Interesteg What makes it different from others?

Konterr Brilliant and touching

Dotbankey A lot of fun.

Tayyab Torres Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

MARIO GAUCI I knew of this from the Shriek Show DVD, but really became intrigued by it this Summer when the obscure Di Silvestro (who succumbed to cancer earlier this very month!) was interviewed during the late-night program about Italian B-movies "Stracult". The film is interesting but not really successful – especially let down by the sluggish pacing typical of the style and the atrocious English dubbing (with a surfeit of psycho-babble in an attempt to explain, in rational terms, the titular figure's physical and mental condition). Being a product of the 1970s, when the lycanthropic subgenre was pretty much in the doldrums, the film-makers obviously chose to capitalize on the demonology cycle then prevalent: so, we have the leading lady (Sondra Locke lookalike Annik Borel) spouting colorful language and generally acting 'possessed' – with the (none-too-convincing) monster make-up relegated to the opening period sequence and the occasional flashback! One more obvious influence is the graphic rape a' la THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT (1972); besides, for much of its duration, this plays like a softcore flick – indulging in sex scenes (including one featuring regular "Euro-Cult" starlet Dagmar Lassander) which often constitute mere padding and basically only serve to stop the show dead in its tracks! Other notables in the cast are Elio Zamuto (as the doctor who treats the "Werewolf Woman"), Frederick Stafford (as the cop on her trail of carnage) and Howard Ross (as the stuntman who offers the girl genuine affection and, consequently, temporary respite from her 'craving'). The concluding narration suggests that the whole was inspired by true events; I would not really know, but this certainly gives added curiosity value to the already bizarre proceedings.

EllaMalias I have seen, and sometimes liked, a fair number of bad movies. "Blood Freak," for instance, is a bad movie and not worth seeing. I say that so the reader will know I am capable of some discernment.Having said that, this movie impressed me. The English dubbing was not nearly as bad as some Japanese movies my smart geek friends have tried to make me watch. Also, it seriously has an intriguing premise, with a feminist twist on the werewolf myth. The heroine fantasizes she is a werewolf as a coping mechanism, to compensate after having been raped. This suggests a sociological theory that any woman feels she must be a monster to protect herself from men. There is an implication that men are inherently violent, and that a safe or non-violent sex act/relationship may be possible. So, there are feminist implications even though the movie seems exploitative in many ways.The nudity is indeed profuse, and there is also a stereotyped nymphomaniac character, among other clichés. Overall, I thought everything was in the right spirit (i.e. funny/campy rather than offensive/awkward.) I was disturbed, though, at an on-screen gang rape that almost seemed intended to be erotic. Whatever the intent, it certainly was an upsetting scene, more so than the cheesy killing parts. What I like most about this movie is that the supernatural aspects of the myth are not emphasized. It's more about the psychology of a woman with issues involving her sexuality...which she needs to work out by prowling around naked and tearing peoples' throats out! Yeah! It's only too bad the werewolf woman's behavior involves so much neck-biting; this hints at vampire-confusion.I thought the action moved along OK, considering the number of developments. And there were many plot developments, however thin. The ending seemed abrupt and was certainly corny, but I wasn't watching it for the moral!Definitely recommended if camp is up your alley.

wes-connors "A young woman suffers from the delusion that she is a werewolf, based upon a family legend of an ancestor accused of and killed for allegedly being one. Due to her past treatment by men, she travels the countryside seducing and killing the men she meets. Falling in love with a kind man, her life appears to take a turn for the better when she is raped and her lover is killed by a band of thugs. Traumatized again by these latest events, the woman returns to her violent ways and seeks revenge on the thugs," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis.Rino Di Silvestro's "La lupa mannara" begins with full frontal, writhing, moaning dance by shapely blonde Annik Borel, who (as Daniella Neseri) mistakenly believes she is a werewolf. The hottest part is when the camera catches background fire between her legs. The opening "flashback" reveals her hairy ancestor was (probably) a lycanthropic creature. Ms. Borel is, unfortunately, not a werewolf; she is merely a very strong lunatic.As a film, "Werewolf Woman" (in English) would have been better if Borel's character really was a female werewolf; with her sexual victimization a great bit of characterization. But, as far as 1970s skin and blood flicks go, this one is hard to beat. Bouncy Borel is either nude or sexily clad throughout the film, which features a fair amount of gratuitous gore. Dazzling Dagmar Lassander (as Elena) and hunky Howard Ross (as Luca) are good supporting players. **** La lupa mannara (3/18/76) Rino Di Silvestro ~ Annik Borel, Howard Ross, Dagmar Lassander

MisterWhiplash I don't know how I could explain that I like Werewolf Woman. It doesn't work logically as a movie, but does one go into a movie that's about a schizo who craves the company of men and then kills them at the instant they try and have their way with her expecting great art? It's a little like a rougher, more sexed-up cut of David Cronenberg's Rabid, only here the dead or injured don't come back to life. This time it's Annik Borel, instead of Marilyn Chambers, as the perplexed anti-heroine of the story. The catch with her is that she has werewolf ancestry in her blood, and after a cruel rape (which we may or may not see on screen, I can't remember) she goes on a killing spree. The dubbing is bad, but maybe deliberately so; Leone didn't have dialog so bad that it made the voice-over actors cringe as they said some of their lines. And sometimes the director and crew get creative with blood and various colors: there's a shot when Daniella, after attacking a nurse whom she's snuck into the car with, gets out of the now crashed vehicle, and the first shot seen looks as though there's blood everywhere, though it's mostly just the seats and a jacket. For a moment or two, Werewolf Woman carries artistry (not to mention during a particularly steamy sex scene as Daniella watches with hungry, jealous eyes of a friend getting it on with a friend).When all is said and done, Werewolf Woman does teeter between a hot and exciting half-farce half-serious/pretentious drama on a woman's descent into madness and murder, and it doesn't amount to any kind of 'statement' except that, um, crazy women with a disease passed down through the generations can't be stomped out so all men with penises have to pay. Yeah, that's it. But even with the laughs that are had- including a bit when Daniella is in the hospital bed and an over-affectionate nymph comes in trying to have her way with the taut were-woman that probably inspired the P**** Wagon scene in Kill Bill 1- it's not a badly made film at all, which adds to the appeal. It's not some stupid movie put together in very cheap soft-core ways. If there is any strength to the best sex scenes it's that they seem actually erotic and not as some tedious pornographic exercise ala Porno Holocaust. And, relative to other cheesy horror flicks of the 70s (the *Italian* horror 70s), Annik Borel isn't too shabby an actress, with a quality reminiscent of Sondra Locke from Clint Eastwood's films (only, perhaps, a better actress!) She adds just that little bit of fun and danger to a part that needs it to sustain its tone wavering between exploitation and sincere horror.So watch it under a full-moon, make sure you're tied to the bed (without any crazies around to untie the knots), and keep all sexual organs on stand-by- Werewolf Woman is a bite!