Cry of the Werewolf

Cry of the Werewolf is a 1944 American horror film directed by Henry Levin and starring Nina Foch, Stephen Crane, Osa Massen, Blanche Yurka and Barton MacLane.^[1]

Cry of the Werewolf
Directed by	Henry Levin
Screenplay by	Griffin Jay Charles O'Neal[1]
Story by	Griffin Jay[1]
Produced by	Wallace MacDonald[1]
Starring	Nina Foch Stephen Crane Osa Massen Blanche Yurka Barton MacLane
Cinematography	L. William O'Connell (as L.W. O'Connell)[1]
Edited by	Reg Browne[1]
Color process	Black and white
Production company	Columbia Pictures[1]
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date	August 17, 1944 (1944-08-17)
Running time	63 minutes
Country	United States[1]
Language	English

Plot

A Romani princess descended from Marie LaTour has the ability to change into a wolf at will, just like her late mother. When she learns that Marie LaTour's tomb has been discovered, she decides to use her talent to kill everyone who knows the location, because it is a sacred secret that only her people are allowed to know.

Cast

• Nina Foch as Princess Celeste LaTour
• Stephen Crane as Robert 'Bob' Morris
• Osa Massen as Elsa Chauvet
• Blanche Yurka as Bianca
• Barton MacLane as Police Lt. Barry Lane

Production

The film was developed with the working title of Bride of the Vampire.^[1]

Release

Cry of the Werewolf premiered in New York on August 17, 1944.^[1] Cry of the Werewolf was issued theatrically as a double feature with The Soul of a Monster and continued to receive theatrical re-releases into the early 1950s.^[2]

Reception

Michael R. Pitts described the film's reception as "mixed" on its initial release.^[2] The New York Times stated that "[T]here is absolutely nothing original in this utterly suspenseless film" while a reviewer in The Sunday Times Signal (Zanesville, Ohio) proclaimed that "Horror fans are in for a thrill [with] the story of dread voodoo murders, horrifying tribal rites and a fantastic feast of death in which lovely and talented Nina Foch plays the woman werewolf whose mother terrorized millions and because of whose sins Nina can never marry."^[2]

In 1962, Joe Dante included the film in his list of worst horror films list in Famous Monsters.^[3] Dante stated the film was "a pretty dismal hunk of nonsense. Tho Nina Foch as the werewoman killed people left & right it was still a bore."^[3]

See also

• List of American films of 1944