Cheap She-Wolf of London (Video) (Jean Yarbrough) Price

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Customer Reviews of She-Wolf of London

Bait and switch!
Despite the misleading title, this is not a "monster" movie in any sense of the word. The "mystery" of what's happening is about as challenging as a Scooby Doo caper. If you're not able to figure out what's going on within the first 10 minutes of this film, you're synapses simply aren't firing. It's marginally fun to watch only because it's so stupid, but if you're a fan of "classic" monster films, don't bother.

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A good old traditional, plot-driven werewolf film
June Lockhart is the prettiest little werewolf you'd ever hope to see - or is she? She-Wolf of London rekindles the old horror spirit by breaking ranks with its Universal predecessors and recasting the werewolf legend in a framework of psychology and suspense. Most of the comments I read about this movie tend to give the whole idea of the film away, and that's a shame. I went into the movie with no preconceptions, and while I was able to figure out what was going on about halfway through, the film kept me guessing until the very end as to the exact details of the story.

Phyllis Allenby (June Lockhart) should be a happy young lady; she is well off financially, engaged to be married to the man she loves, and enjoys the companionship of her aunt and first cousin in the spacious Allenby house. Unfortunately, there is a curse hanging over her head; for reasons unexplained, the "Allenby curse" casts a shadow on her future and, as far as we are told, led to the deaths of her parents when she was young. A series of vicious murders in a nearby park points to a big dog or, as one Scotland Yard detective hypothesizes, a werewolf as the culprit. When Phyllis awakens one morning to find her shoes muddied and her hands bloodied and then, at breakfast, learns that a child was killed in the park during the night, she is sure that the Allenby curse has finally struck her and that she has become a she-wolf. She tries to hide herself away in her house, but her fiancée can only stay away so long before he demands the explanation he deserves. The story does a masterful job of building suspense and keeping the ultimate truth about the chronicled events a mystery.

Many fans find this film rather boring, but I thought it was a wonderfully crafted and very enjoyable film. By 1946, audiences had already seen Henry Hull and Lon Chaney, Jr., transform into werewolves on several occasions, and it was nice to break away from that mold momentarily. You don't have to show the audience the actual horrors on the screen in order to make an effective horror movie; without a bunch of special effects to fall back on, such a film requires a tight and efficient script, convincing performances by the players, and the manufacture of an increasingly suspenseful atmosphere. She-Wolf of London fits the bill perfectly, and I think it is a true classic.

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Case of the Missing Werewolf
Nothing much happens in this very minor mystery (not really a horror film) from Universal's post-classic era. As in PRC's Devil Bat's Daughter (also 1946), a tortured girl believes herself to be a monster on the prowl as a result of a tainted heritage or a legendary curse. If you're looking for werewolves in London, you better look elsewhere: lycanthropy only appears as the title of a book read by the heroine. Fans of the Sherlock Holmes series might enjoy the presence of Dennis Hoey as a diligent Scotland Yard inspector (unlike Lestrade), Lloyd Corrigan as a Watson-like assistant, character actors Martin Koslek (Persuit in Algiers)and Frederick Worlock (Dressed to Kill), plus the garden weeder from Scarlet Claw. Also in tow is scotsman Jimmy Finlayson -of Laurel & Hardy fame- as a uniformed constable.