Monster Scholar

I caught a screening of the much anticipated Wolfman remake while I was attending a conference in Albuquerque this weekend. This latest debut of the werewolf in 21st century cinema seeks to offer fans a more enjoyable, adult alternative to the buff, exploding werewolves of the Twilight franchise. But while The Wolfman had some decent horror elements (heads, arms and other appendages fly when the lycanthrope gets loose) at its core, it is essentially a romantic pastiche of a horror film. To give an example of what I mean, think Bram stoker’s Dracula by Francis Ford Coppola. While Coppola’s film employs definite aspects of horror (bloodletting and monstrous transformations included) everything is peripheral to the love story between Dracula and his reincarnated beloved, Mina Harker. The same is true of The Wolfman. Lawrence Talbot returns home after many years abroad to discover the cause of his brother’s sudden and violent death. Once home, he meets his brother’s intended, the bea...

I was clicking my way through the horror blogosphere and came across John Morehead's insightful article on New Moon, Monsters and Mormons at Theofantastique, which explores Mormon ideas of pre-existence and free agency in relation to Stephanie Meyer's monsters in Twilight. John's article left me in the mood for lycanthropy and so I present to you this fine selection of werewolf articles from the far reaches of horror blogdom. Happy hunting. Cursed (2005) Towerfarm Reviews: Check out Billy and Jeremy's review of this Wes Craven werewolf feature. Beware the Moon and Paul Davis Interview Zombos Closet of Horror: Scott Essman interviews Paul Davis, the director of An American Werewolf in London . Werewolves on the Moon: versus Vampires Unspeakable Horror!: Werewolves and campy horror are a match made in comic book heaven. ‘Wolf Man’ has horror hounds howling! Musings Across a Continuum : Ms Harker addresses critics of the upcoming Wolf Man remake by reminding us that it...

I don't often get the chance to critique popular music here on Monster Land, but Shakira's video for the new single "She Wolf" is just begging for commentary. The video opens on our girl Shakira as she awakens in the light of the full moon and prepares for a night on the town. Needless to say thinks get a little interesting from here on out. Shakira delves into her closet Narnia-style to find a new world in the form of a womb-like, sparkly red cavern. She then begins to dance with jerky movements that fall somewhere in between doing to the the robot and having a diabetic seizure. Shakira's she-wolf counterpart is depicted in a golden cage, and the camera pans and zooms as she contorts herself in odd positions.They do some reverse camera work while Shakira is hanging from the bars of her cage that gives the video a slightly uncanny effect, but it could have just been a goof. Though the song is called "She-Wolf" the closest we ever get to a transformation...

At long last a trailer has been released for the much anticipated Wolfman (2010) starring Benicio del Toro set to hit theaters in February of next year. I’ve already given my two cents on the Comic Con trailer that was leaked on the internet in 2008, but this brand spanking new trailer gives a sneak peek at previously unseen scenes from the film. First off, let me just say that my heart thrilled to the look of the practical effects of the wolfman. I was like a kid in a candy store as I flipped through screen captures of the creature in heavily shadowed woods, and caught a glimpse of a gnarled claw complete with razor sharp nails ready to disembowel its unsuspecting prey. As a fan of films like Val Lewton’s Cat People , I am a sucker for the subtle use of light and shadow to inspire fear of a largely unseen monster. At the end of the night, it’s what you don’t see that has you trembling under the covers long after you’ve left the dimly lit theater and its on screen nightmares. So, you...

In honor of Memorial Day and the brave men and women who continue to protect our country and serve in the armed forces. Nicholas Pekearo’s posthumous debut The Wolfman has been dubbed “brilliant, insightful [and] overpowering” and for good reason. The werewolf of Pekearo’s novel is no Lon Chaney Jr. Marlowe Higgins a forty-something Vietnam veteran who’s inherited the mark of the beast from his father. The Higgins men have been cursed with lycanthropy ever since Marlowe’s great grandfather, a bounty hunter killed an Indian shaman called “the Mad wolf.” The curse is passed down from father to son, and after generations of suffering Marlowe’s father plans to end the curse himself. He kills Marlowe’s infant brother Jeffrey and intends to do the same to Marlowe, but in the end can’t follow through. His hopes for an end to the curse are later restored when Marlowe is drafted into the service and sent to Vietnam, a sure death sentence. But things don’t go according to plan and Marlowe sur...

New Moon poster revealed? Rob Pattinson and Kristen Stewart bringing back heroine chic . The cover of OK! Magazine is sporting the heavy-lidded stars of the upcoming film New Moon , the latest in the Twilight saga by Stephanie Meyers. At first glance Rob Pattinson and Kristen Stewart look a little heroine chic and one wonders, are they getting enough sun? Perhaps their drab appearance is the result of several leaks and other blunders that have plagued New Moon production. The above poster was scored by the Rob Pattinson fan site spunk-ransom.com and features a petulant Taylor Lautner getting between star crossed lovers Bella and Edward. And before the poster leaked, Casey Ray, the owner of a beauty salon in St. Louis found a copy of the script for New Moon in the garbage! In a classy move she didn’t try to sell the script to the tabloids. Instead, with the help of her lawyer (you need them more often than you think in the beauty business) she returned the scripts to Summit and as a ...