“Strippers Vs. Werewolves” cast & a cool poster

According to its Facebook page and a post on Fangoria, British horror-comedy Strippers Vs. Werewolves has wrapped and will be released sometime before Spring 2012. The last time I posted about this film I was pretty mean, but I think I had just cause: there were no details on casting or story, and the poster/concept art was… not encouraging. But all of that has changed, and (as I’ve so often done lately) I am retracting some of my shitty comments.

A new poster has been released, which Fangoria describes as “Ali Bastian as stripper Danni, aiming a shotgun at Martin Kemp as werewolf Mickey”. It looks fun, and it’s certainly more evocative and stylistically interesting than previous posters.

On the casting side of this, I’ve spotted two names that I’m kind of excited about: Robert Englund and Alan Ford (bonus points if you can guess which werewolf movie Ford was in without looking at his IMDB page). Also appearing: Barbara Nedeljakova, Sarah Douglas, Adele Silva, Lucy Pinder, Ali Bastian, Steven Berkoff, Nick Nevern, Danica Thrall, Simon Phillips, Billy Murray and Joe Egan.

And what’s the film about, other than the obvious?

When werewolf chief Mickey is accidentally killed in a strip club the girls who work there have until the next full moon before his bloodthirsty wolfpack seek murderous retribution…

Okay, yeah, I’d watch that. Would you?

Yes you would.

Jul. 22nd 2011

Werewolf News gets a redesign

Werewolf News lurched its way onto the web in 2008, and it’s had the same design the whole time – a design I sketched out on a DoubleTree notepad while stuck on a flight from Colorado. After three years and over 500 posts I thought it might be time for a redesign, so here it is! I’ve centered the layout, reduced the clutter, improved the typography (no more white text on black), moved the commenting system to the Disqus platform (don’t worry, all your old comments are still here) and generally tidied things up. There will be a few more tweaks and improvements over the weeks to come, so if you find anything that looks particularly broken, please comment on this post and I’ll have a look.  Thanks, and I hope you like it!

Jul. 21st 2011

Help Kickstart Epic Lesbian Werewolf Revenge Quest comic “Anathema”

 Okay, now that I’ve caught your attention with a sensational headline that appeals to your baser instincts, here’s a chance to redeem yourself by exercising your philanthropy and love of werewolves at the same time (philycanthropy?). Anathema is a horror comic project by writer Rachel Deering, artist Alan Quah Chris Mooneyham and colourist Jorge Maese.

The story focuses on a huntress named Mercy Barlowe, who falls in love with the daughter of a local reverend. When the romantic nature of their relationship is discovered, the reverend cries heresy and vows to see both women tried as witches. Mercy escapes, but the reverend’s daughter is sentenced to burn. The agony and torment of the burning lures wicked creatures from the darkness, who attack the village and steal the souls of the dying women. Mercy vows to track the evil beings to the ends of the earth and vanquish them to reclaim her lover’s soul, even if it means taking on dark powers of her own.

What sort of dark powers might Mercy take on, do you think? Hmmmmmmm. What web site are you on right now?

They are looking to raise $6,000 through Kickstarter by Friday September 2nd, which will pay for the first issue’s art and printing costs. That sounds pretty reasonable to me! As with all Kickstarter projects, the more you contribute the more sweet stuff you get in return. You were pretty quick to follow the link here, so you must be totally jazzed to help out, right?

Jul. 19th 2011

Legend of the Superbeasts: The Wolfman Versus Godzilla

Werewolf News reader Komodo recently brought this delightful project to my attention, saying it was interesting but maybe not worth its own post. I think it has just the right amount of esoteric 80’s monster movie kitsch for a Monday morning. I’ve added a few links to Komodo’s text to help those who are, like me, unfamiliar with the world of the daikaijū.

In the mid eighties, when Toho was gearing up to release its first Godzilla film after a decades-long hiatus, the Godzilla fandom received a massive boost in activity. Part of this was the release of fan films, most of which are sadly forgotten and unavailable. One of these films was a little movie called Legend of the Superbeasts: The Wolfman Versus Godzilla.

Considering this was a fan film made in the eighties, the suits are very high quality in my honest opinion. The Godzilla suit was based on the 1962 Kingugoji, infamous as being the version of Godzilla who fought King Kong. The werewolf suit is a bit cheaper looking but I can easily imagine it being something that Eiji Tsuburaya would create were he asked to create a werewolf suit.

Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to locate anything more about the film and it remains lost to history. It’s pretty old news among the Godzilla fandom, but I think it’s rather unknown among werewolf fans.

It’s not even 9:00 yet and my day is complete. Thank you, Komodo! If anyone out there has anything more on Legend of the Superbeasts: The Wolfman Versus Godzilla, do the right thing: share it with us!

Images from Toho Kingdom Forums.

Jul. 18th 2011

Track 1 of David Bowie’s album “Hunky Dory”

Just a heads-up: the site will be getting a visual and functional overhaul over the week, and things might look a little weird in the meantime. For instance, I upgraded the commenting system over the weekend, but it’ll look a little weird until I can theme it properly. Don’t be frightened.

Jul. 18th 2011

Great werewolf cover art for “Bela Lugosi’s Tales from the Grave” issue 3

Nothing too earth-shattering here, just some sweet art to check out on a lazy Friday when you should be working. Yes, you. No, Google Reader doesn’t count as work. Anyway. Dread Central has a sneak peak at the cover of Bela Lugosi’s Tales from the Grave issue #3, which comes out this October. To quote Kris Straub (who wasn’t talking about this, but I love how he says this line in TMH so whatever): you’re gonna like it.

Did you like it? I liked it. Billy, you’re fucked. I’m looking forward to reading this. Check out Monsterverse for more details on the “Tales from the Grave” series – their site is still showing issue #2, but hopefully they’ll update it soon.

If you’re curious, David Hartman is responsible for this deliciously malevolent cover, and I recommend you check out his site for even more excellent horror art (hint: frequent werewolves).

via Dread Central

Jul. 15th 2011

First Trailer for “The Howling Reborn”: questionable dialogue, (glimpses of) cool werewolves

Despite posting about it twice last year, I’d forgotten that the Howling franchise is about to get another entry (or is it a reboot? I can’t tell). Here’s the first trailer, brought to my attention by HorrorBid.

Questions: why does that guy look like Harry Potter? Why does this remind me so much of An American Werewolf in Paris? Why are people still writing lines like “I don’t bite… much.”? And when do we get to see more of those werewolves? I had an email conversation with someone involved in the production last year, and this person indicated that the blurry mobile phone photo that leaked didn’t do the werewolf design justice at all. This person also mentioned female werewolves, which I suppose isn’t much of a surprise after seeing this trailer.

Jul. 14th 2011

Werewolf bikini set from Iron Fist

Last year Iron Fist brought you werewolf-themed high heels, flats and clutch purses, and now their product designers have turned their sights on the beach scene with this werewolf print bikini set. This is good. This is sensible. This is how you build a brand.

The regular price is $48.00 US, but as of this post the bikini set is on sale for $30.00, and sizes run from XS to 2XL. If you are a lady of any shape or size and you are reading this web site, I have a suggestion: buy this bikini, get in touch with others who have done the same, and form an official opposition to the Swedish Bikini Werewolf Destruction Unit.

Jul. 9th 2011

Say “Hi” to (a nice big photo of) Teen Wolf’s Alpha Werewolf [spoilers]

If you’ve been watching MTV’s Teen Wolf (if you haven’t been, smarten up), you’ve caught a few glimpses of the Alpha werewolf responsible for Scott’s bite and subsequent transformations. Want a better look at him? Here you go.

Remember my “Okay I guess I’ll try it” post about Teen Wolf back in May? The one where Jeff answered a shitload of questions and showed me an image that I wasn’t allowed to share but that totally sold the show for me? Yeah, this was the image. Thanks for sharing, Jeff! I’m looking forward to seeing more of this guy – and having just caught the end of episode six, I don’t think I’m going to be disappointed!

Jul. 5th 2011

Comics Review – “Thicker Than Blood”

A three-issue miniseries sporadically published between late 2007 and late 2008, Thicker Than Blood is written by Simon Reed, with pencils/inks by Mike Ploog (known for being the initial artist on Ghost Rider and Werewolf By Night) and paints by Simon Bisley, perhaps best known for his work on 2000AD.

Given the artists’ pedigree, I was expecting good things from this book, and it didn’t disappoint. The story’s reminiscent of old-school horror, a feel which is aided by the Victorian setting, and the artwork complements the writing well; an exaggerated style is used for the human characters, verging on caricature, which gives a good visual description of their traits. While the plot’s not complex, revolving around two brothers, one of whom has become a werewolf through circumstances unknown and the other trying to cure his condition, it’s pretty well-executed. The werewolf is particularly notable as being perhaps the best-drawn aspect; of the half-wolf big muscular type (with no tail!), it’s a fairly standard design but the way he’s drawn really brings attention to the strength and ferocity of the creature.

After a strong first issue, the second part of the miniseries stumbles a little with a plotline revolving around one of the main characters becoming some kind of were-monkey; the art doesn’t seem as strong in this issue and the story is advanced little except at the beginning and end of the issue.

By the time of the third and final instalment, however, the art has reached its peak and, as I’m sure readers will be pleased to know, features the most werewolf action of the series. Much of the issue is very visually striking and it’s certainly the most memorable part. The dialogue and writing in general are also notably sharper in this issue, with the story building to a crescendo and featuring a neat little twist at the end.

Overall it’s one that I’d recommend, chiefly for the artwork though the story itself is perfectly servicable. It’s available from Reed Comics for around £9 ($15) plus shipping, with each issue available in two different covers. It’s very much a genre piece, pretty much adhering to the tropes and conventions of the classic horror style, but that’s not to be counted against it. I’ve got a number of reviews lined up that to one extent or another break the stereotypical werewolf mould, so keep an eye out for those.

Jun. 16th 2011