The Howling (1981): Overshadowed
It’s tough when, in the same year of release, you have to compete not only with a horror classic but one from the exact same genre. The Howling (1981) was certainly a respectable werewolf flick but a few months later it had to take a backseat to American Werewolf in London (1981), specifically its transformation scene which remains a milestone in special effects. However, much like how Elvis’ death overshadowed the passing of Groucho Marx, AWIL went a long way in making The Howling (at least for a time), seem insignificant.
For AWIL, Rick Baker had wanted to create a wolfman – something on two legs while director John Landis was set on a quadruped. In The Howling we have something on two legs yet it is of a classic werewolf design with a long snout – a giant wolf with rabies to be more accurate!
The special effects makeup were done by Rob Bottin who was a year away from really hitting the big time in John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982). On the set of The Howling he was told that he could basically do whatever he wanted so long as it was good. In his own words he “went to town” with the available resources.
He got his first big moment on-screen with the transformation of Eddie. Bottin wanted to convey the breaking of bones and pain involved. The shots are held for much longer as Eddie looks demonic with needle-like teeth sprouting from his gums. The face extends out (much like it does in AWIL). Of course, it must be said that Rick Baker was involved in this here and helped guide Bottin before jumping ship.
Where the big contrast lies is that, when it’s all said and done and man has become beast, the werewolf in The Howling cuts a much different figure, standing very tall with its triangle-shaped head. Its arms are used to take swipes and even lift victims from the ground. Overall, perhaps not as aesthetically nice as Landis’ hound from hell, but very creepy in its own right.
It’s only really when directly compared to the rival of its time that The Howling suffers. It has since gained a cult following and remains one of the genuinely decent werewolf originals – a genre which might be (when compared to its vampiric and brain-eating cousins), the one with the least quality entries.
