Scream of the Wolf (1974)

A big-game hunter comes out of retirement to help track down a killer wolf, and begins to suspect that it isn't a wolf but an animal that can take human form.

Director:

Dan Curtis

Writers:

Richard Matheson (teleplay), David Case (story "The Hunter")

Stars:

Peter Graves, Clint Walker, Jo Ann Pflug

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Graves	...	John Wetherby
Clint Walker	...	Byron Douglas
Jo Ann Pflug	...	Sandy Miller
Philip Carey	...	Sheriff Vernon Bell
Don Megowan	...	Grant
Brian Richards	...	Deputy Crane
Lee Paul	...	Student
Jim Storm	...	Boy (as James Storm)
Dean Smith	...	Lake
Randy Kirby	...	Brian Hammond
Vernon Weddle	...	Newsman
Bill Baldwin	...	Reporter (as William Baldwin)
Orville Sherman	...	Coroner
Bonnie Van Dyke	...	Girl
Grant Owens	...	Deputy Bill

Storyline

A big-game hunter comes out of retirement to help track down a killer wolf, and begins to suspect that it isn't a wolf but an animal that can take human form.

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Plot Keywords:

psychotronic film | retirement | big game hunter | hunter | death | 

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Taglines:

Death comes out of the woods on four paws and returns on two feet. A beast? A human? Only the dead know.

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Did You Know?

Trivia

A "made-for-TV" movie.

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Goofs

At about 13 minutes into the movie, Byron says the Sheriff's name wrong. He calls him Bellus. The Sheriff's name is Bell.

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Quotes

Byron Douglas: You know once an animal starts killing humans... it never stops!

User Reviews

Let's cut to the chase....is this weirdo a werewolf or not?!

This made for TV movie is from Dan Curtis...and that should come as no surprise as Curtis made a living making low-budget horror films and TV shows--such as the original "Dark Shadows" as well as excellent made for TV films about Dracula, Kolchak (the reporter that investigates monster sightings), possessed African dolls, Frankenstein and others. Most of his work was very good though I wouldn't place "Scream of the Wolf" among his best films.

Some creature has been tearing folks to pieces and John (Peter Graves) is a hunter who's been given the task of killing whatever it is. However, he soon notices that the footprints go from a wolf-like creature to human...but he won't allow himself to believe it's a werewolf. When he tries to get help from a clearly nutty associate, Byron (Clint Walker) has a strange reaction--he's totally disinterested in killing the creature and even seems to be completely ambivalent about all the deaths!! Clearly the viewer is being led to believe that Byron is most likely the wolf-man. And, clearly, Walker's character is about as subtle as a 2x4 upside your head! He's a super freaky weirdo and Walker looks as if he had fun playing this guy. And, although Graves is the leading man in the film, your attention is drawn to Walker whenever he's on the screen. So is Byron the werewolf or is there some other explanation? And, how does this movie end up being very much like the classic film "The Most Deadly Game"?

Considering the budget for this film was pretty low and the ABC movies were made quickly, how they handled the whole werewolf aspect of the story was an interesting idea that worked very well. Not the best movie of the week I've seen but very memorable and fun...in a kooky sort of way. Well worth seeing...and a lot better than the surprisingly low overall score of 5.1 (as of this review).

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 January 1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Hunter

Filming Locations:

Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metromedia Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

74 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1