing style veteran performing yet another battle against evil to satiate the hounds of the genre past. The most notable homage comes in arguably the greatest werewolf feature, An American Werewolf In London, with numerous quotes and references throughout the movie. 

Set in a quirky village town where a film crew has set up in an abandoned house to shoot a vampire flick, Wolf Manor takes a turn when they decide to hang back one more night to do some extensive reshoots. It just so happens that the night in question should fall on a full moon and with it the awakening of a lycanthrope appears to disembowel them one by one.

While the creative team of Director, Dominic Brunt, and writers Joel Ferrari and Pete Wild have a deep passion for the field in which they paint their narrative, it is evident that it lacks the killer punch that made these pioneer movies so great. There are moments where they try to ignite that instinctive attraction through the British wit upon which the nation has produced some comedy gold, but no matter how hard the talented James Fleet taps into that humour, it is often served cold and the tumbleweeds drift by with ease.

Despite the obvious tweaky script and gaps in depth of character, Wolf Manor does boast some nice special effects; a combination of prosthetics, make up and visual effects weaving together and grounding the supernatural elements. 

The Prognosis:

I had high hopes before watching this, such is my love of the doomed lusus naturae, but it falls foul of trying to live up to and replicating werewolf features of yester-year rather than creating an identity of its own. Sometimes, you have to break free of rigidity for creativity to be unleashed. Unfortunately it took its inspiration literally, staying on the road and keeping clear of the moors. Just imagine what could have happened if it dared to stray into the wilderness.

  • Saul Muerte

Retrospective: Cursed (2005)

18 Friday Feb 2022

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Wes Craven: The Scream years part 5 – Cursed (2005)

What should have been a dream project for Wes Craven outside of his involvement in the Scream franchise, combining once again with his writing partner Kevin Williamson would end up being something of a nightmare by the time of its theatrical release.

Boosting its potential recipe for success was a high-hitting young talent to draw in the crowds, with Christina Ricci and Jesse Eisenberg playing the siblings and our lead protagonists, ably supported by Joshua Jackson and Judy Greer.

Chief among the downfall of this werewolf flick was a case of the producers muddying the waters of creativity by insisting on making numerous changes to the script and the production, including ditching creature feature effects by the hands of the late great Rick Baker, and implanting computer generated imagery into the fold. I might be biased in this category, as I’m a huge fan of make-up prosthetics and man-made creature effects, but the CGI here is incredibly dated and looks woefully bad looking back 17 years after it had initially hit screens.

The dialogue is incredibly clunky now and it’s evident upon viewing that a lot of changes have been made to the script as it jars in several places, throwing the viewer out of the picture.

There were reshoots upon reshoots upon reshoots, as the powerhouse company kept demanding changes, proving to be one colossal headache for Craven. Supposedly these original cut versions still exist but whether they will see the light of day or be subjected to the darkness remains to be seen.

For now the version we got sees siblings Ellie (Ricci) and Jimmy (Eisenberg) at odds with one another, their relationship stifled growing up together under the cloud of their parents death. Their bond becomes stronger though when they are involved in a car accident when they are attacked by a creature. The creature we learn later is a lycanthrope, and Ellie and Jimmy go about their separate ways to uncover the truth behind the attack with a whodunnit style approach to their amatuer sleuthing before we reach the reveal and the climax of the movie.

Cursed suffers under the weight of mis-managed production but there is still life in the movie, not to be completely dismissed or left for dead. The film contains flickers of a pulse (ironic as the American remake of Pulse was initially going to be a Craven project, before he was pulled into making this movie instead) and there are moments where the Williamson humour is allowed to surface. It would have been so cool to have seen Craven’s initial vision, but unfortunately it would suffer a similar fate to A Vampire in Brooklyn, where the trust in Craven is quashed. Maybe he should have steered clear of the Gothic-style inspirations and kept carving out his own macabre musings, but when the wind forces you in one direction, you have no choice but to bow. A great shame.

  • Saul Muerte

Related Links:

Movie Review: Scream (2022)

10 Scream inspired movies

Retrospective: Vampire in Brooklyn

Retrospective: Scream (1996)

Retrospective: Scream 2 (1997)

Retrospective: Scream 3 (2000)

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: Wolfen (1981)

24 Saturday Jul 2021

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1981 proved to be big hitters for wolf kind with three notable films leaning into the subject in their own unique way.
While most people will have heard of John Landis’ An American Werewolf in London for its broad strokes of horror blended with comedy and creature fx, or Joe Dante’s The Howling for its pulpy investigative tale of lycanthropy, but the third feature among the group, Wolfen starring Albert Finney may not readily spring to mind.

Possibly this is because the nature of the film doesn’t play with the true mythology surrounding werewolves, but rather that of an American Indian legend based on wolf spirits.

The film also plays with the ‘whodunnit’ detective story, following Finney’s Detective Dewey Wilson, who is called back into the police force when a high profile murder warrants a guru to put a final stop to the murders that have been taking place throughout New York. The victims who have the common traits of supposed animal attacks at its core. 

Wilson is teamed up with criminal psychologist, Detective Rebecca Neff (Diane Venora) in a partnership that has all the hallmarks of an early Mulder and Scully vibe. Neff’s insights into the science and animalistic behaviour evidenced at the muder scene, helps to solidify their enquiry.

Early on in the piece, the pair are attacked by an unseen creature, barely surviving their ordeal at an abandoned church, which forms a tighter bond and highlights that their investigations have something more paranormal in origin.

The remainder of the film plays with the spiritual side of nature, suggesting that despite the hallmarks of a potential terrorist activity behind the murders, that there is a pack of God-like beings with wolf traits known as spirits or shapeshifters are the true cause. It is this angle that definitely sets it apart from AAWIL and The Howling, and possibly why it didn’t manage to make its mark in comparison. It’s a shame because the psychological component that is played with as a humanity versus nature, and our base animalistic behaviour that is drawn upon for survival is one that is deeply compelling and told in an engaging way, supported by the strong performances on show by Finney. Detective Dewey is a great character and one that Dustin Hoffman had his eyes on at one stage, which says a lot to his appeal and strength. As is the other cast members, Edward James Olmos, Gregory Hines, Tom Noonan, all of whom provide compelling characters to support the narrative.

It also boasted at the time a refreshing approach to the killer’s perspective using a thermography technique, now closely associated with films like Predator. 

Sure it doesn’t have the same fanfare as the other werewolf flicks that year, but it had a strong, mature approach to its storytelling that shouldn’t be neglected.

  • Saul Muerte

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