Bringing out the best and the worst in your everyday werewolf movie

Monday 12 September 2011

Cinematic Timeline

Hello and welcome to yet another doze of shapeshifting extravaganza.

How would it be possible for me to start posting reviews straight away without even giving the readers a clue as to actually what they are dealing with? Some people might think that the phenomenon of werewolves spooking us out in the cinemas is an invention of the last decade or so, because that is what is popular right now. They couldn't be more wrong in thinking that.

Werewolves and their lore have been with us practically from the beginning of the human race. Every culture around the world had beliefs about people being able to shapeshift into animals and sometimes these cultures would testify to those beliefs by painting scenes of men changing shapes on the walls of their sacred caves. From people changing into leopards and hyenas, through bears, seals, foxes to wolves, shapeshifting lore has always been a part of our consciousness. Stories passed down from generation to generation still linger within the modern, civilised us and enrich our culture. That is why the creation of cinematic movies about werewolves was inevitable and could be in my opinion compared to ancient cave paintings. Because in the end they both serve roughly the same purpose of fulfilling our inner desire to convey our visions of the matter to others.

And of course to scare them, boast about the special effects and draw as many people to the theatres as possible. However it cannot be denied that most of these productions, if not all, try to tell us a story, however bad it might be. This is just one of the aspects I will be focusing on while writing my reviews. In the meantime, while I prepare my first review, here's the timeline of werewolf cinema.

THE WEREWOLF CINEMATIC TIMELINE, from 1913 to present

1913
The Werewolf

1915
The Wolfman

1923
Le Loup Garou

1924
The Wolfman

1925
Wolf Blood

1932
The Werewolf

1935
The Werewolf of London

1941
The Wolfman

1942
The Undying Monster
The Mad Monster
Terror House

1943
Le Loup des Malveneur
Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman

1944
The Return of the Vampire
Idle Roomers
House of Frankenstein
Cry of the Werewolf

1945
House of Dracula

1946
She-Wolf of London

1948
Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein

1956
The Werewolf

1957
El Castillo de los Monstruos
I Was a Teenage Werewolf
The Daughter of Dr Jekyll

1958
How to Make a Monster
Tales of Frankenstein / The Professor
El Hombre y el Monstruo

1959
La Casa del Terror

1961
The Curse of the Werewolf
Santo Contra las Mujeres Vampiros
Frankenstein, el Vampiro y Cia

1962
Lycanthropus

1963
Beauty and the Beast

1964
La Loba

1965
Dr Terror's House of Horrors
Mad Monster Party
Orgy of the Dead

1967
Dr Terror's Gallery of Horrors
La Marca del Hombre Lobo

1968
El Bosque del Lobo
Las Noches del Hombre Lobo

1969
Blood of Dracula's Castle
El Hombre que Vino de Ummo

1970
Nympho Werewolf

1971
La Noche de Walpurgis
Beast of the Yellow Night
Dr Jekyll and the Werewolf
Fury of the Wolfman
O Homem Lobo
Santy y el Blue Demon Contra Dracula y el Hombre Lobo
The Unexplained: Witches, Werewolves and Vampires
Werewolves On Wheels

1972
Dracula Contro Frankenstein
Moon of the Wolf
The Rats Are Coming

1973
Chabelo y Pepito Contra Los Monstruos
El Retorno de Walpurgis
The Boy Who Cried Werewolf
The Werewolf of Washington

1974
Blood
The Beast Must Die
Deathhead Virgin
Legend of the Werewolf
Scream of the Wolf

1975
Night of the Howling Beast
Werewolf of Woodstock
La MaldiciĆ³n de la Bestia

1976
La Lupa Mannara

1978
Death Moon

1979
Wolfman
O Coronel e o Lobisomem

1980
El retorno del Hombre Lobo

1981
An American Werewolf in London
Wolfen
The Howling

1982
Full Moon High

1983
Demon Hunter
Frankenstein Island
Wilczyca
La Bestia y el Espada Magica

1984
Children of the Full Moon
Hard Rock Zombies
Monster Dog
The Company of Wolves

1985
Scooby Doo: Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Werewolf
Adventures of the Two-Minute Werewolf
Ladyhawke
Silver Bullet
The Howling II: Stirba, the Werewolf Bitch / Your Sister Is a Werewolf
Teen Wolf
Transylvania 6-5000

1986
Dead Time Stories

1987
She Wolf
The Monster Squad
The Howling III: The Marsupials
Werewolf
Teen Wolf 2
La Croce Dalle Sette Pietre

1988
Underground Werewolf
The Adventures of the Queerwolf
Deadly Dreams
The Howling IV: The Original Nightmare
Lone Wolf
Waxwork
Scooby Doo and the Reluctant Werewolf

1989
My Mom's a Werewolf
The Howling V: The Rebirth
Night Shadow

1990
Mom
Meridian: Kiss of the Beast

1991
Wolfman: A Cinematic Scrapbook
The Howling VI: Freaks

1994
Conrad Brooks vs. the Werewolf
The Wolf
Twisted Tales
Full Eclipse
Mad At the Moon

1995
Huntress - Spirit of the Night
Rammstein: Du Riechst So Gut
Project Metalbeast
The Howling VII: New Moon Rising

1996
Wilderness
Werewolf: Rest In Beast
Licantropo: El Asesina de la Luna Llena
Bad Moon

1997
Mortal Kombat Annihilation
House of Frankenstein
The Werewolf of Fever Swamp
An American Werewolf in Paris
The X Files: Shapes
The Creeps
Tale of an Urban Werewolf
Backstreet Boy's: Everybody (Backstreet's Back)

1998
Werewolf Reborn
Sieben Monde
Blue Moon
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Phases

1999
Plenilunio
Rage of the Werewolf
Eyes of the Werewolf
The X Files: Alpha

2000
Ginger Snaps

2001
Le Pacte des Loups
Blood fo the Werewolf

2002
Dog Soldiers

2003
Werewolf Tales
Underworld
Dark Wolf
The Werewolf Cult Chronicles, Part I: Chimera
Big Fish

2004
Romasanta: The Werewolf Hunt
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Van Helsing
Wolf's Rain
Ginger Snaps 2: Unleashed
Ginger Snaps 3: The Beginning

2005
Hoodwinked! The True Story of Red Riding Hood
The Brothers Grimm
Cursed
Werewolf Cult Chronicles, Part II: Vietnam 1969 (?)

2006
Skinwalkers
The Feeding
The Munsters
Lycanthropy
Freeborn (?)
Blood and Chocolate
Full Moon Fever
Underworld: Evolution

2007
Underworld III: Rise of the Lycans
Werewolf by Night
Death Walks the Streets
Dog Soldiers 2: Fresh Meat (?)

2008
Twilight

2009
The Twilight Saga: New Moon

2010
The Wolfman
The Twilight Saga: Eclipse

As you probably have noticed, the above list doesn't only include full-time productions focused only on werewolves. It also shows movies where lycanthropes have appeared, but the movies aren't necessarily all about them, that's why they will most probably not be subject to my reviews, but it's good to note that they existed.

If anyone of you dear guests has information about any werewolf movie, videoclip or series, feel free to add your comments! Having said that, I leave you with the long list of what's to come and am off to start preparing the first review. See ya then!

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