Modern horror fans will probably find this, the definitive wolf man picture, rather slow and disappointing. Certainly, it takes an enormously long time to get started and Lon Chaney unfortunately has a great deal of pre-werewolf footage including cosy domestic chats with his father Claude Rains (with Rains looking unusually diminutive) and even worse, small-talk romantic scenes with heroine Evelyn Ankers - all of which he hams up atrociously. Also the special effects of the actual change are rather disappointing (only in the final shot does his face change on-camera) and the make-up is neither particularly frightening nor grotesque - it is almost funny. Also the introduction of some comic relief with Ralph Bellamy of all people playing straight man to Forrester Harvey tends to dissipate the mood - fortunately this is not persisted with and Mr Harvey is dropped altogether from the climax. The dialogue has pretensions - we get all the usual claptrap about the werewolf legend and the poem is repeated no less than 3 times - but it succeeds only in being mundane. It was a mistake to set the film in modern times. Warren William's doctor is along to provide the medical explanation of psychiatric disturbance. Lugosi's role is unfortunately very small - only one scene in fact. Rains, William and Bellamy are wasted in roles that are far below their talents - only Miss Ankers and Mr Knowles are perfectly suited to the mediocre script. Ouspenskaya plays the gypsy straight but unconvincingly.The best thing in the film is Valentine's lighting, including a remarkable long shot of Chaney in the town with striped diagonal shadows thrown right across the set. The sets too are quite impressive and there is great deal of atmosphere with fog and gnarled trees in the moonlight. Waggner's direction is at its best when there is something happening - we like the camera panning at random to simulate the telescope, the tracking shots through the mist and the camera dollying in on the frightened features of the grave-digger. The music contains some familiar themes but it is effective too.

This is Universal doing horror at their best. Lon Chaney is superb as the tragic Wolf Man, the viewer can't help but feel sorry for him and his plight. Apparently Bela Lugosi wanted the part but ended up with a small role as Bela the gypsy instead and thank goodness for that, I just don't think the film would have been so good otherwise. The camera work, sets and Gothic atmosphere are just fantastic. The only weak points for me were some unconvincing "English" accents among the cast and the choice of Claude Rains, great actor that he is, as Chaney's father. In real life he was only 17 years older, but I felt that the age gap looked a lot less than that, plus physically they bear no resemblance, with Chaney towering over Rains. Just minor quibbles, this film is a horror CLASSIC!

George Waggner's "The Wolf Man" isn't the classic horror movie that I honestly expected it to be, but for the most part it does work as a horror movie even though it didn't scare me very much. Lon Chaney Jr. stars as Larry Talbot a British man who comes back from America to Wales after his brother dies in order to spend more time with his father John Talbot (Claude Rains) and during that time his father shows him the new telescope that he got and decides to test it out himself and also during that period when he is testing out the telescope he sees a young blond haired girl named Gwen Conliffe (Evelyn Ankers) and later they go for a walk in the night time together with Gwen's friend Jenny (Fay Helm) to a local gypsy fortune teller in the woods named Bela (Bela Lugosi) who sees her and then sees a suspicious star on her hand and tells her to run away from him as fast as possible because in this film according to legend that in the night time whenever you see a star on someone's hand and you are about to turn into a werewolf the person that you see the star on will become their next victim, and thus Bela turns into a werewolf kills Jenny, and Larry tries to save her by killing him with his cane that he had gotten from the antique shop with a silver handle that kills him but not without getting bitten by him. Then the next night is Bela's funeral, and then we meet Bela's mother Maleva (Maria Ouspenskaya, who was six years Lugosi's senior in real life) who tells Talbot about the legends and he thinks that she is joking and completely dismisses her claims until he turns into a werewolf himself and kills a gravedigger, and the next night almost kills both Gwen and his father who doesn't believe the legends either until he finds out that the werewolf he killed was his own son. The whole movie works as a horror thriller all the way until the ending which was totally ridiculous and should have been altered and rewritten. During that time in Hollywood history the Academy didn't take horror movies about monsters very seriously and considered them devoid of art and of no considerable interest to them. The performances are very good especially with standout work from Chaney, Rains, Ankers, Lugosi, and Ouspenskaya, the screenplay by Curt Siodmak could have been better but was still very good, as well as George Waggner's direction. However the movie doesn't rank among some true horror classics like "Psycho" (1960), "Carrie" (1976), "The Shining" (1980), "Misery" (1990), and "The Silence of the Lambs" (1991), and is Oscar material in terms of music, acting, and cinematography, but even though it is a good movie it isn't a must see film even though I highly recommend it on the reasons that were previously stated.

The Foggy Studio Sets, the Werewolf Lore, Lon Chaney Jr.'s Signature Role with a Tragic and Sympathetic Portrayal, and the "Gypsy" Woman's Heartfelt, Poetic Laments, are just a Few Things that "Famous Monsters" Fans Remember from the Final "Creature" in the Pantheon of Universal Studios Horror Movies.Coming 10 Years after "Frankenstein" (1931), this was not the First Attempt at a "Werewolf" Movie. "Werewolf of London" (1935) has that Honor. But this one made Folks Forget that Excellent Film. It's really just as Good as this but for Different Reasons.This is Monster Melodrama at its Best. Although Hopelessly Studio Bound, that bit of Clunkiness is Usually Overlooked, the Film Plays out as a Terrifying Tragedy of the Soul.There's a Good Supporting Cast with Claude Rains, Evelyn Ankers, Maria Ouspenskaya, Ralph Bellamy, and Patrick Knowles, with a Bela Lugosi Cameo. A Fine Musical Score, and the Jack Pierce Makeup (although sparingly shown) is Iconic.Despite its Dated Delivery when Viewed in the 21st Century, the Movie Maintains a Creep Factor and is Heavily Ladened with Gloom and Despair. There are Many Fine Scenes that Pop in and out of the Dialog that is Talky and Redundant.Overall, the Highlights Outshine the Weaknesses and its Place among the Classic Monster Movies is Well Founded and Deserving.