The Wolf Man **** (1941, Lon Chaney Jr, Claude Rains, Warren William, Bela Lugosi) – Classic Movie Review 1928

Director George Waggner’s 1941 classic Universal Studios horror movie stars Lon Chaney Jnr as The Wolf Man, Lawrence Stewart Talbot, who turns into a werewolf (with the help of Jack Pierce’s outstanding makeup) when a wolf attacks him and he takes to marauding in the misty woods by moonlight.

In the excellent acting line-up, Claude Rains plays Lon Chaney Jnr’s understandably upset father, Sir John Talbot; Maria Ouspenskaya and Bela Lugosi make a fine, eccentric double act as gypsy mother and son clairvoyants Maleva and Bela, as Lugosi turns werewolf too; while Evelyn Ankers screams at full throttle as the love interest Gwen Conliffe.

Waggner turns in an atmospheric and entertaining chiller, effectively played, smartly written by Curt Siodmak and sleekly photographed by cinematographer Joseph Valentine. And Universal gives it a nice-looking, enjoyably studio-bound production under the loving care of the director, who also produces. Despite a few creaky downsides, it’s now a highly regarded, bona fide horror classic.

Warren William (Dr Lloyd), Ralph Bellamy (Colonel Paul Montford), Patric Knowles (Frank Andrews) and Fay Helm (Jenny Williams) co-star. Also in the cast are Leyland Hodgson, Forrester Harvey, J M Kerrigan, Kurt Katch and Doris Lloyd.

Now unfortunately typecast, Chaney Jnr played The Wolf-Man four more times for Universal studios until he unfortunately met Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in 1948’s Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (reunited with Lugosi and also Boris Karloff). Chaney Jnr played a werewolf again in 1959’s Face of the Screaming Werewolf.

The Universal Monsters Shared Universe franchise will kick off with the Untitled Mummy Reboot in 2016. The slate of films will also include remakes of The Wolf Man (planned for 2017), Frankenstein, The Creature from the Black Lagoon and Van Helsing.

© Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Movie Review 1928

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