“The wolf bit you, didn’t he?”
Easily my favorite werewolf film ever made and one of my favorite films of all time, 1941’s The Wolf Man is the movie that started it all for me. Not only did it make me a werewolf freak, it made me a horror fan for life. It triggered my love for the classic Universal Monsters. I was captivated by the story, the acting, and the amazing look of Lon Chaney, Jr. as the Wolf Man. The film was directed by George Waggner and was written by Curt Siodmak, who is credited with creating much of the lore that has become canon in modern werewolf films.
The film tells the story of Larry Talbot (Lon Chaney, Jr.), who has returned home after the untimely death of his brother. He reunites with his estranged father, Sir John Talbot (Claude Rains), and forms a relationship with Gwen Conliffe (Evelyn Ankers), who runs an antique shop with her father. Larry, Gwen, and her friend, Jenny (Fay Helm), visit the local traveling gypsies and when the fortune teller Maleva (Maria Ouspenskaya) sees a pentagram on Jenny’s palm, Jenny runs off into the night and is savagely murdered by a wolf that Larry manages to beat to death with a walking cane that he purchased at Gwen’s shop. Larry is bitten by the beast before he kills it and Maleva warns him that he is now a werewolf. Larry doesn’t believe her, but on the next evening, a villager is murdered by a beast. Larry realizes that he has become a werewolf and attempts to leave before he kills again. Watch The Wolf Man to find out how the story ends!
Legendary makeup artist Jack Pierce came up with the werewolf design and while many have attempted to create similar designs over the years, nothing has beaten his original creation. The design allowed the audience to see Lon Chaney, Jr.’s eyes, which was, in my opinion, a huge benefit, as we get to see the emotional turmoil going on inside of Larry and the beast.
I love this movie. I wrote a more extensive review of it here, and if you’ve never seen it, I highly recommend watching film.
Thanks for checking out my post.
