She-Wolf of London

Plot synopsis:
American graduate student Randi Wallace (Kate Hodge) travels to Britain to study mythology with Prof. Ian Matheson (Neil Dickson). She arrives expecting a stodgy old academic, but Ian is young and the two are immediately attracted to one other. Their attraction increases but a complication quickly arises when Randi spends a night on the moors and is bitten by a werewolf. She survives what the local hospital thinks was an attack by a large rabid wolf; she insists that it was not a true wolf but instead something supernatural and she seeks Ian's help. For the rest of the series, Randi and Ian investigate supernatural phenomena together while they search for a cure for her lycanthropy and he becomes her keeper during her transformations. Randi's curse draws the attention of various supernatural creatures: another werewolf, spirit possession, succubus, a possessed bookstore, a bogman, an evil carnival, a Guy Fawkes spirit, a killer horseman, in a small town, zombies who ultimately confront Randi in her werewolf form (Diane Youdale). Eventually, their search takes them from British academe to American TV, when they move back to Randi's native California and Ian becomes host of a trashy TV talk show focusing on psychic phenomena. The series was an old-style romantic comedy with a touch of horror. The romantic comedy comes from Randi and Ian's relationship, and their relationship to the Matheson family and the people she and Ian work for. Randi's transformations did not occur every episode but only during the full moon. This gave her and Ian a chance to investigate the supernatural without having to face possible lycanthropic transformations every week.

Tags: insanity, humor, murder

Review:
But she certainly isn't the murderer as she nearly becomes a victim herself...The movie is nicely shot in black and white and some of the foggy night scenes are very atmospheric.The cast includes a young June Lockhart (who went on to play Maureen Robinson in Lost In Space), Don Porter and Sara Haden.Watching She-Wolf of London is an ideal way to spend an hour one dark evening.Rating: 3 stars out of 5..
"She-Wolf of London" is not, despite its name, a horror movie in the classic sense of the word, it is more a typical "whodunit" mystery and an ancestor to the psychological thrillers of today.In London, a mysterious series of murders is creating fear in the population and confusion in the police department as people speak of a killer werewolf.
Her aunt Marta Withrop (Sara Haden) takes advantage of this and tries to force her daughter Carol (Jan Wiley) to marry the wealthy Barry.All this interesting plot gives room to a lot of development, sadly, the movie doesn't move too far away from the established formula and therefore we don't have a lot of chance to get empathy for the characters.
In the turn of the century in London, the aristocratic lawyer Barry Lanfield (Don Porter) proposes to marry the heiress Phyllis Allenby (June Lockhart) and she accepts.
Out of the blue, dreadful murders happen in a nearby park and Detective Latham (Eily Malyon) believes that they are victims of a werewolf or a she-wolf, but his superior Inspector Pierce (Dennis Hoey) says that they are victims of an animal.
Apart from excellent settings and costumes, not to mention the always reliable pulchritude and charm of June Lockhart, this Val Lewton wannabe is mainly a misfire.More's the pity too, since it abounds in shadowy night scenes, fog, and much cloak and daggery, including a final act complete with tilted camera angles, and poisoned milk, (a la Hichcock's "Suspicion").But there is no real grue and no real tension, and what we are left with is a lame, (though slickly produced) thriller whose main interest accrues from its interesting cast and glossy staging.Still, given the paucity of Victorian melodramas at your local cineplex--you could do much worse..
I imagine that horror fans were disappointed, asking "Where's the Werewolf?" (Why Jack Pierce is credited as the makeup man in the opening credits I don't know, since I can't see any place in the film where his special makeup talents were employed.) The story: In Victorian London, a series of murders takes place in a public park, where the survivors report being attacked by a female werewolf.
Supposedly, it is a family curse, "the curse of the Allenbys." Phyllis wakes up in the morning to find blood on her clothes and dirt tracks on the floor of her bedroom.More, I won't say, since it will spoil the mystery for those who haven't seen the movie."She-Wolf" is more of a Gothic thriller than a monster movie.
It does have June Lockhart in an early role...along with Martin Kosleck in a ambivalent rather than evil role, and Dennis Hoey playing a surprisingly adept Scotland Yard inspector (he must have finally won a bet with a studio executive and got away from the bumbling Lestrade of the Rathbone/Bruce Sherlock Holme's movies).
The movie has great sets, though I assume they are redressed from some other Universal horror film...they do look somewhat familiar.On the other hand, this movie is dull...and the plot is easy to figure out after about fifteen minutes.
June Lockhart plays a young heiress who believes a series of murders in London is her fault, seems there is a family history of family members turning into werewolves.
London at the turn of the century---The legend of the Allenby Curse was almost forgotten until------ She-Wolf of London is produced by that bastion of classic horror, Universal Pictures.
Directed by Jean Yarbrough and starring June Lockhart and Don Porter, the title clearly evokes the earlier Werewolf of London (1935) and conjures up images of either a girlfriend of Larry Talbot or Wilfred Glendon running amok.
As history now tells us, She-Wolf of London is more concerned with mystery and suspense than the supernatural themes that ran thru other Universal wolf based movies.Running at a brisk 61 minutes, She-Wolf feels more like a Sherlock Holmes picture minus that particularly intrepid sleuth actually being in it.
Instead, this creaky potboiler utilises a plot that must have seemed trite even way back in 1946: a pretty young heiress, Phyllis Allenby (June Lockhart), believes that she has fallen victim to the lycanthropic Allenby curse unaware that her 'aunt' Martha (Sara Haden) is actually trying to drive her insane so that she can a) lay claim to the family fortune, and b) set up her own daughter Carol (Jan Wiley) with Phyllis's fiancé Barry (Don Porter).If you can't guess what is happening after Martha has given Phyllis her umpteenth warm drink to help her sleep, then you really should consider giving up watching films and take up something less taxing on the brain, like basket weaving perhaps.
Disappointing mystery film from Universal falsely advertised as a horror movie.
There's no suspense and if you can't predict who the killer is, congratulations on seeing your first movie ever.June Lockhart, years from being immortalized as one of the great TV moms, plays the lead character as doe-eyed and dull-witted.
Having seemingly ended the 'Wolf Man' franchise with the previous year's heavily flawed "House of Dracula", Universal Studios set their sights on a different kind of werewolf altogether ...A series of horrible murders have been occurring in London, and many suspect a 'wolf woman' is to blame.
She-Wolf of London) is not a terrible film but it's not particularly great either and one of Universal's weakest overall.It's the production values that makes The Curse of the Allenbys watchable, the sets are truly beautiful and rich in Gothic atmosphere, especially the fog-shrouded park, and the photography is equally handsome.
A couple of performances are also decent, Sara Haden being excellent even while Dennis Hoey is in the Inspector role again but with a different and more subtle and intelligent approach to his Lestrade in the Sherlock Holmes Universal series.June Lockhart was a highly dependable actress but while she is entrancing in the looks department this is really not one of her best roles, it's a blandly written character to begin with but Lockhart acts with too much doe-eyed passivity.
Offcourse it's always fun to see a movie That I've never seen before (at least I think so), and after all it's just around an hour so, so it's not that bad.I have a feeling that if this story was made in the 50's it would be on one of those early TV Theatric shows, that was popular in the 50s, it could even have worked in a 30 minutes Alfred Hitchcock serial,, or why not go a few steps longer and say it would have been an acceptable episode in Angela Lansbury's Murder She Wrote episodes.Anyway She-Wolf is according to the old edition of The Universal Story "A Thriller that wanted to be a Chiller that turned out to be a Filler".The movie is OK as a Filler!
June Lockhart-years before appearing in TV series like "Lassie" and the original "Lost in Space"-plays a young woman who thinks she's responsible for some murders at night because of a family curse.
June Lockhart of 'Lassie' and 'Lost in Space' fame stars in this one as Phyllis Allenby, a young heiress who fears that an ancient family curse - that of werewolf-ism - is plaguing her.
Naturally, her fiancée Barry Lanfield (Don Porter) is more than a little concerned, while those steadfast men of Scotland Yard try to keep people safe from what appear to be dog attacks.Don't go into "She-Wolf of London" expecting a horror film, or any woman to werewolf and back again transformations.
(Say, maybe it is a horror film.)A young heiress, Phyllis Allenby (June Lockhart), believes herself to be the latest victim of a family curse, which supposedly turns her into a werewolf at night, a belief reinforced by the strange murders happening around London.
Meanwhile, the lady of the house, Martha Winthrop (Sara Haden), who is supposedly Phyllis's aunt, reveals to her daughter Carol (Jan Wiley) that neither of them is actually related to Phyllis; Martha was really the family housekeeper when Phyllis's parents were killed.A real mystery is why the above revelation occurs early in the film.
While a title such as SHE-WOLF OF LONDON might indicate a long delayed sequel to the first cycle of Universal horror's WEREWOLF OF LONDON (1935) starring Henry Hull, with the plot dealing with one of the female survivors of a werewolf attack cursed to becoming a she-wolf herself, the movie overall only promises thriller by title and murder mystery by story instead.
There's no traditional horror actors as Bela Lugosi or Lionel Atwill to add to the proceedings, but fresh young faces and future television personalities as Don Porter and June Lockhart in the leads.Opening title: "London at the turn of the Century - The Legend of the Allenby curse was almost forgotten until ...
Upon investigation, Harry Lanfield (Don Porter), an young lawyer, is enjoying his horseback ride with his fiancée, Phyllis Allenby (June Lockhart), where the murders had occurred.
Dennis Hoey, best known as Inspector Lestrade in the "Sherlock Holmes" mystery series (1942-1946), resumes his familiar characterization from those movies into this one.While SHE-WOLF OF LONDON wasn't in the werewolf tradition, especially those "Wolf Man" thrillers of the 1940s starring Lon Chaney Jr., it did offer a change of pace theme of a female to be a prowling and growling monster killer rather than the traditional man.
Overlooking these facts, the story gets by during its quick 62 minutes, especially viewing a youthful June Lockhart in a rare leading movie role of the time some years before she was a familiar television personality in such programs as "Timmy and Lassie" (1957-1963); "Lost in Space" (1965-1968), and the final two seasons of "Petticoat Junction" (1968-1970).
While Lockhart is the central character here, veteran actress, Sara Haden, best known as Aunt Milly in the "Andy Hardy" film series (1938-1946), gathers most attention in a showy performance as the domineering mother and caring aunt, along with Eily Malyon as the suspecting housekeeper.
There's also a nice touch of camera slanting near the finish reminiscing director Alfred Hitchcock visual style like NOTORIOUS (1946), and brief gothic touches reminiscent to the Val Lewton horror unit for RKO Radio (1943-1946) as I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE (1943).Once presented on Shock Theater /Fright Night trades of broadcast television some decades ago, and formerly available on video cassette, SHE-WOLF OF LONDON can be found as a bonus addition to the "Werewolf" movie package on DVD (**1/2).
"She-Wolf of London" comes right at the end of the horror cycle from "Universal" studios.
1946's "She-Wolf of London," nearing the end of Universal's lucrative wartime horror boom (1939-1946), offers only a few foggy sets to indicate its intention as a mystery (it was included in the SHOCK!
Ulmer's "Daughter of Dr. Jekyll." As our heroine, the young and attractive June Lockhart fails to overcome her character's tiresome deficiencies, while top billed Don Porter can do little but look concerned as her fiancée (actress Jan Wiley made only two more films before calling it quits, three more for Eily Malyon).
Curiously, while "WereWolf of London" aired eight times on Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater, "She-Wolf of London" wasn't far behind with seven: Mar 19 1966 (following 1957's "Beginning of the End"), Dec 31 1966 (following 1958's "Attack of the 50 Foot Woman"), May 17 1969 (following 1964's "Dr. Orloff's Monster"), Jan 20 1973 (solo), July 26 1975 (following 1966's "Picture Mommy Dead"), June 24 1978 (preceding 1937's "Night Key"), and Oct 15 1983 (solo)..
She-Wolf of London (1946) * (out of 4) Extremely bad Universal flick about a small town who falls victim of various werewolf attacks and the young woman (June Lockhart) who thinks she might be the monster.
I guess the unique movie about lycanthropy which there not a single one, so then starting this misleading premisse the picture no make sense was sugested the title itself, therefore all things falling down under this point, forgetting this the picture has some fine aspects to discuss here, the suspence atmosphere of London's fog is largely used in the nights scenes in the park, leting an anxious audience try to discover an ill-fated she-wolf, how Martha Winthrop ( Sara Haden ) handling by an easy spoken driven crazy the leading character played by June Lockhart from LIS is quite convincing, acceptable work that tawdry when realize that there no she-wolf actually!!!Resume:First watch: 2012 / How many: 2 / Source: DVD / Rating: 6.5.
It doesn't take long to figure out that "She-Wolf of London" is more of a crime mystery than a supernatural horror film, and it becomes more suspicious with every passing moment the werewolf isn't revealed.
Truth is, it's not going to help just hoping for something good.Phyllis Allenby (June Lockhart) is about to be married, but she lives with a deadly secret: That at night, she becomes transformed into a killer who is rampaging London.
Sara Haden hovers around the impressive interior set as Phyllis's guardian, bristling effectively at the insolence of her daughter Carol (Jan Wiley) and their lone domestic, Hannah (played by the only real English person in the house, Eily Malyon), but like everyone else, she is cossetted by a story and script that insists on propriety at every turn, until we get to that ridiculous ending where instead of people walking up stairs, we get to see one running down them instead.I won't spoil it for you, because that would require explaining it and I'm not Stephen Hawking.
Jean Yarbrough directed this late entry in Universal Studios horror cycle, a most disappointing affair starring attractive and pleasant June Lockhart as Phyllis Allenby, who suspects that a rumored family curse involving werewolves seems to be affecting her, since a brutal series of murders are occurring that seem to be the work of an animal.
Good cast and some atmosphere can't save a most unsatisfying film with a deceptive title, since this is more a mystery than horror picture, with the revelation of the killer being most mundane and unbelievable..
The title leads one to believe that this is going to be a horror movie - I watched it myself as part of a collection of classic Universal werewolf movies (its inclusion in that collection leads to that expectation) and thought that the concept of a female werewolf (there really haven't been many that I can think of) would be an interesting twist to the usual werewolf stories.
It's a psychological suspense/thriller type of story about a young woman (played by June Lockhart) who believes she's a werewolf and thinks she's responsible for a series of murders in a local park - and, frankly, if you can let go of the werewolf expectation and rate this movie on its own merits, it's really quite well done.You do wonder throughout if there is a werewolf, and the identity of the killer was never really clear to me until it was brought out into the open near the end.
I will admit though, that despite being disappointed in the film and what I thought it was going to be, the plot turn at the end had me surprised.Sara Haden plays very well the nasty step-mother, and I have to admit that I was waiting for her to be among the first killed by the Were-Wolf, but to no avail.June Lockhart plays the main character, and she does a good job with one of her early and starring roles.
This is an odd little horror film from the tail end of Universal Pictures' long series of monster movies.
Phyllis Allenby(June Lockhart, oh how young she is!)believes she has her family's supposed curse of lycanthropy when a series of murders occurs in a London park near her mansion estate, where the victims' throats are mangled.
If this mystery thriller had been retitled and repackaged as a stand-alone film released through Universal completely untied to "The Wolf Man" series, it'd probably come across less a disappointment.
Phyllis Allenby (June Lockhart) is a pretty heiress, who becomes very confused after several murders in a local park in London.
You have here a lot of good atmospherics involving fog, several canines, and generally fine but somewhat routine mystery components, with competent acting and good Universal Studios production values.June Lockhart is a lovely young beginner actress in this movie.
Young heiress Phyllis Allenby (an appealing portrayal by the fetching June Lockhart) thinks she might be responsible for a series of mysterious murders in London, England park because of a family curse.While director Jean Yarbrough keeps the pace moving along at a steady clip and makes nice use of the fog-shrouded sets, he nonetheless fails to generate much in the way of either tension or spooky atmosphere.
June Lockhart (Phyllis Allenby), Don Porter (Harry Lanfield), Sara Haden (Martha Winthrop), Jan Wiley (Carol Winthrop), Dennis Hoey (Inspector Pierce), Martha Kosleck (Dwight Severn), Lloyd Corrigan (Latham), Eily Malyon (Hanna), Frederick Worlock (constable), Clara Blandick (Mrs McBroom).Director: JEAN YARBROUGH.
61 minutes.SYNOPSIS: Is June Lockhart a werewolf?U.K. release title: The CURSE OF THE ALLENBYS.COMMENT: Everyone seems to give this film a bad review.
Despite the title not a horror film--just a boring murder mystery.
Young Phyllis Allenby (June Lockhart) lives in fear of an ancient family curse that may turn her into a werewolf.
Is Phyllis a werewolf, prowling the night looking for her next victim?Other than the title, I'm not sure why Universal decided to include this one on their Wolf Man Legacy Set. She-Wolf of London has nothing in common with The Wolf Man. It's not a horror film.
While there are some nice performances from Sara Haden as the overprotective Aunt and Lloyd Corrigan as the bumbling Detective Latham, June Lockhart is horrible as the film's heroine.