5 Best Movie Werewolves (& 5 Worst)
5 Best Movie Werewolves (& 5 Worst)
Hollywood has seen a wide variety of differing takes on lycanthropes, but today we’re checking out the best and worst movie werewolves ever seen.
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Werewolves came from European folklore superstitions; people who are afflicted with a curse or disease that sees them transform into monstrous wolves at the sight of the full moon. Much like other ghoulish counterparts, werewolves have their own traits, such as a bite that can infect and a weakness to silver, similar to vampire lore.
When the Gothic fiction genre began in the late 1700s, werewolves were among the many creatures that began to appear in novels but they didn’t really find their place until modern horror fiction became mainstream. When werewolves made it to the big screen there were certainly some great portrayals, as well as some awful ones. Spoilers ahead.
10 Best: An American Werewolf in London
An American Werewolf in London released in 1981, arguably at the height of the werewolf craze, and soon went on to become a cult classic. It follows the story of two Americans, David and Jack, as they backpack across the English countryside. They find themselves under attack from a ferocious beast that kills Jack before some locals are able to save David. Jack begins to appear to David as a ghost and David goes on to transform into a werewolf and begins killing people.
This film gets a well-deserved mention in this list for its exceptional transformation scene, which won the film awards for its outstanding and realistic make-up effects. Ultimately, this scene has become one of the most iconic werewolf moments on film.
9 Worst: Silver Bullet
Silver Bullet released in 1985 and is based on the Stephen King story, Cycle of the Werewolf. It is arguably one of the many Stephen King adaptations in need of a reboot. The story follows the relationship between Jane and her brother Marty, which changes when murders begin to happen in their small town. The two become embroiled in the hunt for the werewolf as they also fight for survival.
This film has two notable problems, the first being that the werewolf looks more bear-like than anything. Secondly, in King’s book the werewolf is able to speak, but this isn’t so in the film. It could have been a fresh new take on the werewolf genre if it had been included in a clever way.
8 Best: Dog Soldiers
Dog Soldiers released in 2002 and follows the story of British soldiers on a training exercise in the Scottish Highlands. The soldiers are attacked and the survivors eventually find refuge in a house with an unfamiliar woman. Eventually, all but one of the soldiers is killed and although he reports the story to the papers, no one believes him.
This film does two great things; firstly its portrayal of these hulking humanoid werewolves is effectively creepy. Secondly, it plants the idea of werewolves living amongst humans largely incognito, with attacks being blamed on dogs. The house that the soldiers take refuge in is actually the home of the werewolf family and the woman who guides them there is revealed to be a werewolf.
7 Worst: Van Helsing (2004)
Van Helsing released in 2004 and was met with poor reception. Despite taking its title character’s name from Bram Stoker’s Dracula novel, it actually sees the protagonist taking on a whole host of the Universal monsters.
As with the other monsters showcased in this film, this poor werewolf is afflicted with poorly done CGI, which is regrettably over-used in the film also. Sometimes less is more, especially when it comes to creepy creatures; fleeting glimpses often work better and lets the imagination of the viewer do most of the legwork.
6 Best: Bad Moon
Bad Moon released in 1996 and was based on the book Thor by Wayne Smith; it tells the story of a mother and son who take in the mother’s brother not realizing at the time that he is struggling with the lycanthropy curse. Interestingly, in the book the story is told from the viewpoint of the family dog, Thor, and the film utilizes this by showing the dog is the only one who knows the truth.
However, the key to this film is the realistic presentation of the werewolf itself that isn’t limited in its emotions by the special effects, resulting in a genuine-looking creature that’s still able to be expressive.
5 Worst: Werewolf (1995)
Werewolf, or Arizona Werewolf as it is also known, was a direct-to-video movie that released in 1995. The plot follows archaeologists in the Arizona desert as they uncover a werewolf skeleton, which someone inadvertently scratches themselves on, beginning a cycle of new werewolf transformations.
Firstly, the lycanthropy infection method is a bit eyebrow-raising, with most fans believing the lore that werewolves revert to human form on death. But one of the ultimately worst werewolf portrayals in this film is where a werewolf attempts to drive away and crashes into barrels in the road, causing an explosion. This strange sequence is hard to take seriously.
4 Best: Ginger Snaps
Teen horror film Ginger Snaps released in 2000 and quickly earned itself cult status, prompting more than one sequel. The film follows two teenage sisters, Ginger and Brigitte, in a town plagued by attacks. Ginger is attacked by a werewolf on the night that she begins her period and begins to transition herself as a result.
This film cleverly uses the changes of a werewolf transition as a parallel with the changes of puberty, causing Ginger to become more hormonal in both temperament and sexuality before finally fully transforming into a werewolf. Additionally, the smoother look of the werewolf skin could be seen as a representation of the mix of human and wolf genetics.
3 Worst: The Howling III
The first The Howling film released in 1981 and was based on the novel of the same name by Gary Brandner. The franchise went on to have eight films in total, many of which deserve to be on this list, and not in a good way.
Howling III’s strange plot follows Jerboa, a young female werewolf who runs away from home and goes to work on a horror film about a werewolf. There, she tells them she is a werewolf and that their transformation scene is wrong. If that wasn’t unbelievable enough, Jerboa goes on to have a werewolf pup that crawls into her marsupial pouch, much like that of a kangaroo.
2 Best: Werewolf of London
Werewolf of London released in 1935 and was the first-ever mainstream Hollywood film to feature a werewolf. It utilized staple werewolf lore, such as the infectious bite and full moon transformation, as well as adding in its own in the form of a specific herbal remedy.
While the early special effects are not much to be desired by today’s standards, the minimalist choice was made so that the emotions of the actor could still be conveyed. More importantly, it ranks high on this list as it was the first big-screen werewolf, leading the way for all the werewolf films to come, including directly influencing the creation of films such as An American Werewolf in London.
1 Worst: The Twilight Saga
Stephenie Meyer’s fantasy teenage romance Twilight series became a popular hit with the release of the first film in 2008. Vampires, werewolves, and plenty of teenage and supernatural drama make up the plot for the Twilight Saga and left fans around the world desperate for each next installment.
Though the werewolves certainly look impressive, they’ve made this list because they misled viewers for four films. It is revealed in the final film that they are not werewolves as previously believed, but are just shape-shifters who choose to take on wolf form, disappointing news for werewolf fans.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/movie-werewolves-best-worst/
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