As a genre, werewolf movies are often effective vehicles for social commentary blended with existential questions about humanity and morality. Thus, werewolf movies are as much about the heart’s quiet battles as they are about claws and fangs.
In this article, let’s look back at the best werewolf movies of all time.
7 Best Werewolf Movies of All Time
1. An American Werewolf in London (1981)
Directed by John Landis
Written and directed by John Landis, this remains a milestone in special effects. In the ‘80s, the film made an extremely successful attempt at depicting the protagonist’s body painfully morphing in real-time, creating a visceral and believable horror experience.
David Kessler (David Naughton) and Jack Goodman (Griffin Dunne), two American college students, are attacked by werewolves during their hike. While Jack is killed, David manages to survive, only to learn that he has become a werewolf and will transform during the upcoming full moon.
The best part about this film is that it masterfully blends horror with comedy, as David struggles with his lycanthropy in London. An American Werewolf in London is a cult classic that has influenced multiple other films in the subgenre.
2. The Wolf Man (1941)
Directed by George Waggner
George Waggner’s The Wolf Man used makeup effects that were pioneering for their time but were obviously subtler than later films.
The film is a foundational template for werewolf cinema, a visceral blend of atmosphere, tragic heroism, and folklore. When Larry Talbot (Lon Chaney Jr.) returns to his ancestral home after his brother’s death to reconcile with his estranged father, he is bitten by a werewolf and is cursed with lycanthropy.
The narrative explores themes of fatalism and duality, with Larry as a tragic figure doomed by forces beyond his control. The end is heart-wrenching as Larry’s father kills the Wolf Man with a silver-headed cane, only to witness the creature transform back into Larry’s human form after death.
The Wolf Man is one of those films that established significant werewolf tropes for future films, such as silver as a weakness and the pentagram mark.
3. The Howling (1981)
Directed by Joe Dante
A commendable blend of psychological thriller and hardcore horror, The Howling is also celebrated for its innovative special effects. In fact, Rob Bottin’s makeup work shines as a centerpiece.
Karen White (Dee Wallace), an LA news anchor, visits a mountain resort with her husband Bill. The location is secretly inhabited by werewolves who can transform at will. After Bill is bitten and begins to transform, Karen and her friends uncover the Colony’s dark secret and fight for survival as the werewolves reveal themselves.
Joe Dante’s The Howling focuses beyond horror. It knits dark humor and social commentary while exploring themes of identity and trauma. The Howling is a great reference for atmospheric storytelling in horror films.
4. Ginger Snaps (2000)
Directed by John Fawcett
Set in suburban Ontario, Ginger Snaps is a unique coming-of-age film with a twist of lycanthropy. Two death-obsessed teenage sisters, Brigette and Ginger, find themselves at odds when the latter is bitten by a mysterious creature as soon as she starts her first period.
Ginger begins to undergo an aggressive, rather terrifying transformation into a werewolf. The allegorical film uses the werewolf myth as a metaphor for female adolescence, particularly exploring the anxieties surrounding puberty and transformation, while tapping into the themes of identity crisis, sisterhood, control, and the loss of innocence.
Ginger Snaps also boasts innovative special effects. Director John Fawcett deliberately avoided CGI and opted for prosthetics and makeup to depict Ginger’s transformation as close to reality as possible. The film inspired its sequel, Ginger Snaps II: Unleashed, directed by Brett C. Sullivan, which was released in 2004.
5. Dog Soldiers (2002)
Directed by Neil Marshall
Neil Marshall’s Dog Soldiers revolves around a squad of British Soldiers, led by Sgt. Harry Wells (Sean Pertwee) and Private Cooper (Kevin McKidd), as their routine training exercise is besieged by a pack of werewolves.
As the night falls, survival against these relentless supernatural predators becomes seemingly impossible as internal tensions and betrayals rise within the group. Marshall’s debut film is a testament to the endless possibilities that even low-budget genre filmmaking offers. Dog Soldiers demonstrates how strong practical effects, tight editing, and well-choreographed action can compensate for limited resources.
Marshall opted for practical werewolf suits instead of CGI, which ultimately worked in the film’s favor, helping to ground it in physical reality. Neil also edited the film, and along with the production design, the almost single-location story hardly loses any beat in its entire run-time.
6. Late Phases (2014)
Directed by Adrian Garcia Bogliano
A blind Vietnam War veteran, Ambrose McKinley (Nick Damici), prepares to confront werewolves who are terrorizing the residents of his retirement community.
The film is a novel exploration of the themes of aging and disability as Ambrose fights despite his blindness, relying on his military skills, determined to protect his new home and reconcile with his estranged son.
The highlight of Late Phases is its blind and elderly protagonist: Adrian Garcia Bogliano balances the horror with emotional depth, using Ambrose’s vulnerability to weave in themes of isolation and perseverance. Late Phases works so well because it blends genre conventions with meaningful storytelling.
7. Wolf (1994)
Directed by Mike Nichols
Starring Jack Nicholson, Wolf revolves around Will Randall, an aging book editor from NYC who struggles with lycanthropy after returning from a trip to rural Vermont.
Through Will’s struggles and transformation, the film explores the themes of aging, power, and identity. Nicholson’s portrayal of a man caught between civility and animal instincts is nuanced and immersive.
Complemented by Rick Baker’s practical makeup effects, the werewolf transformation scenes are outright epic here.
Werewolf movies are underestimated as mere horror flicks. But beneath the howls, gore, and animalism, these stories resonate with universal truths about identity, transformation, and the ever-present duality in human nature.
They delve into a character’s turmoil as they grapple with their duality, offering rich allegories for depicting societal outcasts, personal struggles, or even the loss of control in a chaotic world.
Which is your favorite werewolf film?
