Werewolf movies are a
sub-species within the horror genre that sadly don't get as much love and
attention as other supernatural creatures. Vampires, ghosts, and zombies have
each had countless of films and franchises based off them. With werewolves,
there's really only one (unless you count Twilight). The
Howling franchise started in April of 1981, with the first film based on a
novel by Gary Brandner, and spawned seven sequels over the last 30 years. In
fact, this film could almost be called the best mainstream werewolf film out
there. Almost.
Looking at it from afar, the original Howling
film is okay. It has an interesting premise; the story follows a newsreader
(played by Dee Wallace) who suffers a nervous breakdown after being attacked by
a crazed fan. The suspense builds throughout the film until the climax, and the
plot moves in ways that you don't necessarily expect. But there some things
that just annoyed me.
The Howling follows Karen for most of the movie, and while Dee Wallace is always fun to watch, Karen is not the best character. She doesn't do anything to drive the plot forward. Either things happen around her and she reacts, or other characters choose what she should do. It makes her a very frustrating character to watch.
Another thing that was just embarrassing was the special effects. Some of the transformations were good for the time period, but considering An American Werewolf in London came out the same year I kinda expected something better than a cartoon werewolf sex scene. There were also some weird choices put into the transformations themselves, like the neck bulging. I don't really get how that relates to werewolf anatomy.
Speaking of the sex scene, you know what just isn't sexy? Hair appearing in the middle of foreplay. At least American Werewolf had the common sense to make the sexy times happen between two humans. Maybe that's why werewolves don't get as many movies, they just aren't fuckable enough.
The werewolf lore in this film annoys me as well, but I will admit to that being my own personal preference. It follows the idea that werewolves are shape shifters, that they don't adhere to the lunar cycle and instead they can change form at will. To me, that isn't what werewolves are. But again, personal preference, and the way they use the shape shifting lore makes for a really intense and heart-breaking ending.
So, this is an okay film. I think I don't appreciate as much since I've just been spoiled for werewolf movies. Movies like When Animals Dream (2014), Ginger Snaps (2000), and of course An American Werewolf in London. Compared with these films, The Howling just isn't as great for me. But like I said, it's okay. And in the horror genre, you can do a lot worse than okay (just look at all the Howling sequels).
References:
An American Werewolf in London 1981, DVD, Universal, directed by John Landis.
The Howling 1981, DVD, MGM Home Video, directed by Joe Dante.
