The Curse of the Werewolf (1961)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Terence Fisher

Writers:

Guy Endore (novel)
Anthony Hinds (writer)

Release Date:

7 June 1961 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Romance

Tagline:

EVEN THOSE WHO LOVED HIM WERE NOT SAFE! (original print ad - all caps)

Plot:

In Spain, Leon is born on Christmas day to a mute servant girl who was raped by a beggar. His mother...

Plot Keywords:

Werewolf | Love | Mute | Moon | Servant

Cast

Clifford Evans	...	Don Alfredo Corledo
Oliver Reed	...	Leon Corledo
Yvonne Romain	...	Servant Girl (Jailer's Daughter)
Catherine Feller	...	Cristina Fernando
Anthony Dawson	...	Marques Siniestro
Josephine Llewellyn	...	Marquesa
Richard Wordsworth	...	Beggar
Hira Talfrey	...	Teresa, Corledo's Servant
Justin Walters	...	Young Leon
John Gabriel	...	Priest
Warren Mitchell	...	Pepe Valiente the Watchman
Anne Blake	...	Rosa Valiente
George Woodbridge	...	Dominique the Goat Herder
Michael Ripper	...	Old Soak
Ewen Solon	...	Don Fernando

Also Known As:

The Curse of Siniestro
The Wolfman (USA)

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:(Banned) (1961) | France:-12 | UK:12 (video rating) (1995) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Black Park, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company:

Hammer Film Productions

Trivia:

The only werewolf movie made by Hammer Studios.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the opening credits, which features a very tight close-up of the werewolf's eyes, the edges of the contact lenses can be clearly seen.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Jack the Bear (1993)

Hammer films first (and only) werewolf film

Strange Hammer horror film takes place in Spain--although everyone speaks with a British accent. A LONG back story (almost 30 minutes long) starts us off. Most of the material is unneeded but it has a mute servant girl being raped by a almost beast-like man. She later gives birth to a baby boy--and dies. He is named Leon (Oliver Reed) and is born with the sign of the werewolf on him. It's kept down--until he is denied a girls love and he turns...

This film is colorful and well-acted (especially by Reed) but slow moving. The LONG back story was a bad idea--it takes too long for things to happen. Reed doesn't even show up until the film is half over and the werewolf attacks don't happen until over an hour has passed! Still it's not bad and beautiful to look at (especially in the Universal DVD). And Reed is frightening as the werewolf (GREAT makeup job) and sympathetic as Leon.

This was a major bomb in 1961 and Hammer never made another werewolf film. Too bad--this could have been so good. Seriously--why the long back story and WHY set it in Spain? I give it a 6.