The Howling (1981)

[kybearfuzz]

Tonight, I settled in after my workout and dinner to do some inking of some comic pages. I looked through my DVD's for a movie to watch. I selected The Howling (1981).

I remember watching the movie when I was a kid and I remember it being thrilling. As an adult, I admit that the movie has aged a bit, but it's still a pretty good movie and story. A news reporter (Dee Wallace) is nearly killed by a serial killer while working on a story. Rattled and suffering from post-traumatic stress, she agrees to go to a psychiatrist's compound called "The Colony" to recover. While there, she starts to realize that something is very wrong as there are werewolves running about the Colony.

The movie has quite a list of stars -- Christopher Stone, Patrick MacNee, Slim Pickens, and John Carradine. It's been a long time since I've watched the movie, so what I didn't realize was the future stars who were in the movie. The late Meshach Taylor was there as a police detective and Robert Picardo, the actor who is best known as the holographic Doctor from "Star Trek: Voyager," plays serial killer/werewolf Eddie Quist. It was fun to see them both young and in early roles.

It was nice to see Christopher Stone in his prime and showing off his body, so it hits many fun points for me. The special effects were especially impressive, especially for the time. The were done by then 21-year-old Rob Bottin (left), who could have very easily passed for a werewolf himself, with that hair, beard, and chest fur.

It definitely made for a good choice tonight.

Comments

[mort-83.livejournal.com]

I remember seeing that film in the theater during high school.

We saw "Snowpiercer" last night on PPV. Interesting. One had to suspend a LOT of disbelief, but I found it entertaining. Tilda Swinton was fantastic. I almost couldn't recognize her.

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

Tilda definitely plays a wide range of different roles. This was probably the nuttiest I've ever seen.

[dendren.livejournal.com]

I don't think I ever saw the movie but I remember reading both the Howling and Howling II and liking the books quite a bit. I didn't make it to many movies as a kid but read most of the books or adaptions.

Christopher Stone... swoon... he was a big time crush of mine back in those days. Wait, wasn't he married to Dee Wallace in real life? Did they meet on this movie? I don't remember.

[kybearfuzz.livejournal.com]

I never read the books, but have read online that the fourth movie was actually closer to the book than the first film.

And Christopher Stone was quite the hottie. I think he and Dee were married just before this movie was made. They starred together in Cujo as well.

[dendren.livejournal.com]

I read a ton of the horror/slasher movie books around that era. Part of it was the horror and suspense stuff I liked but there was often some sexual aspect that intrigued me too, being of that 11 - 13 year old horned up and curious age. There is actually one scene in a book in particular I remember but can not remember the name of the book (and not sure if the scene was in the movie version). It was a fairly graphically written scene where the killer was back at his home lifting weights, in a jockstrap, and also beating off and rubbing the bracelet or necklace of his latest victim on his crotch until he came. The fact that he was a horrible slasher/killer aside, that little scene turned me on SO much. I must have read it a hundred times LOL I tried googleing several ways to figure out what one it was. I *think* it was one called Visiting Hours but not 100% sure. I'm so glad I turned out relatively normal instead of being influenced by the turn-on's in some of these murder books LOL

[prisonbitch.livejournal.com]

such a fun movie!