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THE HOMOLYCANTHROPES

Werewolf transformation - The Howling (1981)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuYyfH…

The werewolves from the novel and movie the Howling are "Homolycanthopes", meaning wolf/human crossbreeds that go under transformations under a willing biological process.

According to the director's notes from the film, and aside from the author's ideas from the novel- these creatures were remnants of a prehistoric joining from bestiality, regarding wolves and humans.

Later, as humans became more dominate, a small contingent of these hybrid people, kept a biological trigger in their blood, which under stress, could transform them into huge wolf/human beings.

This same blood enzyme, if timed accordingly, could also turn a normal person into one of their kind.

This uncontrolled transformation process was later dealt with by learning how to control it - this done by a lead psychologist from their colony and a sort of guru for their cause.

Apparently, he taught his people how to control their transformations and explored the raising of their own livestock and farms to provide an outlet for their primal nature, wanting to form a more civilized variation of their kind.

However, as he began to rise in power among his people, and more so, became quite a celebrity author among normal people, the public not knowing he was a werewolf; he began to garner enemies in his own clique.

These enemies came in the form of werewolf folk that adopted the philosophy of embracing the wild nature in them, and felt superior to humans, seeking to lure and hunt humans as their ancestors once did.

WHY THEY ARE VULNERABLE TO SILVER BULLETS --

As in lore, these werewolves are indeed vulnerable to silver bullets, though at many times in the film, they certainly don't seem to know that.

According to director notes, but not clarified in the film, the silver in silver bullets actually acts as a poison to the blood enzyme responsible for triggering their transformations, not only killing them, but actually reverting them to their human form in the process.

The only hint to this is the scene in the occult bookstore, where the hero figure buys the silver bullets.

Obviously, during medieval times, silver bullets were used to kill these creatures, but modern times have moved so interruptedly for the werewolf colony in the film, that they seem not to have kept that crucial part of their lore intact, proving just how isolated this sect has been for years.

WHAT TYPE OF WEREWOLVES ARE THEY --

These are bipedal werewolves that can willingly transform their shapeshifting abilities whenever they want.

They can also NOT transform under a full moon as myth would pose.

Their transformation grants them super strength, speed, and an enhanced sense of ferociousness that is fueled by adrenaline.

They can live with amputated parts and show some degree of healing, but do NOT heal from a wound if that wound is severe enough, even by simple conventional means - this being proven by the wolves that maintained injuries after acid was thrown on them or them having had their limbs cut off.

However, they are quite bulletproof and can easily withstand even the largest shots from powerful guns and ammo. This except for the forementioned silver bullets.

Yet fire is their main enemy, and they do show some fear of it, in fact, many were killed off simply by sealing them in a barn were a very rapidly growing fire engulfed them.

At any rate, the Howling showcased what I, and many have claimed to be the scariest werewolf movie to date - this in conjunction with the more humorously slated "American Werewolf in London", which not only came out the same year, but actually shared the very same special effects artists.

The Howling, however, is a more serious venture into modern werewolf lore, with plenty of atmospheric jump scares, and some intense transformation scenes that still hold up well to this day.

Consequently, their sequels were NOT well made and even other werewolf features, clearly inspired by it, such as Dog Soldiers, were NOT made with the same quality and patient director's hand.

Till this day, the 1981 movies of the Howling and American Werewolf in London are STILL the number one werewolf movies according to movie poles - a bizarre fact, since these movies are decades old, and CGI and other film advancements exist NOW, where they didn't then.

This proves that only patient quality directing, and screen writing, as well as some clever and innovative special effects can cement a film to true cult-classic status.

-- Dark Riddle

About the Howling --

The Howling is a 1981 American horror film directed and edited by Joe Dante.

Written by John Sayles and Terence H. Winkless, based on the novel of the same name by Gary Brandner, the film follows a news anchor who, following a traumatic encounter with a serial killer, visits a resort secretly inhabited by werewolves. The cast includes Dee Wallace, Patrick Macnee, Dennis Dugan, Christopher Stone, Belinda Balaski, Kevin McCarthy, John Carradine, Slim Pickens, and Elisabeth Brooks.

The Howling was released in the United States on March 13, 1981, and became a moderate success, grossing $17.9 million at the box office. It received generally positive reviews, with praise for the makeup special effects by Rob Bottin.

The film won the 1980 Saturn Award for Best Horror Film while still in development, and was one of the three high-profile werewolf-themed horror films released in 1981, alongside An American Werewolf in London and Wolfen.

Its financial success aided Dante's career and prompted Warner Bros. to hire Dante and Michael Finnell as director and producer, respectively, for Gremlins (1984).

A series consisting of seven sequels arose from the film's success. A remake is in development, with Andy Muschietti set to direct.

Plot--

Karen White is a Los Angeles television news anchor who is being stalked by serial killer Eddie Quist.

In cooperation with the police, she takes part in a scheme to capture Eddie by agreeing to meet him in a sleazy porn theater.

Eddie forces Karen to watch a video of a young woman being bound and raped, and when Karen turns around to see Eddie, she screams.

The police enter and shoot Eddie, and although Karen is safe, she suffers amnesia. Her therapist, "Doc" George Waggner, decides to send her and her husband, Bill Neill, to the "Colony", a secluded resort in the countryside where he sends patients for treatment.

The Colony is filled with strange characters, and one, a sultry nymphomaniac named Marsha, tries to seduce Bill.

When he resists her unsubtle sexual overtures, he is attacked and scratched on the arm by a werewolf while returning to his cabin.

After Bill's attack, Karen summons her friend Terry Fisher to the Colony, and Terry connects the resort to Eddie through a sketch he left behind, having previously discovered that Eddie's body disappeared from the morgue. Karen begins to suspect that Bill is hiding a secret far more threatening than marital infidelity.

Later that night, Bill meets Marsha at a campfire in the woods. While having sex in the moonlight, they undergo a frightening transformation into werewolves.

While investigating the next morning, Terry is attacked by a werewolf in a cabin, though she escapes after cutting the monster's hand off with an axe. She runs to Doc's office and places a phone call to her boyfriend Chris Halloran, who has been alerted about the Colony's true nature.

While on the phone with Chris, Terry looks for files on Eddie Quist. When she finally finds the file in the filing cabinet, she is attacked by Eddie in werewolf form, and is killed when she is bitten on the jugular vein. Chris hears this on the other end and sets off for the Colony armed with silver bullets.

Karen is confronted by the resurrected Eddie Quist once again, and Eddie transforms himself into a werewolf in front of her. In response, Karen splashes Eddie in the face with corrosive acid and flees.

Later, as Chris arrives at the Colony, he is confronted by the horribly disfigured Eddie, who is fatally shot by Chris with a silver bullet when he attempts to transform. However, it turns out all the people in the Colony are werewolves and can shapeshift at will, without the need of a full moon to do so.

Karen and Chris survive their attacks and burn the Colony to the ground. As they drive away, however, one werewolf breaks into their car and bites Karen before being shot by Chris, turning back into Bill as he dies.

Karen resolves to warn the entire world about the existence of werewolves and begins a special worldwide broadcast announcement to the people around the world. Then, to prove her story, she herself transforms into a werewolf.

She is shot at by Chris in front of a live viewing audience, although the people watching the transformation from their television sets around the world are amused, believing it to be just a stunt done with special effects.

Marsha, who escaped the Colony herself completely unscathed, sits at a bar with a man who, while watching the special broadcast announcement, orders a pepper steak for himself and a rare hamburger for Marsha after Karen's display cuts to a commercial break.

The Howling (1981) Silver bullets my ass.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9pK2V… eak.

Description
THE HOMOLYCANTHROPES

Werewolf transformation - The Howling (1981)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuYyfH…

The werewolves from the novel and movie the Howling are "Homolycanthopes", meaning wolf/human crossbreeds that go under transformations under a willing biological process.

According to the director's notes from the film, and aside from the author's ideas from the novel- these creatures were remnants of a prehistoric joining from bestiality, regarding wolves and humans.

Later, as humans became more dominate, a small contingent of these hybrid people, kept a biological trigger in their blood, which under stress, could transform them into huge wolf/human beings.

This same blood enzyme, if timed accordingly, could also turn a normal person into one of their kind.

This uncontrolled transformation process was later dealt with by learning how to control it - this done by a lead psychologist from their colony and a sort of guru for their cause.

Apparently, he taught his people how to control their transformations and explored the raising of their own livestock and farms to provide an outlet for their primal nature, wanting to form a more civilized variation of their kind.

However, as he began to rise in power among his people, and more so, became quite a celebrity author among normal people, the public not knowing he was a werewolf; he began to garner enemies in his own clique.

These enemies came in the form of werewolf folk that adopted the philosophy of embracing the wild nature in them, and felt superior to humans, seeking to lure and hunt humans as their ancestors once did.

WHY THEY ARE VULNERABLE TO SILVER BULLETS --

As in lore, these werewolves are indeed vulnerable to silver bullets, though at many times in the film, they certainly don't seem to know that.

According to director notes, but not clarified in the film, the silver in silver bullets actually acts as a poison to the blood enzyme responsible for triggering their transformations, not only killing them, but actually reverting them to their human form in the process.

The only hint to this is the scene in the occult bookstore, where the hero figure buys the silver bullets.

Obviously, during medieval times, silver bullets were used to kill these creatures, but modern times have moved so interruptedly for the werewolf colony in the film, that they seem not to have kept that crucial part of their lore intact, proving just how isolated this sect has been for years.

WHAT TYPE OF WEREWOLVES ARE THEY --

These are bipedal werewolves that can willingly transform their shapeshifting abilities whenever they want.

They can also NOT transform under a full moon as myth would pose.

Their transformation grants them super strength, speed, and an enhanced sense of ferociousness that is fueled by adrenaline.

They can live with amputated parts and show some degree of healing, but do NOT heal from a wound if that wound is severe enough, even by simple conventional means - this being proven by the wolves that maintained injuries after acid was thrown on them or them having had their limbs cut off.

However, they are quite bulletproof and can easily withstand even the largest shots from powerful guns and ammo. This except for the forementioned silver bullets.

Yet fire is their main enemy, and they do show some fear of it, in fact, many were killed off simply by sealing them in a barn were a very rapidly growing fire engulfed them.

At any rate, the Howling showcased what I, and many have claimed to be the scariest werewolf movie to date - this in conjunction with the more humorously slated "American Werewolf in London", which not only came out the same year, but actually shared the very same special effects artists.

The Howling, however, is a more serious venture into modern werewolf lore, with plenty of atmospheric jump scares, and some intense transformation scenes that still hold up well to this day.

Consequently, their sequels were NOT well made and even other werewolf features, clearly inspired by it, such as Dog Soldiers, were NOT made with the same quality and patient director's hand.

Till this day, the 1981 movies of the Howling and American Werewolf in London are STILL the number one werewolf movies according to movie poles - a bizarre fact, since these movies are decades old, and CGI and other film advancements exist NOW, where they didn't then.

This proves that only patient quality directing, and screen writing, as well as some clever and innovative special effects can cement a film to true cult-classic status.

-- Dark Riddle

About the Howling --

The Howling is a 1981 American horror film directed and edited by Joe Dante.

Written by John Sayles and Terence H. Winkless, based on the novel of the same name by Gary Brandner, the film follows a news anchor who, following a traumatic encounter with a serial killer, visits a resort secretly inhabited by werewolves. The cast includes Dee Wallace, Patrick Macnee, Dennis Dugan, Christopher Stone, Belinda Balaski, Kevin McCarthy, John Carradine, Slim Pickens, and Elisabeth Brooks.

The Howling was released in the United States on March 13, 1981, and became a moderate success, grossing $17.9 million at the box office. It received generally positive reviews, with praise for the makeup special effects by Rob Bottin.

The film won the 1980 Saturn Award for Best Horror Film while still in development, and was one of the three high-profile werewolf-themed horror films released in 1981, alongside An American Werewolf in London and Wolfen.

Its financial success aided Dante's career and prompted Warner Bros. to hire Dante and Michael Finnell as director and producer, respectively, for Gremlins (1984).

A series consisting of seven sequels arose from the film's success. A remake is in development, with Andy Muschietti set to direct.

Plot--

Karen White is a Los Angeles television news anchor who is being stalked by serial killer Eddie Quist.

In cooperation with the police, she takes part in a scheme to capture Eddie by agreeing to meet him in a sleazy porn theater.

Eddie forces Karen to watch a video of a young woman being bound and raped, and when Karen turns around to see Eddie, she screams.

The police enter and shoot Eddie, and although Karen is safe, she suffers amnesia. Her therapist, "Doc" George Waggner, decides to send her and her husband, Bill Neill, to the "Colony", a secluded resort in the countryside where he sends patients for treatment.

The Colony is filled with strange characters, and one, a sultry nymphomaniac named Marsha, tries to seduce Bill.

When he resists her unsubtle sexual overtures, he is attacked and scratched on the arm by a werewolf while returning to his cabin.

After Bill's attack, Karen summons her friend Terry Fisher to the Colony, and Terry connects the resort to Eddie through a sketch he left behind, having previously discovered that Eddie's body disappeared from the morgue. Karen begins to suspect that Bill is hiding a secret far more threatening than marital infidelity.

Later that night, Bill meets Marsha at a campfire in the woods. While having sex in the moonlight, they undergo a frightening transformation into werewolves.

While investigating the next morning, Terry is attacked by a werewolf in a cabin, though she escapes after cutting the monster's hand off with an axe. She runs to Doc's office and places a phone call to her boyfriend Chris Halloran, who has been alerted about the Colony's true nature.

While on the phone with Chris, Terry looks for files on Eddie Quist. When she finally finds the file in the filing cabinet, she is attacked by Eddie in werewolf form, and is killed when she is bitten on the jugular vein. Chris hears this on the other end and sets off for the Colony armed with silver bullets.

Karen is confronted by the resurrected Eddie Quist once again, and Eddie transforms himself into a werewolf in front of her. In response, Karen splashes Eddie in the face with corrosive acid and flees.

Later, as Chris arrives at the Colony, he is confronted by the horribly disfigured Eddie, who is fatally shot by Chris with a silver bullet when he attempts to transform. However, it turns out all the people in the Colony are werewolves and can shapeshift at will, without the need of a full moon to do so.

Karen and Chris survive their attacks and burn the Colony to the ground. As they drive away, however, one werewolf breaks into their car and bites Karen before being shot by Chris, turning back into Bill as he dies.

Karen resolves to warn the entire world about the existence of werewolves and begins a special worldwide broadcast announcement to the people around the world. Then, to prove her story, she herself transforms into a werewolf.

She is shot at by Chris in front of a live viewing audience, although the people watching the transformation from their television sets around the world are amused, believing it to be just a stunt done with special effects.

Marsha, who escaped the Colony herself completely unscathed, sits at a bar with a man who, while watching the special broadcast announcement, orders a pepper steak for himself and a rare hamburger for Marsha after Karen's display cuts to a commercial break.

The Howling (1981) Silver bullets my ass.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9pK2V… eak.