Transformation Inspiration

Thank you Chiller for broadcasting "The Howling" last night, and re-igniting the werewolf theories I've been posturing on for months.  I've been trying for months to put together a coherent werewolf-related post, and for some reason, they never seem to materialize. There's just so many facets to the werewolf oeuvre, and it's hard for me to focus.  So this will be the first in a series of werewolf posts, which I am determined to bring to life.  Let's get to The Howling & my favorite aspect of the 80's werewolf movies -- the Transformations - shall we?

The Howling is a pretty clever movie for 1981, full of genre-referential humor and innovative special effects. It helped kick off the 80's werewolf/creature feature craze (Even Jack Nicholson did one!)  Check out the wiki entry for some really awesome easter eggs scattered throughout the film. Personal favorite: a copy of Ginsberg's Howl laying on the table.

"... [The film's] most celebrated effect was the on-screen transformation of Eddie Quist, which involved air bladders under latex facial applications to give the illusion of transformation... The Howling also features stop-motion animation by notable animator David W. Allen, and puppetry intended to give the werewolves an even more non-human look..."  source (This team went on to create the Gremlins in 1984.)

Here's my rendition of the transformation for those of you who haven't had the pleasure of seeing it live:

The face bubbles, oozes and pops with painful screaming underscoring the growing snout and massive teeth extruding out of Eddie's skull.  It is shot in the slow, agonizing style unique to this genre, and that is what makes it so great. Eddie's humanity just drips off his face, literally! Since he's been bitten, he's doomed to suffer this pain and deformity, and the filmmakers want you to feel it too. Another great aspect of the slow transform: Karen (or Terri, whoever) just watches dumbfounded even though in that time she could have totally ran away. But, instead she just watches and saves the running for after he's finished. I think it's polite, really.

I must admit I've favored An American Werewolf in London in the past, but after re-watching The Howling, I've gotta give respect.  I am such a sucker for the self-referential humor, and love the ending on 'live tv' which totally endears me to the horror genre as the most memorable films always leave you with questions, in this case, "Did I really just see Karen turn into a werewolf on the evening news?!"  Shades of many great movies & books to come,  [ahem, Charlaine Harris' great reveal ;) ] which leads me to say, Thank you Joe Dante!