THE HOWLING: A Slasher Film?

Joe Dante’s 1981 werewolf opus THE HOWLING is rightfully recognized today as a true classic, one of the greatest werewolf films, and one of the greatest Horror films, in general, ever made. (Hardcore Horror hounds like me, with a particular love for werewolves, would suggest it’s one of the best movies, PERIOD, regardless of genre.) As the famed director points out, though, at the time the film debuted in theaters, werewolves were most definitely not en vogue. THE BEAST MUST DIE, which is excellent in its own right, had nevertheless flopped. And THE BOY WHO CRIED WEREWOLF was, as Dante states, the most recent (at that time) foray into lycanthropic fiction in cinema, and, while it was fun, let us be honest; raise the proverbial bar it did not.

1981. HALLOWEEN had slammed into the box office like a wrecking ball a few years earlier, followed by HALLOWEEN 2, which enjoyed comparable success. FRIDAY THE 13th was such a financial juggernaut that it bumped THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK from the top spot in theaters. Slashers and gore were the big moneymakers. That’s why Dante and company deliberately promoted THE HOWLING as a slasher pic. (You’d think the movie’s title would have tipped audiences off, but I guess it didn’t.) The gamble worked. Fans, tricked perhaps into seeing a werewolf flick, loved it. The movie made gazillions of dollars. Werewolves were back on top, right next to Jason, Freddy, and Michael—and they’re still there.

By The Evil Cheezman

WAYNE MILLER is the owner and creative director of EVIL CHEEZ PRODUCTIONS (www.evilcheezproductions.blogspot.com, www.facebook.com/evilcheezproductions), specializing in theatrical performances and haunted attractions. He has written, produced and directed (and occasionally acted in) over a dozen plays, most of them in the Horror and Crime genres. His first novel, THE CONFESSIONS OF SAINT CHRISTOPHER: WEREWOLF, is available for purchase at https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/734763 MORTUI VELOCES SUNT!

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