The Wolf Man (1941)

"...Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers at night may become a wolf when the wolf-bane blooms and the autumn moon is bright..."

Happy Monster Month.

Today we're going to look at one of the most influential werewolf movies of all time: The Wolf Man. 

Unlike the some of the most famous Universal monsters - Frankenstein and Dracula - the Wolf Man is NOT based on a preexisting novel.  So the storytellers are allowed more creative freedom and they crafted a fantastic story that would influence other werewolf fiction for years to come.

Our story begins with the wayward son Larry Talbot -played by Lon Chaney Jr. - who has just returned to his ancestral home.  Ironically Larry is a bit of a wolf even before he is bitten.  Using a telescope to spy on a shopkeeper across the street he quickly pops over to flirt with her.  The shopkeeper, Gwen (Evelyn Ankers) tells Larry about the werewolf legend after he expresses interest in a cane topped with a silver carving of a wolf's head.  She also makes an allusion to the classic fairy tale 'Little Red Riding Hood' which is foreshadowing the future of her dangerous relationship with Larry.  Despite her numerous protests Larry convinces her to go out with him that night.

She brings a friend along, and the three of them go to see a gypsy caravan that has just come to town.  Gwen's friend is attacked by a wolf.  Larry tries to come to the rescue, using his silver cane to kill the wolf, but he's too late to save her and he's bitten himself.

The authorities don't find the body of a wolf, but the body of the gypsy fortune teller - played by Bela Lugosi - and Larry's silver cane at the scene of the crime.  This leads to the obvious accusation: Larry Talbot may be an accidental murderer.  Town gossip spreads, and Larry - while convinced that it was a wolf he killed - is slowly becoming unsure of himself.

Larry has a growing interested in the werewolf legend.  He sees the old gypsy woman - mother of Bela the fortune teller - who convinces him that he is now a werewolf because he's been bitten.  But Larry's father - played by Claude Rains - is trying to convince him that it's all in his head.

This movie is on a slow burn.  It plays out almost like a psychological thriller and you're unsure for the first half if Larry is a werewolf or if he's loosing his grip on reality.  Lon Chaney Jr.'s performance is terrific: he plays Larry as a tormented and confused individual with an increasingly guilty conscience.  One of the best examples of this is the scene where he and his father go to attend a church service.  Larry is standing in the doorway as everyone else takes there seat.  He feels the eyes of everybody in the room.  Whether it's his feelings of guilt or his fear of how the townspeople view him he's unable to stay in the room: Outcast, he runs from the church.  This is done without dialog folks.  Just Lon Chaney's expressive face.

Unlike Vampires, the classic Werewolf is almost always a sympathetic character.  If Vampires can be seen as symbolic of external forces of lust and other temptations, I'd have to say a Werewolf represents our inner demons.  We try to keep them under control, but every now and then the beast comes out and we do something we'll regret later.

The second half of the movie plays out like a tragedy.  Part of the Wolf Man curse is that he sees who his next victim will be before he kills them.  As Larry begins to realize what's happened to him he worries that he'll hurt those he cares about, including Gwen.  Trying to fight fate he gives Gwen a protective gypsy charm meant for him, allows himself to be tied to a chair overnight, and asks his father to take the silver cane with him as he goes out at night.  Nothing seems to work.

To finish off the tragic motif, Larry's father comes face to face with the Wolf Man unaware that it's his own son.

 While the Wolf Man costume may be a little cheesy compared to The Frankenstein Monster or the Gill Man of 'Creature from the Black Lagoon' fame - they basically glued hair all over Lon Chaney's face and hands - the film has an undeniable spooky atmosphere.  Lots of running around spooky forests with spooky tree limbs and spooky mist.

If you only ever watch ONE Universal monster movie, do yourself a favor.  Watch the Wolf Man.

-Geekboy.