Strippers vs Werewolves

Well, the title of this film might lead you to think that this is either really cool in a postmodern ironic sort of way or truly dire. It's worth watching just so you can make your mind up.

For me, it almost worked. Although some of the acting is poor, there are some good performances in here: Martin Compston (Red Road, Sweet 16, True North) is particularly good. Ali Bastian (Hollyoaks), Sarah Douglas (Superman), Charlie Bond (GBH) and Steven Berkoff (Clockwork Orange and about 100 things since) are all worth watching.

The soundtrack is spectacular: 20 original tracks with an 80s vibe from Sodajerker. That's not a Swedish band, it's a pair of guys from Liverpool whose work deserves to be in something more mainstream that this.

The plot actually makes sense, if you can follow it. A stripper manages to kill a werewolf with a silver fountain pen. His mates want revenge. Her colleagues put up a fight. Obviously there's a bit more to it than that.

The technical side is quite good, even though the pacing is all wrong. There's blood, nudity, some good lines. Above all it's very British. Reminded me of Shaun of the Dead. Not quite as good overall. But if it had been produced properly it would not have been far off.

And that title is brilliant.

Thought i well let people know (Warn) about Strippers v Werewolves, as i went to the premiere last night in London. The UK is brilliant at making Horror Comedies (Think Dog Soldiers & Shaun of the dead) However this isn't one of them. This film has 3 good points - A couple of great cameos (Alan Ford & Robert Englund) The nerdy vampire killer boyfriend (Hillarious at the end) and the end scene as the 4 strippers in stockings and suspenders dressed as little red riding hood. But even these 3 great point aren't enough to save this shocking(ly bad) film.

Let me start by saying what annoyed me the most, The soundtrack. I think it was supposed to be a new take on 80's new romantic era, but it was just awful. The cinema was full of cast and friends of friends, I can only assume the soundtrack was done by one of these as a favour. As i said earlier, it is build as a horror comedy, Although it had a few laughs, i cant remember one moment that i actually jumped (unlike Dog Soldiers) Cheesy lines, horrific acting in places & and some strippers that weren't even that good looking. I was hoping for a UK version of Zombie Strippers and got something that wouldn't be a miss on one of those free to air horror channels on sky.

Ali Bastian was decent in it, However i feel it probably won't do much for her career (Maybe she just had some bills to pay) Adele Silva actually looked better in person than on film, where she just looked like a bulldog sucking on a thistle. The make up was so bad, i can only assume it was done by make up students learning they're trait. The funniest point of the night was the end of the film when everyone applauded, thats when the lights came up and i realised everyone except me had a cameo in the film! Wait until it gets shown on channel 4 at 1am some when and try to stay awake for Robert Englund's 10 minute cameo. 4/10.

I won't beat around the bush. The acting is horrible, the script risible, the makeup and prosthetics are dire and probably the least said about the plot the better. With the number of ex-soap actors in it, perhaps it's not surprising that the film seems to derive much of it's inspiration and ethos from Crossroads and El Dorado. Put simply, it's bad. I guessed that from the title. What surprised me is that it manages to cross that line from 'bad' to 'so bad it's good'. I'll admit I didn't know it was supposed to be a comedy when I watched it and I wouldn't have guessed they were trying to be intentionally funny, but looking on it as a (bad) horror - it was hilarious. I nearly gave it an 8.

There have been some really zany over the top horror comedies come along over the last few years bust most focused on the zombie craze with films like Shaun of the Dead, Zombieland, and Zombie Strippers, but finally someone has decided to bring in the werewolves in Strippers vs. Werewolves. Is there any chance that this will work or fall along the lines of the so many other failed horror films?

Strippers vs. Werewolves follow a pack of werewolves seeking revenge for the death of one of their own at a strip club. This is a silly movie, but not in a bad way. Is it good of course not, but it is fun. The reason this one works well is that while they are delivering a dark comedy, they manage to take themselves seriously for most of the film. This aspect makes the movie work a bit better than its title would lead you to believe. It's really not until the end confrontation in the film that things get a bit sillier. You get the feeling this was the silly nature it was headed towards which thanks to not going full on silly for most of the film makes it welcome, but could easily through some off. Most of the acting was pretty bad, but in this sort of movie you don't expect too much. They delivered the blood and gore horror fans want, but not near as much nudity as you would have expect, especially for a movie involving a strip club.

This is a bit of a silly movie, but if you can just sit back and have some fun it becomes just that, fun. Filled with some genre centric actors including Sarah Douglas (Superman 2), Barbara Nedeljiakova (Hostel series), and Robert Englund (Nightmare on Elm Street series) but don't be fooled, Englund is barely in the movie and serves little purpose other than his name recognition.

http://www.examiner.com/movie-in-dallas/bobby-blakey

A very British, ultra low budget film with a sprinkling of famous faces - albeit most are from UK soap operas. Directed by Jonathan Glendening and written by Pat Higgins and Phillip Baron, this 2012 film is rated 15 and has a runtime of 93 minutes. It is rated as Action, Comedy and Crime but also borders on supernatural horror too.

The plot is simple but conceivable, in a weird kind of way anyway; a stripper accidently kills a werewolf with a silver fountain pen. His friends, the rest of the pack, want their revenge. It is up to colleagues, friends, and clientele of the stripper to fight off the bloodthirsty werewolves.

I am not going to mess around and try and jazz this film up, I knew what I was getting myself into with this film, and the title of the film also set my expectations too, but this film, well - it was just bad. I usually like bad b-movies, but even by that standard this is really really bad. The acting is terrible; the script and dialogue is cringy; the make-up, effects and prosthetics are cheap; the soundtrack was awful; it wasn't funny (and it was supposed to be); the pacing was terrible... wait, I've used that descriptive word before... let's go with the pace was on par with a bumpy, pot hole covered road that was only partially built and required detours for no reason. What I am ultimately getting at, in case it was not obvious, is that this is a poor film.

With how bad the film was I was surprised at some of the faces that are in it, some from UK soap opera, some from the world of film. Ali Bastian, Adele Silva, Martin Compston, and Billy Murray all have experience in various soap operas. Martin Kemp, Alan Ford, Steven Berkoff, Lysette Anthony, and Robert Englund all have big film experience. With a cast this rich I was really expecting to see something a lot better than I got to experience. This felt like a cheap rip-off of 2008's "Zombie Strippers", which is pity because Britain is usually a strong player in the comedy-horror market with some really great tongue in cheek blood splatter films. This, unfortunately, had very few redeeming qualities and I can see this being quickly forgotten by audiences and probably the cast themselves too. I am not basing my review on a single viewing; I watched this in 2012 when it came out, and I have re-watched it in 2020 when I wrote this review. The film stunk almost ten years ago, and its fragrance has not improved since then.