Movie Review: The Boy Who Cried Werewolf (1973)
Synopsis: Richie Bridgestone and his divorced father, Robert, spend a father/son weekend at their secluded mountain cabin. While taking a moonlight stroll, they are attacked by a werewolf. Robert manages to kill the creature but is bitten and, the next time they go to their cabin, turns into a werewolf himself. Richie witnesses this but nobody believes him.
Who's in it? The movie stars Kerwin Mathews, Scott Sealey, Elaine Devry, Robert J. Wilke and George Gaynes.
Review: It had been nearly a decade since I last watched The Boy Who Cried Werewolf and, when I came across it this morning, I figured I'd give it another try. I had hoped rewatching the film would change my overall opinion of it. Unfortunately, it didn't. I still think it is a bad movie.
Actually, let me put this a different way. I think the movie is hilarious at times. The problem with that is it is a film that isn't supposed to be, at least not intentionally.
First, paraphrasing something my daughter said when she watched it with me the last time, the werewolf in this movie doesn't know how to werewolf. He leaves his human clothes on, shoes and all, digs holes using a shovel and pretty much acted like a human who happened to be wearing a werewolf mask. Or, actually, a mask that looked a lot more like a sheep dog than a wolf.
This is a film that also relies heavily on criminal stupidity from the supporting actors. This starts with the mom (Devry), who might be one of the worst movie parents ever.
Look, I get it, the story Richie (Sealey) told probably did seem a bit farfetched. Not to mention, he was kind of annoying to the point I personally hoped he'd get eaten by the werewolf. However, if your child spent a weekend alone with his father, came home visibly upset and said he didn't want to be around his dad again, wouldn't you at least suspect something bad had happened? Not to mention, she later sees the werewolf for herself, can easily see it is wearing her ex-husband's clothes, and still doesn't put two-and-two together right away.
The police in the movie weren't any better. They once again reminded me of the incompetent police officers on The Simpsons.
The movie itself also has a low-budget feel to it throughout. I already mentioned the werewolf costume but there were other noticeable flaws as well. This included "night" scenes that clearly had the sun still shining and one scene that couldn't seem to make up its mind about whether it was late at night or just late in the evening. Normally, I try to overlook things like that, but it was very difficult to do so this time around.
Final Opinion: Had it intentionally been a comedy/werewolf spoof movie, I probably could have bought into the premise. The fact it is supposed to be a scary movie but made me laugh instead makes it impossible for me to give it a passing grade.
My Grade: F
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Here are some reviews of other werewolf movies:
Movie Review: An American Werewolf in Paris (1997)
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