The Wolfman
The Werewolf of London was Hollywood’s first mainstream werewolf movie. It was made in 1935 and starred Henry Hull, an American character actor who appeared in 74 movies between 1917 and 1966. His role as the werewolf is the part he is best remembered for, but the movie was not a commercial success.
Six years later a second werewolf movie was made by Universal Pictures. It was called The Wolfman, and it starred Lon Chaney Jr., Claude Rains, Bela Lugosi and Evelyn Ankers. It told the story of Larry Talbot (Chaney), who returns to his ancestral home in Llanwelly, Wales to be reconciled with his father after he learns of his brothers death. While there, he falls deeply in love with Gwen Conliffe (Ankers), a local woman who runs an antique shop. Shortly afterwards, he attempts to save Conliffe’s friend, Jenny, from what he perceives to be a wild wolf, and ends up getting bitten. Talbot then becomes the Wolfman, a savage bipedal werewolf who roams the countryside wreaking havoc and terrifying the local peasantry. The film ends with the hirsute monster being killed by John Talbot (Rains) and changing back into a human being.
The Wolfman suit, originally created by costumer Jack Pierce for Henry Hull, was so uncomfortable that Hull refused to wear it. Chaney Jr., on the other hand, wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps and had no qualms about donning the costume. Chaney Sr. is famous for playing hideous monsters in such films as The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Phantom of the Opera, among others.
The Wolfman proved so popular that Universal gave the green light to four more movies featuring Larry Talbot and his hairy alter ego, Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman(1943), House of Frankenstein(1944), House of Dracula(1945), and finally Abbot And Costello Meet Frankenstein(1948).
In 2010, 69 years after the original film was made, we have a new version. It is helmed by Joe Johnston (Hidalgo, Jurassic Park III, Jumanji, October Sky); and stars Benicio del Toro (Traffic, Snatch, Che, Things We Lost in the Fire), Emily Blunt (Charlie’s War, Young Victoria, The Devil Wears Prada), and Anthony Hopkins (The Silence of the Lambs, The World’s Fastest Indian, Nixon). Other notable actors in the film are Hugo Weaving (Lord of the Rings) as Inspector Francis Aberline, who is trying to hunt and kill the wolf, and Geraldine Chaplin (Chaplin) who plays the gypsy Maleva.
Considering the fact that this movie is a blockbuster, filled with eye- candy and camp, made with a budget nearly a thousand times that of the original (the budget of the first film was a $180,000), it’s not half bad. The plot is basically the same as the original with a few twists and turns added for excitement’s sake. The computer-generated scenes and Rick Baker’s werewolf make-up effects are truly marvellous. Baker deserves an Oscar.
There is, however, one problem. Most of the actors play reasonably good roles, but Benicio del Toro is badly cast as Lawrence Talbot. The movie does not have well-developed characters, but while Hopkins, Weaving and Blunt are able to entertain us in spite of a limited script, del Toro falls flat in his role as the film’s hero. We should find a man who has been struck with the werewolf curse to be an interesting fellow. Del Toro certainly does look the part, but his acting in this particular role is wooden. It’s disappointing because I think he is capable of so much more.
If you are a fan of Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt and Hugo Weaving, see this movie. If you are going specifically to see Benicio del Toro, save your money. Rent Traffic instead.
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