La Nuit du loup-garou

It's Spain and a beggar walks through a deserted town forced into public festivities at the marriage of a miserly, degrading Marqis. He goes to the palace in search of food, and instead is given life imprisonment. This is the opening of one of Hammer's best monster films, and easily one of the best lycanthrope films ever made. The beggar through a raping of a servant girl spawns a baby werewolf. The film is about this boy and then man living with his affliction and finally succumbing to its eventual fate. Terrence Fisher has done a superb job with his direction, creating atmospheric sets, wonderful, rich costuming, an impressive musical score highlighting key dramatic moments, and most notably creating a story of a beast in man with compassion, understanding, and depth. The acting all around is excellent(once you get past the notion of Britishers playing Spainards), and Oliver Reed stands out as the young protagonist literally being torn apart inside. The make-up for the beast, while not as grand as Universals, is top-notch and harrowing to the eye. The film is a sight to see and it again affirms that many of the monsters of the movies are tragic heros not in control of what they do.

Extremely Gothic terror intent in the Universal vein and walks a fine line between romance , camp , Wolfman's classic and horror . It displays excellent set design , ambitious screenplay with too many eerie scenes and adequate interpretation for all casting . Terror picture that is renowned for ferocious departure from the stereotypical portrait of the beast . It is set in Europa , dealing with a 19 Century European werewolf , as it happens in Spain , Leon is born on Christmas day to a mute servant girl (Yvonne Romain) who was imprisoned by a nobleman (Anthony Dawson) and raped by a beggar (Richard Wordsworth stated that in the original screenplay his beggar character was a werewolf) . His mother dies giving birth and he is looked after by Don Alfredo (Clifford Evans) and his maid . As a child Leon turned into a werewolf after having been taken hunting . Leon (Oliver Reed in his first horror movie), transformed by the full moon, heads for the forest and a fateful meeting with the villagers . He is developing an extraordinary force and aware himself has a horrible curse who cannot to control . As a young man he works in a wine cellar and falls in love with the owner's daughter named Cristina (Catherine Feller). The curse will be passed on to him at the next full moon and he again turns into a werewolf and terrifies the town.

This exciting motion picture displays drama , suspense, terror with mysterious touches and is quite entertaining ; being the only werewolf movie made by Hammer Studios . It's a crossover with a little of the classic version ¨Lon Chaney's Werewolf¨, the novel ¨Wolfman in Paris¨ by Guy Endore and wrapped in a Hammer style . Atmospheric, slick terror film , creaky at times but it's still impressive . The notorious screenwriter John Elder or Anthony Hinds provides a well-knit plot with mystery and horror, giving full rein to Terence Fisher natural talent for the terror genre . However , being censorshipped , as over five minutes were cut by the censor for the British release and even more for the American version ; the censor had problems with the notion of a werewolf/rapist, so out it went . It's some different but with clear reference to previous vintage film . Good performances from Oliver Reed as a creepy wolfman and Clifford Evans as his mentor . The transformation of man into werewolf is complex and is made by expert make-up artist Roy Ashton who based his makeup for this film on Jack P. Pierce's makeup for The Wolfman by George Waggner (1941) that starred Lon Chaney Jr and Bela Lugosi . Frighteing and thrilling musical score by Benjamin Frankel . Colorful and shining cinematography by Arthur Gant , Hammer's ordinary , being filmed in Bray Studios. The motion picture was masterfully directed by Terence Fisher who filmed classic horror films as ¨Dracula¨, ¨Dracula , prince of darkness¨ , ¨The brides of Dracula¨ , ¨The mummy¨ , ¨Phantom of opera¨, ¨The Gorgon¨ , ¨The devil rides out¨ and many others . Rating : Top-drawer terror film , upscale horror spectacle with a suitable climax at a church . Essential and indispensable watching for Hammer lovers . It's an above average terror and sometimes graphically exciting and turns out to be a good attempt to cash in the werewolf sub-genre . Rating : 6,5 Good .

I was so afraid of plugging this in. Not of being scared but movies coming from the fifties and sixties aren't my thing. The effects used were laughable. I rather would go for those old Universal flicks or even Nosferatu (1922). But two reason made me buy this flick. Terence Fisher and Hammer Horror. I guess I don't have to introduce both names to the geeks of the genre. Terence really delivered the best Hammer flicks. Strangely, it took awhile before this flick got a proper release and finally in 2012 it got a DVD release.

The story reminded me a lot of The Wolf Man (1941) but this is really enjoyable to watch. I was never bored with the story. But it's the way it was directed by Terence and the use of lighting that gave it a creepy atmosphere, I would even say a Gothic feeling. The effects used are very low, it was all done in a way the camera was used. So you really doesn't see the werewolf changing and that's were this still works up to today. The only effects I was surprised by is the way they used the red stuff. it isn't gory of course but when the werewolf is being shot the blood do sputter out of his body.

I can't go in on the way the acting went because acting back then was more theatrically then nowadays but one name I looked at closely, Oliver Reed. Oliver played the werewolf and he did great. This was a flick at the beginning of his career (1958) and his first leading role, just look what he did here. He really looked believable and you could care for him. He went further to make classics like for example The Brood (1979). Sadly it went downwards with him due his drinking problems and he past away in 1999 while shooting for The Gladiator. One to surely watch not only for the directing but also for Reed's performance. Classic.

Gore 1/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 2/5 Story 3/5 Comedy 0/5

Hammer was quick to plunder the Universal vaults in their search for new horror successes. Dracula, The Mummy and Frankenstein had all been done, and it seemed only natural to film a lycanthropic story, following on from the success of Universal's THE WOLF-MAN. Happily enough, their (strangely) sole werewolf offering is a huge success, offering a tragic love story and horrific elements in equal amount.

While the Spanish setting eliminates any Gothic visuals, CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF more than makes up for this in the intriguing werewolf story, which spans a whole twenty years, and a sense of gloom and doom as you just know that Leon is going to come unstuck. Also, the introduction of a young, handsome, charismatic actor in the form of Oliver Reed, meant that audiences could really sympathise with the character of Leon, after all lycanthropy is merely an illness, and can anyone be to blame for illnesses which afflict them? This is one of the films that paved the way for Reed's later stardom, he would go on to star in a range of other varied horror flicks like THE BROOD and THE DEVILS. All the classic folklore concerning werewolves is in this film, along with a good score and lavish costumes. The acting is all above par and there are small roles for Peter Sallis, Warren Mitchell, and Michael Ripper, who plays his tiny role of the town drunk with relish.

CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF also has some excellent special effects. Stop motion animation is used to show hair growing on Leon's palms, while Roy Ashton's werewolf makeup is fantastic and groundbreaking, much as the transformation in AN American WEREWOLF IN London was twenty years later. To top this all off, the finale is something of a throwback to classic films like Chaney's PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and a satisfying conclusion to this epic romantic horror. CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF is yet another classic from Hammer's heyday, a tragic, inventive story which can be watched time and time again. This is a fairytale epic of a werewolf film.

A very involving Hammer production that chronicles the history and life of Leon (Reed) who becomes cursed at birth causing him to turn into a werewolf when the moon is full. This is a story driven movie. The action and violence is sparse, but that's not what this movie is about. Playing out like a historical drama, Curse of the Werewolf details werewolf mythology like I have never seen. The performances are fine, and the film has an ambient feel to it that makes it even more appealing. Don't sit down to this movie expecting a bloodbath, Curse of the Werewolf is a well written, brilliantly conceived, and nicely plotted thriller.