Released the same year as the far superior An American Werewolf in London, The Howling also boasts impressive special effects, but it straddles the line between camp and horror with less finesse. Directed by Gremlins’ Joe Dante, this satirical take on cults and media sensationalism follows a television journalist (Dee Wallace) who, after helping the police catch a serial killer, is sent to a psychiatric retreat for recovery. Karen discovers there’s something more—and possibly supernatural—to the story.
The makeup and special effects, initially handled by Rick Baker before he left to work on An American Werewolf in London, were taken over by Rob Bottin. They are impressive, especially the formation of the protruding snout. However, some aspects like the bubbling in his face, enter silly territory, even with the unsettling bone cracking sounds. The constant cutting back and forth to Karen doesn’t help, either, because it takes so long for the scene to unfold that the transformation ends up being boring rather than scary. Still, The Howling remains an enjoyable, quintessentially ‘80s werewolf movie.
