The Wolf Man (1941)

That was an excellent one.

Just perfect...

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

I've recently been binge watching "The Twilight Zone" and I noticed something. Every time I watch a black and white horror or sci-fi film, it just feels like I'm watching a long episode of "The Twilight Zone". I'm glad to understand all the pop culture references to this film now. I recognize that episode of "Dinosaurs" as being a direct parody of this film. I recall how it was featured in "The Sandlot". Anyway, the movie's great on its own.The best parts are probably the philosophical talks these characters have. I especially love hearing about how the mind affects the body. It's a very clear looking film and the makeup effects are quite nice. I was afraid it would end at an hour in. Something 70 minutes long has to have good pacing. Bela Lugosi only played Dracula twice, but he was in a lot of other horror movies at this time, like here. ***1/2

It almost plays out as a murder mystery until it becomes obvious to all that he becomes a "werewolf" after being infected by the gypsy woman's cursed son. She tries to help him deal with the problem several times. He wears the sign of the "pentagram" and can also "see" it in the palm of his next victim. A romance with the prettiest girl in town complicates matters, as well as his growing horror that he has become an unholy monster. It's so obvious what is coming after the "Wolfman Rhyme" is repeated at least 3 times. Filmed in the Universal "fog" that allowed most of the film to be shot indoors. Disappointing because it does not contain the facial transformation made famous in the sequels. Instead his legs and feet get real hairy, as does his chest, etc. He was hopelessly typecast, and a player in so many "B" pictures; he was an alcoholic most of his life. He knew he was a better actor than that. I feel his best work was in "Of Mice and Men" and "A&C Meet Frankenstein". He had the distinction of playing all 4 famous Universal Monsters, and reportedly "filled-in" for Glen Strange as "The Monster", in the fire scene of the A&C movie, after Glen broke his foot while filming.

Lon Chaney Jr. finally moved out of his father's shadow with his career role as Lawrence Talbot in the Wolf Man. I've always complained that most werewolf movies are notoriously lousy, but this one comes in at the top of a sub genre that's usually clouded with confusion and mediocrity. It's one of the greats from Universal's Golden Age of Horror.Chaney is perfect as the tormented and twisted Larry Talbot who gets bitten by a wolf after he comes home to his father's (Claude Rains) English estate. He soon finds out he's been touched by the supernatural and spends the rest of the movie struggling against the demon that takes him over at every full moon. This movie is full of castles, fog shrouded moors everything that's come to symbolize this type of movie. It's also got one of the most solid supporting casts you'll see in any type of movie- Claude Rains, Patrick Knowles, Ralph Bellamy, Bela Lugosi, Maria Ouspenskaya, and the scream queen- Evelyn Ankers. Jack Pierce revolutionized special effects work with his werewolf transformation sequences. As they say, it's been often imitated but never duplicated.

Lon Chaney Jr. Was at his best. This had a great and a very well known cast. There created horror with outstanding acting and music rather than blood and guts. This is when horror movies were a work of art! Well known actors like Raulph Bellamy, Bella Lugosi, and Claude Riens, played smaller roles than normal, while Evelyn and Lon carried this from beginning to end. We see the creature played by Chaney Jr. in many other movies, but this is the first appearance and where werewolf-ism is best explained.The suspense and down right terror created by the curse and the beast, are among the most memorable and spectacular in silver screen history!