Review of The Howling (1981) by Daniel Otto Jack P — 15 Sep 2016

This is a classic modern werewolf movie to me. It scared the crap out of me as a kid and a re-watch as an adult, while not as filled with frisson, was no disappointment at all. It's a nicely made film, with good shots and a slightly experimental blending of images for nightmarish, traumatic effect.

The setup and pace and little mystery story to it are not super sophisticated or surprising, but effective nonetheless. The initial glimpses of the werewolves flashing forth from the shadows only to disappear again made me think they weren't going to hold up that well.

But once you get a sustained view of one later in the film, it's actually quite solid and creepy creature effects. There's a really rad f/x part with a severed werewolf hand that bubbles, deflates, and reinflates as a severed human hand.

Pretty nicely done. There's a transmogrification scene that doesn't hold up as well and that suffers from being too long - still, it's pretty good in it's way and it's hokey aspects are entertaining in their unintentionally funny quality.

Interestingly, I remember this being a 'sexy' werewolf movie, and it still has that illicit quality in the central 'sex scene' between two people who become werewolves as they get it on in the woods.

But what I hadn't remembered was the sexual trauma and menace that opens the film and surrounds that central sex scene. If anything, I was surprised to find that this film is something of a (probably mostly unintentional) commentary on modern porn-soaked rape culture and infidelity culture.

Not pleasant viewing in that regard (with a disturbing recurring image of criminal activity), but also effective in creating malaise about our twisted post-sexual-revolution society - if, that is, anyone bothers to look past the more obviously exploitative aspects.

A pretty great horror film in general and werewolf film in particular.