Countdown to Halloween: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre

It’s Halloween, and Geoff’s getting in the spirit by looking back at the scary movies he grew up on. If you haven’t seen these movies, you should. You really, REALLY should.

Except this movie. Stay as far away from this movie as you can.

DAY 1: The Wolf Man (1941)                               DAY 2: Evil Dead II: Dead By Dawn (1987)     

DAY 3: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)    DAY 4: The Birds (1963)                                  

DAY 5: Dawn of the Dead (1978)                                                                                                   

 

DAY 6: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)

Dude, seriously, this movie is so terrifying.

What's it about? A group of teenagers decide it would be "fun" to go to Texas. It doesn't turn out to be as fun-filled as they thought.

Not even harmless armadillos are safe in this film.

The Plot: Sally and her friends are on their way to a weekend retreat at a family cabin when they run into a charming young man who treats one of the kids to a home cooked meal, then a romp in the wilderness.

This movie is pretty damn terrifying. The kids (for whatever stupid reason) decide to go to the only town in Texas where everyone is a murdering psychopathic cannibal, and then decide to break into a house for no reason. A house belonging to a man (and I'm not kidding) named LEATHERFACE.

Then they act all surprised when the chainsaw wielding maniac decides to act out a little aggression...

Oh yeah, this is gonna end well.

Leatherface is a portly, chainsaw happy retarded man who doesn't speaks in pig squeals and a high Alvin and the Chipmunky voice. He's also a transvestite and has a habit of cutting people up and making masks out of their faces. You never see his true face, but he does wear different faces for different occasions (including a special face for cooking dinner).

Why I Love It: Actually "love" might be a strong term. I don't "love" this movie, I am honest to God terrified at the thought of this film. I had to re-watch it today in order to write this review and all day at work I kept thinking "What have I gotten myself into!?!"

I vividly remember the first time that I saw this movie. I was a sophomore in high school and was over at my girlfriend's house. It was a sunny afternoon and neither of us knew what we were getting into. 

When it was over I was so terrified I didn't want to drive home. It's, like, sunny and bright outside and I seriously didn't trust leaving the house for fear a chainsaw wielding madman would hack me to bits.

It's not a film for the faint of heart, that's for sure. It's a film that I don't ever want to watch alone. Actually, it's not a film that I generally want to watch. Period.

James Franco. The early years.

Why You Should Love It, Too: What makes this film so terrifying for me is the pure chaos of the thing. The deaths come out of nowhere, there's nothing that prompts them. 

The film is all about creepy. There isn't a single scene in the film that's not meant to be unsettling, from the first few shots of police investigating a recent grave robbery (and the gristly shots of the decomposed bodies) it becomes clear that this isn't gonna be one of those "fun" slasher films like the later Elm Street films. There's nothing good going on here.

Leatherface does have a delightful decor, though.

But what really sells the film for me is the sound. There's practically no music, except for what the characters listen to on the radio (which gives some of the scenes incredibly inappropriate music, which to me just adds to the "there's something wrong here" feel of the film). 

What little score the film does use is sparse, a few off-beat percussion sounds, and strained instrumentals give the score a horrifying and unsettling soundscape. It also uses some sort of motorized sound (maybe even a chainsaw itself?) to further give the film's sound that little something extra. It instills the fear of the chainsaw long before we ever see one.

Of course, when you DO see a chainsaw, it's attached to a dude who wears other people's faces.

The film relies on the atmosphere and the soundscape in order to bring on the terror. 

This film is so powerful, and it does it so simply. There's actually very little blood or gore in the film but you'd never think it. The film is so horrific that your mind plays tricks on you. 

It also uses intense close-ups on the characters in order to really get the feel that we are right there along side Sally and the rest of the guys. It also lingers on some scenes, as if we (like Sally) can't escape what's happening around us.

And when I say "close-up" I mean CLOSE. UP.

In all, this film is horrifying. It's gruesome. It's awful. 

If you're not into that I'd really suggest staying away from this film.

I'm not kidding. This one ain't for everybody.

That's it for this year's countdown, thanks for following along and if you have any suggestions for next year, I'd be happy to watch them!

Geoff’s countdown to Halloween DAY 5: Dawn of the Dead

It’s Halloween, and Geoff’s getting in the spirit by looking back at the scary movies he grew up on. If you haven’t seen these movies, you should. You really, REALLY should.

DAY 1: The Wolf Man (1941)                               DAY 2: Evil Dead II: Dead By Dawn (1987)     

DAY 3: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)    DAY 4: The Birds (1963)                                   

DAY 5: Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Let's face it, "Mid-morning on the Damned" just didn't sound as good.

Orange carpeted walls. Not just for Grandma's basement anymore.

For those who haven’t seen it: It's good. Trust me.

The Plot: Dawn picks up where the previous film (the 1968 black and white glory that is Night of the Living Dead) left off: Zombies are on the loose and we're kinda having a hard time dealing with it. At a television station that's struggling to stay on the air we meet helicopter pilot Stephen and employee Francine (aka Flyboy and Flygirl), who decide "to hell with the news, we're getting out of here," and decide to take off in Flyboy's helicopter to find a safe place to hole up for awhile.

"Hey, brother."

Along with pals Roger and Peter, a pair of kick-ass S.W.A.T. team members, the fab foursome land at an abandoned shopping mall --- an impregnable fortress complete with food, safety and a very conveniently placed gun store --- and decide to stay. That's not the end of their worries, though, when a smattering of zombies still inside the mall and a determined gang of rowdy looters decide to take over their happy home.

When there's no more room in Hell, the Dead shall grab a bite to eat at Sbarro's.

Why I Love It: Some people have nightmares about high school, or loosing their teeth. I have nightmares about zombies. They're vivid, and gruesome and I usually have to end up beheading one of my childhood friends...

Personally, I blame my friend Jesse for subjecting me to all manner of horrifyingly scary movies as a child, but the truth is that I love these films. Zombies are the ultimate in terror for me. There's just something about them...

A number of the films we've discussed so far (Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Wolf Man, even Evil Dead II) all play on the same theme: the idea that you can be turned into something else against your will. That everything about you disappears and you can't help but do horrible, awful things to the ones you love.

That's the ultimate in scary for me: The fear that you will become a monster, and can do nothing about it.

I'd make an Om Nom Nom joke here, but it just seems wrong.

That's no more evident than in zombie films where people are turned into the brainless undead constantly. And nowhere is there a better zombie film than the original Dawn of the Dead.

I love Dawn for so many reasons: The filmmaker in me loves it because the metaphors are clear and concise, but don't detract from the overall story. The movie buff in me loves it because the practical effects are just as awesome as ever. But mostly I love this film because of the little kid inside me that thinks this movie is So. Damn. Cool.

This movie is the end-all beat-all of zombie films. Every zombie film since (and there have been a lot of them) has tried to capitalize on what this movie has done. It's the single best zombie film, and one of the greatest horror films, ever. It's inspired millions of people to either become filmmakers

Or, in my case, leave machetes in strategically placed locations around my home.

Why You Should Love It, Too: Director George A. Romero has said over and over again that his films aren't zombie movies, they're movies about political or social issues that happen to have zombies in them. There's certainly a fair number of metaphors in Dawn, the most obvious of which is his take on America's modern consumer culture (and I won't say much there, since books have been written about that damn subject). He also takes a few passing jabs at political punditry, the government and religion.

In this scene, for example, there's a metaphor about the importance of moisturizing.

For me, the best part of Dawn is that while the metaphors are clearly there, I don't find them to be too preachy or heavy handed. You can enjoy the film (and I have many times) without thinking about the metaphors. But on the second or third viewing, when you do? It makes the movie that much better.

Dawn is a bloody, gore-filled comic book of a film. Some might say that the film is too violent (and in a film where the only way to kill the bad guys is to shoot them in the head, that's CERTAINLY an argument) but beyond the gore is something so much more.

Gotta hand it to the guy, he seems fairly cool with the whole "head blown off" thing...

Like all of Romero's films, it's not the zombies who are truly the monsters of the film. We are. Fighting with each other, killing each other because they can't live in peace. Say what you will about zombies but they --- at least --- have the civility to not kill eachother.

The human characters in this film certainly can't say that.

TOMORROW: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Warning in advance: This is the single scariest movie of all time. Not joking.

Reeealllly not looking forward to this review...

Geoff’s countdown to Halloween DAY 4: The Birds

Except this movie. Stay as far away from this movie as you can.

DAY 1: The Wolf Man (1941)                               DAY 2: Evil Dead II: Dead By Dawn (1987)     

DAY 3: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)                                                                             

DAY 4: The Birds (1963)

Personally, I don't know that "A fascinating new personality" is a great way to describe your lead actress...

Even the opening credits of this movie are terrifying, and its just birds flapping around.

For those who haven’t seen it: Birds get mad, people get dead.

The Plot: Wealthy socialite Tippi Hedren goes to the sleepy town of Bodega Bay, California to visit sexy Rod Taylor, who she loves because he insulted her in a pet store. There she falls hard for Rod and goes to a very nice birthday party. Oh yeah, and seagulls are killing indiscriminately.

They also hog the monkey bars.

Why I Love It: There’s no better director, for me, than Alfred Hitchcock. I watched Rear Window, Rebecca and Psycho over and over as a child until I broke the VCR. To be honest, this movie still scares me. The undisputed master of suspense, Hitchcock has shown us his capabilities with the psychological thriller, this time around we learn that he’s also got a decent handle on a straight-up monster movie, as well.

"Oh come on, it's not like you better to do than ride in the car with Mel Gibson.

The main reason why I love this movie is because, to me, this film feels so real. You follow one group of people through everything in the film, and there’s never an explanation given for why the birds are so upset and murder-happy. They just are, and nobody can really say why (much like real-life, I think, if something like this ever does happen).

Why You Should Love It, Too: The Birds is such a great movie, without any of the allegorical overtones or metaphors that so many other films throw at their audience (though people have certainly prescribed some to it over the years). There is no reason why the birds attack. They just do, and you’d better get out of their way. That unanswered question makes the film even more terrifying because Hitchcock doesn't ever tell anybody anything. We as the audience don’t know what’s happening any more than Tippi and the rest of the cast do. We are just as scared for their safety as they are, and he’s able to really frighten us because of it.

There are several suggested reasons for why the birds might be attacking, but in the end Hitchcock leaves it up for you to decide. Some have said it’s God’s punishment or nature finally fighting back for everything we’d done to it over the years. Personally, I’ve never given much thought to why they do what they do. I just know I don’t want to be anywhere near them when they do it.

This is what happens when you watch "The Cleavland Show"

I’ve never really been afraid of birds (an obvious statement for anyone who really knows me), but this film definitely gets my fears going. Hitchcock was able to take a simple, harmless concept (cute little tweety birds) and make them into something of pure terror. And he does it in such a convincing way. By letting the film build up on its own we get drawn into the lives of these characters. We care about them and what they’re doing and when the shit hits the fan we truly worry about them.

"Mine."

Add to that the lack of traditional soundtrack and the great use of synthesizers (which were used for both the bird calls and wing flaps) and it becomes something else. The sounds aren’t natural, and we know that. It gives them whole film an unnatural feel that really gets under your skin.

Oh that is just wrong...

TOMORROW: Dawn of the Dead Warning in advance: This movie may contain zombies.

Geoff’s countdown to Halloween DAY 3: Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Except this movie. Stay as far away from this movie as you can.

DAY 1: The Wolf Man (1941)                               DAY 2: Evil Dead II: Dead By Dawn (1987)            

 DAY 3: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)

A movie so good, the poster requires not one but two taglines to sell it.

MCMLXXVIII, was always my favorite year.

For those who haven’t seen it: Not content being globs of goo in space, a bunch of aliens come to San Francisco and start snatchin' up bodies while you're asleep. 

Hide your kids, hide your wife and hide your husbands, 'cause they snatchin' errbody out here.

In space, no one can hear you ectoplasm.

The plot: Donald Sutherland is an inspector with the department of health, and he's got a problem. His friend Liz thinks that her boyfriend has been replaced by a man who looks exactly like him, sounds exactly like him, and acts (for the most part) exactly like him. Turns out he's an alien, who replaced her boyfriend while he slept. Needless to say soon more and more people are getting their bodies snatched and turned into aliens. Sutherland (along with resident chaostician Jeff Goldblum) try to stop the invasion and save their planet.

Why I love it: This film has the scariest premise of all sci-fi invasion films, for me. The aliens are secretly taking over the planet by becoming those we love. They BECOME you while you sleep and everything about you eventually just kinda melts away. It's a terrifying thought, the idea that you might be replaced, and you're loved ones would never know it. That's why I fell in love with this film, I think, because it's such a terrifying idea.

The original film tapped into the fears every American had in the 1950s: the Reds invading. But by 1978 most Americans were no longer thinking that their neighbors might, in fact, be communists and ever so slowly our fears began to shift. America was now post-Vietnam and Watergate. We'd beaten the Russians to the moon and were now trying to deal with a whole new set of problems and fears. Those fears are what this new version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers grabs onto.

No, not even his best friend thought $#*!My Dad Says was funny.

Why you should love it too:

First, I've got to say that I love the original 1956 film with all it's Red Scare "monster living among us" allegories. And while the Cold War is still going strong in 1978, it's clearly no longer the frontrunner of American fears. The '70s have a whole new set of problems to deal with, ideas of oppressive government and corruption (this is, after all, post-Nixon), the spread of disease, and the loss of identity are what drives the terror this go-round.

The film builds its terror slowly, adding layer after layer of subtle paranoia, wrapping around you so perfectly that you don't realize it until it's almost too late.

Gesundheit.

Originally the 1956 film presented our main star as a small town family doctor, nowadays he's Donald Sutherland, a buerocratic health inspector. He supplies our first two levels of paranoia. His glee at finding reasons to shut down restaurants, his authoritative tone during a random inspection all help to serve the idea that the government has --- at least --- an ever-present eye on things, and at worst has complete control over everything. That's a fear that comes back again and again in this film, that everyone and everything is out to get you. He also helps to impose on us the idea that disease is everywhere. It's in our food, it's in the rain, and there's no telling where it will come from or what it might do to us.

When protozoa attack.

Add on that a layer of identity loss (the idea that one day you could wake up and not be you anymore) a good helping of psychological torment (you're the only one who sees that people are changing all around you) and a great big scoop futility (How long can you go without sleeping?) and you've got the fear-ball rolling and the makings of an excellent film. Body Snatchers has the workings of multiple nightmares, and we haven't even talked about the scariest part of the whole movie (that damn scream....)

The Beatles were wrong. Doing it in the middle of the road was a BAD idea.

This is a movie I think about often. There are several little gems in it that particularly stick out to me, a whole array of creepy that you don't get on the first viewing. There's a scene where a woman is trying to explain that her husband has been taken over, and she talks about this scar on the back of his neck, how when he changed she knew that the scar would be gone and that's how she'd know he was an alien. But the scar was there. THAT'S how well the impersonation is, it consumed every part of him, and she fears for her own sanity because of it. It's not something you completely "get" the first time you hear it, but after repeated viewings it really sticks out to you.

It's not as overt of a film as the original. The terror in the film isn't in your face at first, it builds inside you. It digs under your skin and latches itself into your mind until it becomes clear that it isn't going anywhere.

What I like most about it, I think, is that the aliens aren't green eyed monsters and they don't have any magical powers. They're your brother, your neighbor, your son. They are everyone, and no one all at once, and there's no way to tell. These aliens don't don't run around with ray guns or fancy technology. They're only weapon is time. Everyone sleeps, eventually, no matter how hard you try.

And all they have to do is wait.

FORNICATORS!

TOMORROW: The Birds (1963). Warning in advance: This film is extremely good.

Geoff’s countdown to Halloween DAY 2: Evil Dead II

It’s Halloween, and Geoff’s getting in the spirit by looking back at the scary movies he grew up on. If you haven’t seen these movies, you should. You really, REALLY should.

DAY 1: The Wolf Man (1941)                              

DAY 2: Evil Dead II: Dead by Dawn (1987)

This is one of my favorite movie posters of all time. I still haven't bought this on DVD because the cover of the DVD box just isn't as cool .

I realize it's kinda weird to only talk about the sequel and not the original, but you really don't need a running knowledge of the first film to get you up to speed. They do that (very well) in the first 10 minutes of the story.

For those who haven’t seen it: Ash Williams (played by Bruce Campbell) takes his girlfriend on a romantic weekend to the creepiest haunted cabin in the world. Along the way he kills his girlfriend, gets possessed, cuts off his hand, is accused of the murder of three people, and so much more. Also, it’s hysterical.

The Plot: Ash and his girlfriend go on a sexy romantic weekend in the woods, crashing in an old deserted cabin. Ash finds an old tape recorder and plays it. That wakes up the evil spirit/ghost/demon/Rasheed Wallace who lives in the woods and proceeds to get his grump-on on Ash, his girlfriend, and the rest of the people who make their way to the cabin. Ash and the gang must figure out a way to defeat the monster/force/Phil Donahue and make it out of the cabin and surrounding woods alive.

I'm Darkman.

Why I Love It: For most of the horror enthusiasts I know, this is it.

Evil Dead II: Dead By Dawn is the best of the best. It’s funny, it’s gross. It’s scary. It’s got a guy with a chainsaw for a hand and a book of evil bound in human flesh. It's got eyes popping out of their sockets, severed hands running amok and a wall that bleeds in every possible color (blue, black, red, yellow....)

In short, it’s awesome.

In fact, on the awesome-meter, this movie is an 11. Almost too scary to be funny, almost too funny to be scary, it's the perfect mix. Those familiar with the trilogy know that the first film played strictly for scares, and the third, Army of Darkness, is so silly and ridiculous it's almost a spoof of itself. For me Dead by Dawn is just right. Long before Wes Craven made Scream, or Edgar Wright made Shaun of the Dead, Evil Dead II was already breaking ground: Commenting on the ridiculousness of the genre, while at the same time perfecting it.

Evil Dead II is one of those movies that most normal people probably don't know about (though I suspect that's changing), and one that every horror-buff SHOULD carry with them at all times. I've got to say, if you're not into horror movies (and you're reading this because...) this movie probably isn't for you. There's enough blood and dismembered body parts in this bad boy to fill a swimming pool. But if you ever do sit down and watch it I promise you won't be disappointed.

This is how much I love this movie: On my desk at work is a framed, signed poster of Evil Dead II, I met Bruce Campbell in Portland some years ago when his book came out and got the chance for him to sign it. It's my Rosebud.

You WILL DVR the next season of Burn Notice, dammit!

Why You Should Love It, Too: It's funny. This is the film that made director Sam Raimi (who went on to make the Spider-Man movies) famous, and where he first showed off his visually stunning use of the camera. What separates this film from other horror films (and, indeed the first Evil Dead) is the camp and sillyness of the thing. The deaths are so over-the-top, the gore and carage so outrageous, that you can't help but laugh at times. It's a morbid Three Stooges gag, and it works perfectly. If you're not much for horror films you might take a look at gore like this:

I would elaborate, but yeah. That's exactly what it looks like.

And say that it's just unnecessary. But's it's soooo necessary. The film is a perfect example of the genre, a hyperbole of every horror movie that ever came before it, while at the same time proving that blood and guts can be used just as much for laughs as they can for screams.

Along with the horror (and the cheesy acting and special effects) there are genuinely creepy moments in the film. I still have dreams about that deer head on the wall, laughing, or Ash's creepy possessed face. Raimi (and his cinematographer Tim Philo)'s use of the camera is perfect, and gives an unseen, unheard, invisible villain a presence and personality that actually seeing the creature never could (as evidenced by the end of the film).

This basically sums up the entire film in one single frame.

It's a movie for those who love horror movies, and a fantastic parody all at once. It's visually inventive, non-stop, and truly original. It's a movie that sparked the career for Raimi and his lead actor Bruce Campbell, and is by far the work that both are still best known for. Evil Dead II is ridiculously influential, and more than 20 years later, you can still see the impact that the film has had on the genre and the filmmakers who watched it as children.

Donald Duck, in real life.

If that's not enough for you. If you're not a fan of Bruce Campbell, he hurts himself a lot in this movie, and at one point he may or may not cut off a part of his anatomy.

You have no idea how badly I want one of these...

TOMORROW: Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Warning in advance: This is not the Nicole Kidman one, the black and white one, or that one in the 1990s that I totally forgot existed...

Geoff’s countdown to Halloween DAY 1: The Wolf Man

It’s Halloween, and Geoff’s getting in the spirit by looking back at the scary movies he grew up on. If you haven’t seen these movies, you should. You really, REALLY should.

DAY 1: The Wolf Man (1941)

OK, I'll admit, the poster needs some work...

The mother of all werewolf films, The Wolf Man was one of the first, and is still the gold standard for the genre. It’s by far my favorite of the classic Universal Studios horror films, and the single motion picture that sparked my love of film and filmmaking.

For those who haven’t seen it: Larry Talbot returns to his childhood home in Wales after the death of his brother. Along the way he visits a gypsy camp, becomes a werewolf and kills a couple of townsfolk.

"What would you do if I sang out of tune?"

The Plot: Let’s run down the basic story, just in case you haven’t seen it. (I’d say no spoilers, but the movie’s been out for 70 years, you really should have seen it by now).

Larry Talbot is the neglected youngest son of Sir John Talbot, who lives in a big fancy castle in Wales. Larry’s been incommunicado with his family for 18 years. As the younger child it was Larry’s brother who was next in line for the family name, his father’s royal title, and the estate. The film opens with Larry returning home after his brother is killed in a hunting accident.


Larry tries to reconnect with his father, and the people he once knew, but he’s become the classic “stranger in a strange land” archetype. His American accent, his demeanor, his dislike for the silly superstitions of the townsfolk separate him from his father and the people he grew up with. He’s become an outsider in his own home, and the townspeople treat him as if he were a stranger.

He eventually meets Gwen, who works in an antique shop in town, and he takes her out on a date (I should point out that Gwen is engaged to Larry’s old friend Frank Andrews, and she’s kind of a two-timing ho-bag).

Of the 8,000 screen shots I took for this review, I don't think Gwen's eyes are open ONCE.

The two, and her friend Jenny, visit some gypsy’s that have set up camp up the road. Jenny gets her fortune read by Bela Lugosi (who famously starred as Dracula in the 1931 classic) and about 8 seconds later she gets killed by a wolf. Larry, brandishing the sweetest wolfs-head cane in movie history, kills the wolf, who (dun dun DUN) turns out to be Bela the whole time.

Silver. Effectively killing werewolves since 1941.

Bitten, Larry is helped back to Talbot Castle, where he’s treated by a doctor. Police tell him that he was confused in the dark and accidently killed Bela as the wolf attacked Jenny.

The rest of the story writes itself: Larry becomes a werewolf himself and kills a gravedigger. The police suspect a wolf and set up traps in the woods. Larry believes he’s going mad and tells his father about the whole werewolf thing, and he doesn’t believe him. Larry tells his dad to take his silver wolfs-head cane with him when he goes wolf-hunting, for protection.

Now the end. For those not wanting it spoiled skip down past the photo.

Larry’s dad ties Larry to a chair while he goes out wolf-hunting (so that Larry will be able to tell he’s not the killer when the hunters catch the wolf). That works about as well as can be expected, and Larry transforms and takes to the forest to kill again. He hunts Gwen and attacks her, but Larry’s dad comes to her rescue, beating the wolf with the silver cane, killing him. The wolf turns back into Larry and his father realizes that he’s just killed his own son. Credits.

"Oh no... that's.... that's not gonna be easy to explain..."

Why I love it: Aside from the obvious, (classic film, iconic story, stands the test of time, yadda yadda) this movie above all the others is what sparked my interested and love with filmmaking. I vividly remember getting a VHS copy of "The Wolf Man" for Christmas and how excited I was. I must have watched this movie a million times during my life, and I'm embarrassed to say that I collected stamps with Lon Chaney’s face on it in the fourth grade. This film continues to be my favorite horror film of ANY decade. Despite its flaws, there’s no denying that "The Wolf Man" remains as powerful and poetic as it was almost 70 years ago.

Why you should love it, too:

Because Larry said so. That's why.

Reason #1: It takes it's time. Horror films today don’t take the time for anything. These days it’s more about getting to the next scare than advancing the plot. And to be honest we can’t wait for most of the character to get killed off in the first place.


Not so, here. For two-thirds of the movie there’s no wolf man at all. It’s all about Larry trying to come to grips with Bela and Jenny’s murder, him trying to reconnect with the townspeople, and then falling apart as he begins to expect the worst.


Reason #2: It’s tragic. The film is a classic Greek tragedy... with fur. As beautiful as it is sad, the wolf man doesn’t WANT to be evil. He’s just a dude who honestly regrets the horrible things he’s done, but knows that he can’t stop himself when it happens again. Can’t name too many other monsters who can say that.


Unlike modern horror films, where the audience spends every anxious second waiting for Freddy or Jason to kill off the next sexy co-ed, in "The Wolf Man" it’s the other way around. He’s a tragic figure. A monster of circumstance and fate. It’s not in Larry’s nature to harm anyone, but he can’t help himself.

Add to that his relationship with his father, and Gwen and there’s really just no winning for poor Larry. At the end of the film he does end up in a better place, and it’s really the only time in the whole film where we think that he can be at peace.

Reason #3: It’s legacy. "The Wolf Man" sparked almost everything that we associate with werewolves: the silver bullets, changing because of the moon, etc. It took a cool folkstory about people turning into animals and blasted it into the American popular culture, where it’s stayed ever since. There have been other werewolf movies before and since, but few can compare to the greatness of the original. It’s a basic, yet compelling, story that stands as powerful and wonderfully sad today as it did in 1941. Every horror movie made owes a little bit of thanks to "The Wolf Man. "It’s truly a great, great movie that deserves it’s place in the horror movie hall (dungeon?) of fame.

That said, do you know how many people the wolf man actually kills during that movie? One. One person. (In total, there are three deaths in the film, but Larry only kills one person as a werewolf).

That's how great this movie is. It's so powerful that it can last for more than half a century, and he only kills one person.

If that’s not enough for you: The whole thing is, like, 70 minutes long. Tops. It’s not like you’re investing your entire day into watching this thing.

TOMORROW: Evil Dead 2. Warning in Advance: This film stars Bruce Campbell.

♫ "You myyyyyyy brown eyed skull.
Do you remember when we used to sing,
Sha la la la la la la la la la la te die.
La te die."  ♫