Stars: Corey Haim, Megan Follows, Gary Busey
Director: Dan Attias
A small town finds its residents dying in violent ways but who, or what, is doing the killing?
Brief synopsis:
Marty Coslaw and his sister Janey live in Tarker’s Mill a typical Maine small town. Unfortunately, the Coslaw’s are not your typical family. Marty is younger than Janey and was born unable to walk. Because of this, Janey feels like the put-upon sister who has to help her brother no matter how she feels. The teens have a close relationship with their alcoholic Uncle Red, much to the mother’s dismay. She feels that an alcoholic with multiple divorces is not a good role model for her children, no matter how much she loves her brother.
Despite these setbacks, the family lives a relatively quiet life until a series of deaths begin to happen. The town drunk and railroad worker ends up decapitated during a shift. This is written off as an accident until unmarried and pregnant Stella is attacked and killed in the middle of her attempted suicide. The violent scene makes it clear that this was no accident. The town goes on lockdown and starts a curfew, unaware that the culprit is a local wolf in sheep’s clothing, culling their little flock one by one.
Spoilers below (you have been warned):
Marty begins a small flirtation with the strangely Southern speaking Tammy whose father is killed by something in their storage shed. Shortly after, her mother moves away. Hoping to cheer his nephew up, Red builds the Silver Bullet for him. This is an electric wheelchair that is almost a motorcycle, needing gas and going fast. Marty’s friend Grady ignores the town curfew to fly a kite and ends up another victim of the creature. Following Grady’s murder, a town posse sets off in the night to avenge the boy and ends up massacred as well. After these deaths, the town festival and fireworks are cancelled, Red gives Marty fireworks of his own to set off. Marty sneaks out of his room one night to set them off and comes across the werewolf. He sets off one of the fireworks and uses it to blind the creature in one eye. Marty then escapes back home. After Marty tells Janey what happened, she agrees to go around town and try to figure out who has a recent eye injury.
Using the church charity drive as a cover, collecting bottles and cans for recycling fees, Janey makes her way around town but has nothing to show for it at the end of her quest except a grocery cart full of bottles and cans. She takes them to the church and vents to Reverend Lowe about her little brother and his wild tales. What Janey doesn’t know is that the man she venting to is sporting an eye patch. As she drops off her stash to his garage, she falls and lands in the previous donations and finds a broken bat from one of the men in the posse hidden under the cans. Lowe comes in and Janey realizes he is the werewolf. She quickly escapes and heads home to tell her brother what she has discovered.
At first, they try to stop the werewolf by sending anonymous letters encouraging Lowe to end his life. This fails miserably and Lowe chases Marty in his car, ramming the wheelchair a few times, into a condemned bridge. Lowe claims that he cannot kill himself as it is a sin and that the people he killed were in moral danger and he saved their souls. Lowe is about to attack Marty when the boy gets the attention of a passing farmer and Lowe escapes.
The children finally tell their uncle everything who doesn’t believe what they are saying until Red sees paint from Lowe’s car on a dent in the Silver Bullet. He goes to the sheriff and convinces him to at least check Lowe out. This is a mistake as Lowe ends up killing the sheriff. Red then takes the children’s crosses and has a silver bullet made. He then arranges for his sister and her husband to take a trip on the next full moon and lies in wait with the children for the attack they know is coming. Just when Red starts doubting that the kids are telling the truth, the werewolf attacks. Marty gets the gun and manages to kill the werewolf.
My thoughts (with spoilers):
This is my chance to remind you that this is not a list of the best horror films, it is my personal list of favorite horror films. Not all of them are good, some of them are silly or a little slow, but I like them for many different reasons. Silver Bullet is not a great horror film but something about it keeps me watching it at least once every few years. It may be because it actually adds something to the werewolf mythology. Marty theorizes that Lowe may not be a werewolf all the time but reaches full power at the full moon, growing more and more “wolfy” as the moon waxes and wanes. It is an interesting idea that a better made film could expand on.
I also like the religious aspect of having a preacher being the werewolf. Lowe seems like a good man trying his best to tend to his flock of worshippers but he is the thing they should be fearing. Religious leaders often get overlooked for crimes because they are men of God, a title some use to avoid suspicion. Lowe takes it even further by trying to use his position as justification for his killing. After all, these people all had moral flaws that would keep them out of heaven. Killing them saved them from going to hell. It is a twisted motivation that we sadly see in the real world all the time.
The acting is good, not great. Corey Haim is believable as a paraplegic. He moves well in and out of the chair and manages to make you believe his legs do not work. Megan Follows would find greater acclaim as Anne of Green Gables but you believe her as Marty’s put-upon sister. Yes, he annoyed her but she still loved him. Gary Busey is having a ball as Red. He loves a drink but, when they need him, he puts the bottle down and steps up for the kids. Everett McGill does a good job as the Reverend but nothing special. Once we realize he is the villain, he leans a little too much into the evil part, especially for a reverend. There is not a lot of conflict once he is outed – he is the bad guy and that is it.
Again, this is not a great film but it is fun and worth at least one watch. Maybe throw it into the Halloween rotation once every few years for something just a little different.
More films from 1985 to check out:
Clue – If you haven’t seen this yet, what is wrong with you? A masterclass of comedic acting with standout performances by Tim Curry and Madeline Kahn. Stop reading and go watch this film now – all of the others on this list can wait.
The New Kids – Underrated little thriller starring James Spader, Lori Loughlin, and Eric Stoltz. A recently orphaned brother and sister move in with their uncle who is fixing up an amusement park. The teens attend school and get on the bad side of the local high school gang. Nothing groundbreaking but still fun.
The Breakfast Club – Classic film about different teen archetypes bonding during Saturday detention. A must see for any teenager of any generation.
Desperately Seeking Susan – Madonna and Rosanna Arquette star in this romantic comedy about a bored housewife who follows the story of a Susan, played by Madonna, through personal ads in a newspaper. Eventually, their paths and stories cross. Madonna breezes through this with what is probably her best performance in a film.
Ladyhawke – Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfeiffer play star-crossed lovers under a curse. Matthew Broderick is the thief drawn into the story and tries to help them break the curse.
Real Genius – Hilarious college comedy starring Val Kilmer as a lazy genius who tries to stop his new roommate from being too serious. So many fun gags.
Better Off Dead – John Cusack is a teen who is not dealing well with his recent break up. Absurdist comedy with so many familiar faces and classic lines.
Smooth Talk – Laura Dern stars as Connie, a teenager who is just discovering her sexuality. Unfortunately, so is older creep Arnold A. Friend. The second half of the film is tense as Arnold tries to convince Connie to let him into her empty house.