Inspired by the classic 1981 film "An American Werewolf in London," this pre-Halloween panel is one of many that hinges on knowledge about cultural touchstones along with a smidgen of nostalgia and a dash of trivia. So in short, my entire adult life.
There is a sound critical basis for viewing the eighties as a golden age of the genre, much of that based on the practical effects (ex: Hellraiser, Aliens, Day of the Dead et al). My top ten ranking includes the all-time best "The Thing," and also "The Fly." both remakes by two of the grand masters, Carpenter and Cronenberg.
When it comes to werewolves in particular, the field narrows considerably, and the choices are even more limited. As evidenced by a snapshot of a short stack in my DVD collection, there is slim pickings in the field of favorites (caveat: "Ginger Snaps" and "In The Company of Wolves" - another '80's gem - are notable omissions from my personal roster, and there are still a few unseen ones as of yet).
This year's "Wolf Man" was a surprisingly different take on the genre, and a slow burn with intense acting. More psychological than gore or effect-driven, so not well received by the horror crowd, plus it was in development hell while struggling to see the screen..
Certainly better than last year's "Werewolves" picked up on a whim while at Fred's, and it was so disappointing - it reminded me of the fallacy and futility behind buying without at least reading reviews, and so it'll get donated after the next seasonal purge of the stacks. The other embarrassing entry is "Underworld," which is the last entry point before everything decays into Van Helsing/Twilight-level pap. So that leaves "Wolfen" and "The Howling" (both '81) alongside the titular title as the other alphas of the pack. Now back to the horror show that is America!
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| turned out yes, there already was a meme for that |
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