And the 1981 award for worst sex scene in a horror movie goes to.... Wolfen!, it's coupling between cop Dewey Wilson (Albert Finney) and criminal psychologist Rebecca Neff (Diane Venora) filmed entirely in glorious Wolf-O-Vision, a technique that solarises the POV image, making the film look incredibly cheap and tacky in the process.
Unlike Joe Dante and John Landis, who employed groundbreaking make-up effects to bring their werewolves to life in The Howling and An American Werewolf in London (also 1981), Wolfen's director, Michael Wadleigh, uses a far less showy (and therefore cheaper) approach, keeping his wolves hidden from the viewer for the most part, opting instead to show us the world through their eyes... with Wolf-O-Vision!
Based on the novel by Whitley Strieber, Wolfen begins with the deaths of successful businessman Christopher van der Veer, his coke-snorting wife Pauline (Anne Marie Pohtamo), and their chauffeur while taking a night-time stroll in Battery Park, New York. The unfortunate trio are ripped to shreds by unseen assailants, the attacks filmed in... you guessed it!... Wolf-O-Vision!
Investigating the grisly incident is world weary cop Wilson, who discovers the existence of a 20,000 year-old tribe of Native American shape-shifters who, having been driven to near extinction by the white man, now live in the wasteland of the South Bronx, feeding on diseased down and outs. However, with Van Der Veer having designated their hunting ground for urban renewal, the shape-shifters have been forced to fight back.
While this is a pretty sound idea for a horror film, and the cast is good for this kind of thing (Edward James Olmos, Gregory Hines and Tom Noonan co-star), the dreadfully slow pace, the eco-warrior stance, and the reliance on Wolf-O-Vision make for a really dull experience. The derelict South Bronx locations are great (straight out of an Italian post-apocalyptic movie) and there's a smattering of splatter for gore-hounds to enjoy, but its not enough to compensate for the dreariness of proceedings.
As if realising his mistake, Wadleigh raises his game for a reasonably exciting finalé, in which Dewey, Rebecca and police chief Warren (Dick O'Neill) are surrounded by the Wolfen. The attack results in a neat decapitation (bet you can't guess who loses their head) and ends with a not entirely satisfactory resolution, the wolves leaving when Wilson smashes the model of Van Der Veers proposed Bronx development, as if doing so would stop the project from going ahead (I doubt if his ranting and raving about shape-shifters would convince the financial backers to change their minds).
Unlike Joe Dante and John Landis, who employed groundbreaking make-up effects to bring their werewolves to life in The Howling and An American Werewolf in London (also 1981), Wolfen's director, Michael Wadleigh, uses a far less showy (and therefore cheaper) approach, keeping his wolves hidden from the viewer for the most part, opting instead to show us the world through their eyes... with Wolf-O-Vision!
Based on the novel by Whitley Strieber, Wolfen begins with the deaths of successful businessman Christopher van der Veer, his coke-snorting wife Pauline (Anne Marie Pohtamo), and their chauffeur while taking a night-time stroll in Battery Park, New York. The unfortunate trio are ripped to shreds by unseen assailants, the attacks filmed in... you guessed it!... Wolf-O-Vision!
Investigating the grisly incident is world weary cop Wilson, who discovers the existence of a 20,000 year-old tribe of Native American shape-shifters who, having been driven to near extinction by the white man, now live in the wasteland of the South Bronx, feeding on diseased down and outs. However, with Van Der Veer having designated their hunting ground for urban renewal, the shape-shifters have been forced to fight back.
While this is a pretty sound idea for a horror film, and the cast is good for this kind of thing (Edward James Olmos, Gregory Hines and Tom Noonan co-star), the dreadfully slow pace, the eco-warrior stance, and the reliance on Wolf-O-Vision make for a really dull experience. The derelict South Bronx locations are great (straight out of an Italian post-apocalyptic movie) and there's a smattering of splatter for gore-hounds to enjoy, but its not enough to compensate for the dreariness of proceedings.
As if realising his mistake, Wadleigh raises his game for a reasonably exciting finalé, in which Dewey, Rebecca and police chief Warren (Dick O'Neill) are surrounded by the Wolfen. The attack results in a neat decapitation (bet you can't guess who loses their head) and ends with a not entirely satisfactory resolution, the wolves leaving when Wilson smashes the model of Van Der Veers proposed Bronx development, as if doing so would stop the project from going ahead (I doubt if his ranting and raving about shape-shifters would convince the financial backers to change their minds).