Okay, you’ve got to check out Absolute Disaster‘s five-episode web series “Craig & The Werewolf“. As this Tubefilter article puts it, the bite-sized series is about two “seemingly normal twentysomething roommates [who] are getting along fine until one of them gets outed as a flesh-eating werewolf.” Watch the first episode below, then visit Absolute Disaster’s blip.tv page to see the rest.
Category: Film, Television & Music
Believe it or not, there are werewolf movies other than “An American Werewolf in London”.
A Remastered Werewolf in London
In a little over a month (September 15, to be precise), Universal Home Entertainment will release the remastered, bonus-feature-loaded “Full Moon” edition of An American Werewolf in London. Lovingly crafted for your Blu-Ray player, the Full Moon edition comes with these bonus features:
- Beware the Moon: (mentioned on Werewolf News last year) In this feature-length documentary, filmmaker Paul Davis guides us through a never-before-seen, in-depth look at the Making of An American Werewolf in London, with the help of director John Landis and make-up artist Rick Baker.
- I Walked with a Werewolf: Make-up effects artist Rick Baker tells of his life-long love of the Wolfman, how he would go on to create the creature in An American Werewolf in London, and how he was able to pour his passion into the upcoming Wolfman feature.
- Making An American Werewolf in London, An Original Featurette
- An Interview with John Landis
- Make-up Artist Rick Baker on An American Werewolf in London
- Casting of the Hand
- Outtakes
- Storyboards
- Photograph Montage
- Feature Commentary with Cast Members David Naughton and Griffin Dunne
This might be enough to make me finally by a Blu-Ray player. If you’re impatient, forgetful or can’t go out in public without biting people, you can pre-order An American Werewolf in London: Full Moon edition on Amazo
The Werewolves In Twilight Aren’t Real Werewolves
Okay, I’ve had enough. Every time I pick up a paper or a magazine, browse through blogs or read a news web site, someone is going on about the “werewolves” in Twilight. Aside from being boring, clichéd, visually uninteresting and a misappropriation of Native American culture, the werewolves in Twilight aren’t real werewolves. This fact is even printed in Breaking Dawn, the last book of the series (chapter 37, look it up). I was willing to let this go, but it’s getting so I can’t even walk down the street without hearing someone sighing dreamily over “those hot Quileute werewolves”. People are making their own Twilight-inspired werewolf stuff out of craft supplies and selling them to each other online. There are dozens of Twilight-based “OMG R U A WEREWOLF OR A VAMPIRE??” online quizzes designed to fill up your sister’s MySpace page and destroy the signal-to-noise ratio on Twitter. Don’t even get me started on the blog discussions.
So what can I do? Well, as an Internet-savvy werewolf fan, I can try to enlist your help in making a number get bigger:
http://werewolf-news.com/twilight/
It’s not much, but it’s something. If you feel the same way I do about this crazy business, please share the URL. Post it on your blog, spread it around on Twitter, and participate in the grim satisfaction of having complained about something on the Internet. You might feel a little bit better– I did.
More Wolfman Rumours: Baker Brought Back On to Save Transformation Scenes?
This morning at ShockTilYouDrop.com, Ryan Rotten shares some inside information he’s received about the oft-delayed Wolfman remake.
One tipster says Universal has sunk nearly $10-30 million into re-shoots in England. Much of the scenes had to do with the full Wolfman makeup because it wasn’t “working out” and “was too much like the original” Chaney makeup. Another writer tells me Rick Baker was brought back in to direct practical transformation work because the CGI, again, wasn’t working.
Ryan stresses that these tidbits should be treated as rumours, but that he’ll try to get corroborating statements from official sources. It’s a shame about the makeup being redone, as I rather liked the official publicity photos that have been floating around since March 2008. I certainly hope the part about Baker being brought back on for the transformation scenes is true, though– around this time last year, he was unhappy at being excluded the first time round, and as we all know from An American Werewolf in London and The Howling, Rick Baker knows how to turn a person into a werewolf properly: physical makeup and effects, rather than CG.
The Wolfman Delayed Yet Again
Okay, now I’m concerned. According to numerous sources, including the official web site, Universal has bumped the release date of The Wolfman again, this time pushing it all the way back to February 12, 2010. That’s a three month move from its previous release date of November 6 2009, and nearly 10 months off its original release date of April 9, 2009. Producer Scott Stuber says it’s strictly a marketing decision, but couple these delays with the hints of a werewolf re-design and the film’s conspicuous absense from the San Diego Comic Con and you’ve got signs of a troubled production. Not all of the new is bad, though. Word is that the first official trailer for The Wolfman will debut August 21st, with the release of Quentin Tarintino’s Inglourious Basterds.
Tim Burton Confirms Next Project: “Dark Shadows”
Last week at the San Diego Comic Con, Tim Burton confirmed that once he’s finished with his Alice in Wonderland remake, his next project will be an adaptation of the gothic TV series Dark Shadows, featuring werewolves, vampires and zobmies. This is a nice follow-up to last year’s quasi-rumour on the subject. Bring on the new Quentin Collins!
Nick Dudman Talks About Harry Potter Werewolf Makeup
Make-Up Artist Magazine and the Los Angeles Times have both posted short interviews with Nick Dudman, the head makeup effects designer for the Harry Potter films. In each interview, Dudman talks about the efforts behind developing and applying the prosthetics for werewolf character Fenrir Greyback (played by Dave Legeno). There’s not much in the way of photos, but still worth a read!
House of the Wolf Man
Late last week, Nuke The Fridge got the scoop on Eben McGarr‘s retro-fantastic indie film House of the Wolf Man, starring (among others) Ron Chaney, the grandson of the original Wolf Man, Lon Chaney, Jr.
“Dr. Bela Reinhardt (Chaney) has invited five people to his castle to see which of them will inherit his estate. He has arranged for a competition of sorts, the victor shall be determined through process of… elimination,” McGarr tells Bloody-Disgusting. “The film was shot in black and white, 1:33 aspect ratio and is a good old fashioned monster movie that you could bring your kids to.”
If you missed Chaney and McGarr at the San Diego Comic Con (apparently they were there, but schedule details are sketchy), Bloody-Disgusting has the convention trailer, and you’ll find more amazing (and super-hi-res) photos like the one above here. NukeTheFridge.com also has some great shots of the monsters.
I don’t know about you, but seeing these photos and watching the trailer made me grin ear-to-ear. Thanks to NukeTheFridge.com, ArcLight and Bloody-Disgusting for the info.
Den of Geek: A look back at An American Werewolf in London
The classic werewolf film An American Werewolf in London has been getting a lot of press lately, what with the Blu-ray edition on the way this September, and Dimension Films getting ready to shoot a remake. Today, Den of Geek is taking a look back at AWIL in the form of an article about the film’s groundbreaking status when it was released in the 80’s, and its status today as (some would say) the Holy Grail of werewolf films. Supplemented with some great still-frames and some interesting trivia, it’s well worth a read.
Harry Palms
ArmchairAccomplice sent me a link to “Harry Palms”, an episode of The Receptionist by Travis Betz. The link was accompanied by a note that read “low tech werewolf musical hits youtube, the less I say the better.” I watched. I bit my fist. I went to Travis’s web site and confirmed my suspicions: Travis Betz is a demented genius. And now, I share the video with you.