Wolf of the Past . . . where the story begins

Leslie

Message Posted: Jan 27, 2007 10:12 PM

Hello, as one who is privileged to know the author of Wolf of the Past and to have discussed this wonderfully written dark and suspenseful tale, I invite all readers to discuss the aforementioned topic.

I love horror/sci-fi/supernatural movies and have seen quite a number of films about werewolves. From The Wolfman with Lon Chaney Jr. to An American Werewolf in Paris, the "immortality" of werewolves is rarely portrayed. In these types of flicks, the unfortunate person cursed with the condition usually ends up being slain with a silver bullet or some other gruesome form of execution. The fact that, if the werewolf is fortunate enough to avoid violent encounters and live for generations, seems rarely depicted in mainstream entertainment, at least in most of the movies I have viewed, perhaps with the exception of the Underworld films.

One of the reasons I enjoyed WOTP so much is because McLain bestowed her characters with much more depth - they seem so much more three-dimensional than the typical "good guy" vs. "bad guy" that we see in so many other movies. The werewolves in WOTP, having lived more than a century and a half, have had a chance to "know themselves," i.e., gain control of their powers, establish a long and complex family history. And, unlike the 2-D characters we've been so used to in other media, WOTP introduces the moral ambiguous Artemis - simultaneously, we know he is up to no good but still there seems he may have some sentimental feelings towards certain family members (both living and/or dead) deep down. And we will have yet to see, in the upcoming sequels, if he will allow the "dark shadowy" character to consume his soul or if he will redeem himself!

I invite other interested readers to offer feedback on this topic and let me know if they have come across any films/books that do offer more than the typical "2-D" werewolf characters....

Thank you!!

A.D. McLain

Message Posted: Jan 27, 2007 11:46 PM

Thanks for your comments. I really wanted to portray werewolves as more than just cursed, evil creatures. I have always felt that there should be more depth to them. There are good and bad werewolves, just like there are good and bad people, and becoming a werewolf does not damn you or make you souless or evil. That is one thing that always bugged me about the old werewolf movies. I actually haven't watched too many of them, because I always get upset at how the werewolf takes over the person, creating a bloodlust to kill, and the only option is to kill the person to save their immortal soul. That's why I really enjoyed the Underwold movies. They portrayed werewolves and vampires as much more human than we are used to seeing in film and literature.

Some other films I can think of off the top of my head that portray werewolves in a better light would be the "Teen Wolf" movies. In those, being a werewolf was just something you were born with. It was a natural part of life. "Wolf" with Jack Nicholson also showed the distinction between and "good" man and a "bad" man becoming a werewolf. It showed that the wolf alone did not make the man evil. It just brought out some baser instincts. Being a "monster" did not make you a bad person. I would say that the t.v. show "The Munsters" also helped in this respect. Here you had a family full of popular culture monster icons (Frankenstein's monster, a vampire, a werewolf boy), and they were portrayed as lighthearted, generally well meaning people who where inherently good, if a little odd. They were often much nicer than the frightened and cruel society they lived in. I think these movies and shows did a lot in changing the way werewolves were portrayed in popular culture.

As for literature, I have to go with a classic, "Frankenstein." It isn't about werewolves, but it definitely tries to show some depth to the character of Frankenstein's monster. He may do evil things, but he learns these actions over the course of the story. He is not inherently evil upon creation.

Stories like "Beaty and the Beast, " the original and the Disney remake, also tell the message of not judging a person by the gruff exterior. They may look like a monster, and they may do monstrous things but there can still be good in them.

I also like how you mentioned the immortality issue. It is true that you really don't see many portrayals of werewolves living a long time. You see a lot of it in vampire stories. "Forever Knight, " "Interview with a Vampire, " pretty much any anime, they all show long lived vampires who may or may not be portrayed as evil or souless. Some of these stories have even explored that very issue of whether or not they are evil. But even though vampires have a lot of weakenesses; they can't go out in sunlight, they can't go on holy ground, they are repelled by garlic or crosses or holy water, they are killed by sun, fire, a steak through the hear or decapitation, they still end up living for centuries. Werewolves are usually only killed by a silver bullet or blade or decapitation. In fact, in most legends, they are only werewolves for three days a month, and yet, they can't seem to keep their secret well enough to stay alive for more than a few decades at best. I'd like to see that trend change. I think werewolves have a lot of potential as far as the stories that can be told about them, and I intend to help change the centuries old trend of persecution they have undergone.

Thanks for reading, and thanks for your comments.

Leslie

Message Posted: Jan 28, 2007 5:34 PM

I've read Frankenstein and seen the other movies you mentioned such as Teen Wolf, Wolf, Interview with a Vampire and the like. Frankenstien is one of my favorite classic novels--there are sooooooo many interesting issues that stem from that novel. Bram Stoker's Dracula also depicts a long lived vampire, so I guess we can add that to the list. And even in the movie starring Gary Oldman and Anthony Hopkins (loosely based on the novel), Count Dracula is hesitant to let Mina drink his blood and become like him, because he loves her so much, which shows that he is more than just a stock character.

More discussion to come.....!

A.D. McLain

Message Posted: Jan 31, 2007 11:41 AM

I haven't seen that last movie you mentioned, but it sounds like the character does show some depth. On the other hand, by not wanting to make the girl a vampire like him, that still portrays the "monster" as something bad or an undesirable condition. How old is that movie, anyway? I guess showing a conscience is the first step in humanizing the "monsters." Once they begin to be percieved as not entirely evil, they can be sympathized with. From there, the audience begins to see the character as something more than a souless monster and can begin to accept that they may not be evil at all. Perhaps the monster is not really a monster.

Good discussion. I look forward to reading future responses on this topic.

--A. D. McLain