Hurlements

Most of my favourite horror movies of the 1980s were small, indie movies made outside the major studio system e.g. 'The Evil Dead', 'Maniac', 'Basket Case'. Most of the "big" horror movies then (like now) were pretty lame. 'The Howling' is a notable exception. Watching it over twenty years after it was originally released is quite an eye-opener. It not only holds up well, it is in fact, a damn fine movie. Joe Dante must take the credit for this. For me in the 1980s Dante was like a smarter, more inventive Spielberg. Dante, who learned his chops working for Roger Corman as an editor, writer and director, is a knowledgeable horror buff (Universal, Hammer, Bava movies) with a sly wit and great sense of fun. 'The Howling' is full of in jokes and ironic nods, but never goes all the way into comedy. Dante takes the material seriously. This is a pretty scary movie and the werewolves are some of the best ever seen. Dee Wallace ('The Hills Have Eyes', 'The Frighteners') is a TV reporter who is traumatized after a close encounter with a serial killer (Dante regular Robert Picardo). Dr. Waggner (Patrick Macnee of 'The Avengers' fame), a charming psychiatrist she knows and trusts suggest that she and her husband Bill (Christopher Stone) join him at his therapeutic retreat "The Colony". I won't spoil the movie by going into detail about what happens next, but it's creepy and entertaining. Wallace is very good and Picardo, who usually plays comic roles, is convincing as Quist the psycho nut job. 'The Howling' was co-written by John Sayles, who pops up in a cameo, as does Roger Corman, and super fan Forrest J. Ackerman, former editor of 'Famous Monsters Of Filmland'. Dante is a loyal guy who always likes to acknowledge where he is coming from, so as well as Corman and Ackerman there are roles for horror legend John Carradine, Kevin McCarthy ('Invasion Of The Body Snatchers'), Kenneth Tobey ('The Thing From Another World'), Slim Pickens ('Dr Strangelove') and Dick Miller (as "Walter Paisley" his character in Corman's 1950s b-grade classic 'A Bucket Of Blood'). 'The Howling' is sure to be enjoyed by every horror buff and for me is one of the all time best werewolf movies along with Universal's 'The Wolf Man' and Hammer's underrated 'The Curse Of The Werewolf'.

Have an appreciation for horror and had been interested in 'The Howling' franchise for a while, with the first film being highly recommended. Also know that werewolf films have been done well on film, the obvious example being 'An American Werewolf in London' (over 35 years on and that film is still a classic). So decided to continue my "watching and reviewing all films from horror franchises" quest, and did so with 'The Howling' series.

While not as good as 'An American Werewolf in London', not quite a classic and not without imperfections, 'The Howling' managed to be a highly effective and solid film of the genre and as an overall film. If asked whether it seems like it has held up well, my answer would be it seems as though it has. It's entertaining and has unsettling moments, while also being surprisingly well made and made by someone with a clear love for the genre with quite a number of affectionate touches. As far as 'The Howling' franchise goes, this is by far the best having found the follow-ups a very mixed bag. When it comes to films centred around werewolves, it's also one of the better ones.

'The Howling' may take too long to get going, with a relatively uneventful first stretch, and is not without its dull spots.

Regarding the acting, it is variable with Christopher Stone looking as though he was not very interested in his role or the film, his acting resembles that of sleep-walking. Dee Wallace fares much better, she is appealing and looks engaged but she is not without her not so good spots, particularly in some of her reactions.

On the other hand, 'The Howling' does look great. There is a lot of atmosphere and it is very stylishly photographed, the secluded setting also adding a lot. In this regard though, faring best are the pretty amazing special effects/make-up. The score looms ominously very effectively and Joe Dante directs with an assured hand, never ill at ease or losing control of the material, and with clear affection of the genre.

Standing out too are the sharp and witty script, a very successful attempt at turning genre cliches on their heads and doing things fresh with them and some quite decent characters that don't bore or annoy, some named after horror incons such as Freddie Francis and Terrence Fisher. In particularly the second half when things do properly get going, there is a suspenseful and unsettling atmosphere and actually did think there were some nicely timed scares. The werewolf transformations are highly imaginative and look great even today. Although the acting is variable, the horror stalwarts involved fare very well, they are accomplished and clearly know what they were doing. John Carradine is the clear standout here.

In conclusion, solid atmospheric fun with bite. 7/10 Bethany Cox

The Howling

Easily one of the most historically popular werewolf films out there deserves some attention, right? Well of course. And since lately I'm getting more and more into werewolf films, I figured it was high time I actually bought this one and reviewed it. This, along with American Werewolf in London, were the two films that revolutionized werewolf movies and transformed them from just some guy running around bein' all hairy and strangling people. On top of it all, we have Joe Dante (Piranha, Gremlins) directing. Good times will be had by all!

This film revolves around a news anchor-woman who is helping the police track down a serial killer, made all the easier by the fact that he's taken an interest in her. Well, everything goes just awful and she ends up traumatized. Her shrink suggests she and her husband take a comfortable, soothing vacation in a community that he's a major part of. Of course, the movie is helped along by the fact that the town just happens to be chock full of werewolves who can't seem to decide whether to eat these new people or have them join up.

Here's the breakdown:

The Good:

--We've got some beautiful and unique looking werewolves here. The first one we have a very clear view of, in the doctor's office, almost resembles some creature that's part wolf, part man, and part cat. It just kind of had that feel--not that it's bad, I liked it.

--Interesting story, one of the better ones in the world of werewolves.

--The acting is pretty good, one has to consider the fact that a lot of actors just don't take these kinds of roles seriously enough. So finding a movie like this where they do is quite nice.

--Naked transforming werewolf sex scene by a campfire. Hmmm... maybe this should be the Memorable Scene....

--Average amounts of violence--more a suspenseful werewolf film than a visually disturbing one. The gore, while only occasional, is really good.

--Nice mystery story wrapped up in here.

Didn't Hurt It, Didn't Help:

--Decent music, somewhat average for these kind of movies.

--Dee Wallace-Stone's acting occasionally isn't quite up to par, shall we say...

--One werewolf transformation sequence is actually animated--like with cell animation and it doesn't look very good. It's brief and small, and doesn't detract from the film's overall quality.

--Dee Wallace's friends in the movie really seem to adopt the notion of werewolves rather easily--I would think it would be hard to accept that idea... oh well...

The Bad:

--Some two-dimensional characters.

--This film is in a series notorious for it's much crappier releases, but that's really about all there is that's not to like.

The Ugly:

--Robert Picardo (the hologram doctor from Star Trek: Voyager) plays the ultimate bad-ass werewolf--and boy, his face doesn't look good all charred with acid...

Memorable Scene:

--Robert Picardo's werewolf in the Doctor's office. Oh, and that werewolf transformation sex scene. That was pretty hot.

Acting: 8/10 Story: 9/10 Atmosphere: 9/10 Cinematography: 8/10 Character Development: 8/10 Special Effects/Make-up: 8/10 (some less than fancy stop-motion, and one bit of obvious animation) Nudity/Sexuality: 4/10 Violence/Gore: 8/10 (Average amount, but very high quality) Sets/Backgrounds: 9/10 Dialogue: 7/10 Music: 7/10 Writing: 8/10 Direction: 9/10

Cheesiness: 1/10 Crappiness: 0/10

Overall: 8/10

A horror must-see. One of the classic werewolf films. Personally, I think Dog Soldiers may still be a little better, but that's just me. For horror fans and a great piece for non-horror fans to find out what a good werewolf movie should look like--sans CG werewolves.

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Yes! For a change in the horror genre this film does deserve all of the praise, hype, cult following and respect it receives, even from the critics. I would go so far as to even admit that I find this Joe (Gremlins, Innerspace, The 'burbs, Matinee, Small soldiers) Dante flick one of his best crafted works, followed by PIRANHA.

It's always been a toss up between THE HOWLING and AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON for the most effective lycanthropy picture of postmodern horror cinema (anything since Psycho). Where John Landis used comedy more blatantly, the humour in THE HOWLING is far more satirical and subversive. Undoubtedly, Rob Bottin's effects steal the show as well as they did for John Carpenter's THE THING. The transformation of Eddie Quist, especially on the revamped DVD is something to behold.

For anyone with a passing interest in the horror genre this is a film to include on that 'TO SEE' list. For fans of werewolf movies this should go on that 'MUST SEE' list.

A very long build up to the first scare, and even then it's not at all scary by today's standards. But there are still some enjoyable aspects. The storyline is well developed, the acting is pretty good, and the gags work well. The werewolf transformation is first rate, especially for the 80s. A pretty good movie in the end.