Customer Reviews

Bad Moon [VHS]

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This movie right here is one of the overlooked gems of the often forgettable 1990's so called "horror" genre. A very quick film (under 80 minutes!) that doesn't bloat itself with too much back story and keeps the action pretty much centered on Ted (the werewolf) and Thor (the protective German Shepherd)focusing on their standoff (which is well shot, save for the obviously "stuffed" Thor for some over the shoulder thrashing). Really well acted (Michael Pare as Ted really stands out)and the idea of having a werewolf film that is about 70% based on a dog's point of view is quite original. Some terrific creature design and gore help with the intensity. The actual transformation scene seems a little dated but this movie wasn't exactly big budget fare and besides any horror fan should know that most of the really good flicks come from genuine heart in the production, not deep pockets. All in all this is one of my favorite werewolf movies, it's short, sweet, and to the point. It probably doesn't hurt that I've owned two German Shepherds in my lifetime either. If you like horror or werewolf movies check this one out.

"All of a sudden you've got a 200 lb. wolf at the door."

Okay, there are a couple of things that stink about this movie, so let's get that out of the way first. (1) Mariel Hemingway's acting sucks, (2) the cute blond kid's acting sucks, (3) Michael Pare's acting sucks slightly less, (4) the big transformation scene REALLY sucks--CGI at its sloppiest, and (5) some inane leaps in logic, like: Is Uncle Ted really so stupid that he thinks "family love" will cure him?
But I still gave it five stars. Why? Two main reasons: One, I love the idea of presenting the plot largely through the eyes of the dog, Thor. Thor acts circles around his human costars, and if, by the end of the movie, you aren't cheering him on as he races home to confront the werewolf, you must have a heart of stone. Two, the werewolf costume is fantastic. It is easily the best-looking, least-fakey werewolf I have ever seen. Despite the idiotic transformation scene, this werewolf looks ten times more impressive--and scary!--than any other. (Okay, the one in the big attack scene in the doctor's office in "The Howling" is a close second.)
Yes, you will groan at some of the dialogue. Yes, you will want the werewolf to rip off the cute blond kid's head. Yes, you will laugh heartily as you watch Ms. Hemingway struggle with the proverbial paper bag. Yes, there is an obligatory "final scare" which is totally stupid. But if you're in the mood for a fun little horror flick with some gore, an awesome monster, and a heroic dog, look no more! Need any more encouragement? This movie was written and directed by Eric Red, the genius who also gave us possibly the best vampire movie of all time, "Near Dark."

A scary, action-packed werewolf picture, with refreshing attention to its well-developed characters. The story is a unique twist on the genre, where a German Shepherd dog struggles to protect his family from a relative only he (and the audience) knows is a werewolf. Hemingway gives one of her best performances ever as a loving mother and sister, and is a welcome and sympathetic change from the standard horror movie female victim. Pare is excellent as the bad guy, in a believable and realistic portrayal of a werewolf, a good man schizophrenically becoming a violent danger to the family members he really loves. The dog is a movingly primal and protective force defending his family from an evil only he senses. Typically stylish and dynamic direction from Eric Red. I'm surprised this picture didn't receive much more attention when released.

I adore werewolf books and movies gobbling up anything with the monstrum theme in it and I must say that this movie was excellent! I had the pleasure of watching it today for the second time and hours later it's still running though my mind so I had to put my two cents in and write about it. I would also like to mention that my favorite werewolf movie is Dog Soldiers, a movie that works because a main stream production company was not involved in the making of it, sparing it as a flick for kids and those who really only want eye candy.

Bad Moon is a sweet movie because it's quite short and the werewolf looks wicked! There is also a transformation scene, quite unusual but it really shows the whole deal, so that was nice to see for once. Short and to the point, the movie starts with an expedition gone wrong in Nepal. A whole scientific team gets shredded to pieces by a very vicious wolf like creature that gives Ted a big scratch before he defends himself with a gun, changing him forever. Back at the Pacific Northwest Ted reluctantly visits his sister Janet played by Mariel Hemingway and her ten year old son Brett. From the beginning the viewer can sense that she is on her own with the child, no man is taking care of them and their only furry companion and protects is Thor, an adorable yet stern German shepherd. The viewer gets an unsettling feeling that Ted is her brother but the experience in Nepal has left him with a changed heart. His keen senses and cold staring eyes betray hints of an animal kept deep inside as everyone is glad to see him except for the family dog. Now the dog is always present in this movie making it quite obvious that he is playing a big part. I was even joking to my boyfriend when we watched it that Thor was the main hero of the movie and we both ended up rooting for him not only because we love animals but because the werewolf and the dog were enemies form the start and the movie depicted the play on that perfectly.

As Thor follows Ted's every step he encounters a scary experience in the woods one night, witnessing his master's brother in his full fangs and claws get up and runs back home to warn the family. I wouldn't dare spoil the movie and what happens next but thrills and chills are on all the time. Plenty of hikers and people who wandered around for various reasons found themselves as a monster snack and it made Janet and Brett weary but they felt safe since her bother was there, well little did they know.... The werewolf made plenty of appearances and I must say, it was one of the best looking wolves I have ever seen. It made me think that if I lived in a house like Janet, two or three dogs would have to be a must, especially with a beast like this crawling around. I would probably rent a tank to kill it because I wouldn't want my dogs hurt but Thor was a great addition to the film and we were always worried about him as he couldn't resist following Ted and his secrets.

For the fans of the genre this is a sweet treat, and I know that a five star rating for this kind of a movie is hard to explain but I really get a good kick out of it when I see it and it's nearly flawless. This is not a multi million budgeted movie with latest CGI effects and that's why I like it. There is more madness than talking and hiding so I give it two thumbs up.

- Kasia S.

In my opinion, this is one of the great horror movies that critics blasted off the charts. Yes, it's predictable. Yes, it's gory and full of jump-of-your-seat scenes. But I've always liked werewolf movies and this is one is at the top of my list. The critics treated this movie so badly that when my partner and I went to see it at the theatre, it was empty except for us and we were treated to a private viewing of it. We both enjoyed the great special effects, both visual and sound, plus the beautiful cinematography of the Pacific Northwest woods. We have added Bad Moon to the list of movies we watch on Halloween. This movie is a must-see for all the werewolf movie fans in the world.

Director: Eric Red
Cast: Mariel Hemingway, Michael Pare.
Running Time: 83 minutes.
Rated R for violence, gore, language, and sexual situations.

What begins as a fairly cheesy take on "The Howling" premise develops into a scary, enjoyable horror film that is quick, taut, and surprisingly atmospheric. Mariel Hemingway stars as a single-mom who realizes that something is happening to her distant brother (Michael Pare). Although he as always been a little different, Hemingway decides that the best thing she can do is support him--so she allows him to stay in his trailer park on her property--bad idea. Her brother is a flesh-eating werewolf.

Michael Pare is adequate as the mysterious man-turned-werewolf, showing that haunting despair of knowing that he is inflicting horror on those he loves. The special effects are adequate and the acting is solid; director Eric Red does a nice job of slimming the film down and taking out the useless material to reveal a good horror film with the bare essentials. "Bad Moon" received no critical acclaim or publicity, but it is a much better motion picture than expected. Not quite "The Howling", but not far off.

I'll just write a short review, this film was fantastic and is one of the better modern werewolf films I have seen so far alot better than cursed which I thought was a piece of crap. The openning sequence was very interesting to say the least and the storyline is from the perspective of the dog it might sound cheesy but its not. Overall I highly recomend this to horror fans and two thumbs up!.

BAD MOON

I have been a werewolf kick lately going back through the collection to watch all my werewolf films. Of course The Howling collection is in there as well as others like the classic Wolf man and such. But when I came across this lost classic I had to watch it again, this is honestly one of the best werewolf movies of all time. Based on the book by Wayne Smith called "Thor" this film is a quick straight forward action packed werewolf flick. I really enjoy this movie every time I watch it; I recommend it to any movie fan out there.

The story is about a man that is attacked along side his girl by a werewolf and well he makes it out alive with a nice little bite taken out of him. So when he returns home to visit his sister he must try not only to fight the turning into a wolf but also the family dog named Thor. Of course this movie wouldn't be here if he failed at both ends of that statement. Actor Michael Paré is perfect in the role of the uncle turned wolf in this film, he really makes it believable. Same can be said for Mariel Hemingway who played the sister to the werewolf [I can see the net Howling title-Your Brother is a Werewolf], she is great in her role as well. Mason Gamble is good as the son in this film, but at times I swear he looks like a girl. Ken Pogue, Hrothgar Mathews, Johanna Lebovitz, Gavin Buhr, Julia Montgomery Brown round out a great supporting cast. But the real star here is Primo who is the dog who played Thor, the trainers and this dog should get a lot of credit for making this what it is. The dog is really what makes this film, and make this film stand out from other werewolf films.

A lot of credit should go to the make up and special effects department as well because as far as the time this film came out and on a low budget this film looks great. Cinematography is great as well on this, screenwriter/director Eric Red and all the producers of this film really created a classic in my opinion.

If you are looking for a good movie to watch one night check this out, matter of fact buy it don't rent. It really is that good.

This is, in my opinion, the coolest-looking werewolf ever captured on film. I've seen the howling, dog soldiers, an american werewolf in london, silver bullet, wolf, project metalbeast, ginger snaps, and just about anything else with a werewolf in it, and I say this werewolf surpasses em all (god-awful transformation sequence aside, mind you). The film itself is pretty decent, with some unknowns and a fairly engaging plot, but the real treat is the big bad wolf. Although its lower torso is unconvincing in several scenes, its face is the most terrifying werewolf face i've ever seen. Its fangs are bared just like a rabid wolf's, and it always seems to have saliva frothing around its teeth. I would honestly s**t my pants if I ever saw this thing face-to-face, and I never grow tired of seeing it on screen. I just recently saw the second underworld movie, and this 90s werewolf still manages to make that new one look like a pansy on furry stilts.

Okay, this movie has had it's fair share knocks and bad reviews. I admit it's not the best werewolf movie in the world, but it's certainly not the worst (Just take a look at some of those HOWLING sequels). Director Eric Red has had a great genre career, what with screenwriting such 80s gems as THE HITCHER and NEAR DARK and directing the underrated BODY PARTS, he knows how to craft a decent horror movie. This movie however, suffers from what seems to be a low budget and quite surprisingly from Eric Red, an underwritten script. Lead actors Mariel Hemingway and Michael Pare equip themselves fine with the stilted dialogue and try to bring the movie out of the B movie realm. Jan Kiessers' cinematography is atmospheric and Steve Johnson's animatronic werewolf suit is great (it's just a pity the rushed CGI doesn't come up to scratch - the painful scene where Pare transforms into the creature using CGI is terrible and quite frankly, needed to be cut from the film, especially when the non-digital work in the movie is largely excellent).

Warner Bros. dumped this movie straight to tape in the UK, and we never got the chance to see the movie at the theatres. Now, with DVD I can view the movie as it was meant to be seen. It benefits greatly from the digital format, what with a bright sharp picture (highlighting that cool, autumnal look of the cinematography) and the chance to see Steve Johnson's great creature effects. Reviewers moaned about this movie when it came out, and to a point I can see why, but when other dull "horror" movies like AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN PARIS and the latest SCREAM rip-off are released at the cinema, this low-budget flick doesn't seem so bad after all. Granted, it's not a great film by any means, but it's not a bad one either . . . I look forward to whatever Eric Red puts out in the future, at least his horror heart is in the right place.