Cry of the Werewolf

Apart from Universal's "Larry Talbot" series, it seems that most of the early werewolf films are fairly maligned nowadays; this one, emanating from Columbia, is another of them: ironically, that studio had inserted a talking(!) lycanthrope in their bloodsucking flick THE RETURN OF THE VAMPIRE (1944) but, when it came time to make a standalone entry into the subgenre, they opted to use a normal wolf (amusingly shown 'munching' all through the opening credits)!! To be honest, the film under review has much more to do with RKO's CAT PEOPLE (1942) than THE WOLF MAN (1941) – actually the principal inspiration behind the Val Lewton/Jacques Tourneur classic itself: not only is the monster of the female variety but, towards the end, she is likewise shown terrorizing the heroine (though these scenes have none of the impact of the panther's celebrated late-night stalkings!). Still, all things considered, I have to say that I enjoyed this 63-minute film: the obligatory concocted folklore may not have added up to much this time around, but the atmosphere is fairly nice throughout; Nina Foch (THE RETURN OF THE VAMPIRE's heroine here graduating to the monster role) and Osa Massen fill the central roles quite adequately, too (their authentic foreign origins helping more than their acting talent in this regard), and even the combined police detection and comic relief (usually redundant elements in this type of movie) prove tolerable under the circumstances.

After looking at the list of werewolf movies on Wikipedia, I remembered this particular one was on YouTube so after watching Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man on YT, I decided to watch this one there since it was next in my chronological list of werewolf movies to watch list. Nina Foch-who I mainly remember from An American in Paris-is quite compelling as the title character as she tries to keep people outside of her gypsy family from finding out about her secret. The setting is New Orleans, Louisiana, which is a two-hour drive from my current residence of Baton Rouge but I'm guessing that this was shot on the Columbia backlot. Perhaps part of me was confused by some of the details in the story but for the most part, I was enthralled at Cry of the Werewolf. So, yes, that's a recommendation!

Entertaining take on the werewolf legend as established by Curt Siodmak in The Wolfman, blended with elements of Val Lewton's The Cat People. Interesting differences between this and The Wolfman are that the werewolf is a woman and she actually transforms into a four-legged wolf. Surely this last decision was made to save money on expensive makeup and transformation seems, but the transformations are handled with clever use of shadows and editing. The lead actors are competent, if bland, but Barton Maclane stands out as the police lieutenant, with some wonderfully written, very funny moments of sardonic exasperation and commentary. His character is also written as more open-minded than most stock police detective characters in these films. Atmospheric, fun, overlooked and underrated, Cry of the Werewolf is a must-see for fans of werewolf movies and/or classical Hollywood horror.

Note: as with so many movies of that era, there is racist content in this film. It includes the appropriation and distortion of Gypsy culture and African people, and the purely servile presence of African-Americans in one brief scene.

This was described as a classic horror when I stumbled across a download of it online, yet in 40 years of being a fan of the genre I had never before come across it. The things that I liked about Cry is that it is nicely filmed, looking very good in black and white. The werewolf plot is just adequate to maintain an interest, it stars some very attractive women and there is an element of humour in the form of some comical cops. What lets it down somewhat is the werewolf action is very limited, a dog is obviously used for the part of the werewolf and some of the acting is wooden (Osa Massen gives by far the worst Transylvanian accent that I have ever heard!). At just over an hour it is a fairly enjoyable but forgettable, minor werewolf movie

There are far worse ways to spend an hour or so of your time. This movie was more than likely made for pocket change and contractual obligations, true; but despite not having someone like Val Lewton (who could conjure up palaces out of orange crates) behind it, this isn't at all bad. Nina Foch is quite capable and sympathetic, and ably supported by a raft of character actors who are old hands at this sort of thing.

There's plenty of atmosphere and suspense, with just enough mystery to keep your attention. As with some of the best of the afore-mentioned Lewton's work, until the denouement, you're never quite sure whether this is all in someone's mind or if there's a real bogeyman (or bogeywoman) stalking the night. Lon Chaney Jr's reputation is safe - or even Henry Hull - but the mug who called this the nadir of werewolfery is being a little harsh. With THE WOLF-MAN, Universal set the bar pretty high, after all. But if you're looking for some good old-fashioned fun, you could do much worse. If nothing else, it's an entertaining example of what can be done with some talent, care and craftsmanship, even if you couldn't quite buy dinner for a family of four to six people with the existing budget. Definitely check it out!