History Main / TheWolfMan

* ''Film/{{Wolfman}}'', an unrelated 1979 horror film.

* ''Film/TheWolfman2010'', the remake of the latter.

* ''Film/TheWolfMan1941'', a UniversalHorror film.

[[redirect:Film/TheWolfMan]]

[[quoteright:250:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/TheWolfMan.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:250:[-"The way you walked was thorny..."-] ]]

-->''"Even a man who is pure in heart'' \\
''And says his prayers by night'' \\
''May become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms'' \\
''And the autumn moon is bright."''

LawrenceTalbot (Lon Chaney, Jr.) is about to have a really bad night. He's just returned to his family's home in Llanwelly, Wales, to reconcile with his father. While there, he meets and starts pursuing Gwen Conliffe (Evelyn Ankers), a shopkeeper who sold him a walking stick adorned with a silver wolf's head (which she says represents a werewolf). In the course of rescuing Gwen's friend Jenny from an apparent wolf attack, Larry is bitten. He soon learns from a gypsy fortuneteller that the wolf in question was actually a werewolf, specifically her son Bela roaming the countryside in the form of a wolf. Bela had been a werewolf for years, and has now passed on the curse to Larry.

Can Larry overcome this curse? Are his friends and family safe from the roaming beast? Will anyone take a werewolf named Larry seriously?

'''''The Wolf Man''''' is a 1941 monster {{horror}} {{film}} written by Curt Siodmak and produced and directed by George Waggner, starring Lon Chaney, Jr., ClaudeRains, Evelyn Ankers, Ralph Bellamy, Patric Knowles, BelaLugosi, and Maria Ouspenskaya. The title character has had a great deal of influence on Hollywood's depictions of the legend of the werewolf. The film is the second Universal Pictures werewolf movie, preceded six years earlier by the less commercially successful ''WerewolfOfLondon''.

Lon Chaney, Jr.'s Wolf Man was featured in four further films in the {{Universal}} monster cycle:
* ''FrankensteinMeetsTheWolfMan''
* ''{{House Of Frankenstein}}''
* ''{{House of Dracula}}''
* ''AbbottAndCostelloMeetFrankenstein''

A remake of ''The Wolf Man'', starring Benicio Del Toro as Lawrence Talbot, was released on February 12, 2010, is a PragmaticAdaptation and more of an {{Homage}} to its predecessor. Some of the most noticeable differences from the original are that it's now set in [[VictorianBritain 1891 England]] as opposed to 1940's Wales, and is also much [[DarkerAndEdgier darker]] and more [[BloodierAndGorier violent]] than its 1941 counterpart.

However, it still manages to keep most of the names of the original characters and some key plot points. It even [[AdaptationExpansion even adds new characters and expands upon old]], and the werewolf designs are kept similar to the designs in the original and even use real makeup and costumes instead of relying on CGI.

Despite not being a box office success, the remake did receive an Oscar for Best Makeup. Shortly afterwards, Universal announced plans to make the Wolf Man into a direct-to-video film franchise. Sources however also say that they will be reboots. . . .

----
!! Both the original and remake of ''The Wolf Man'' contains examples of:
* ArcWords: The "even a man who is pure in heart..." poem appears throughout in every movie of the series.
* BeastAndBeauty: Lawrence and Gwen technically qualify as this in both of their incarnations.
* TheCharmer: Lawrence
* [[spoiler: DownerEnding]]
** [[spoiler: [[YourMileageMayVary Can also be viewed as]] a BittersweetEnding. Sure, Larry dies, but he's no longer suffering from his curse and he won't run the risk of killing anyone else.]]
*** [[spoiler: The 2010 remake definitely has more of a DownerEnding, though. Not only is Lawrence dead, but Inspector Abberline is stuck with the curse, so presumably the cycle continues.]]
* [[spoiler: DoomedProtagonist: When you've become a monster, in a Universal Horror movie no less, your chances of living until the end are '''very''' slim. Which is why...]]
* [[spoiler: TheHeroDies]]
* GypsyCurse: Averted, and even inverted, by Maleva.
* HorrorStruck: Both Larrys are initially skeptical to being werewolves and towards werewolves in general, until, you know, they actually '''become''' one.
** Played a little more straight in the remake with Abberline.
* {{Leitmotif}}: Talbot's werewolf form in both versions is always introduced by three short notes on a violin.
* MagicPants: It's also more like ''Magic Shirts'', but I digress.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] by the Gypsy Maleva ("mal" ''and'' "evil"!), who is one of the more helpful characters in the films.
* OminousFog
* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: With the following included as standard:
** InvoluntaryShapeshifting
** TransformationSequence
** ViralTransformation
** WolfMan: The TropeNamer.
* PlayingTheHeartStrings: In the 1941 Salter and Skinner score, this takes the form of a single Gypsy violin over Maleva's reciting of the Gypsy valediction, "The way you walked was thorny..."
** And DannyElfman 's score of the remake definitely makes very good use of the strings as well. Probably as a subtle ShoutOut to the original score.
* PointyEars: Actually [[http://www.monsterzine.com/cgi-bin/pd/pd.cgi?image=/pd/images/wolfman.jpg&title=Lon+Chaney+Jr.+as+The+Wolf+Man averted]] in the 1941 film (though the 2010 film uses them).
* SharpDressedMan: Lawrence
* SupernaturalAngst
* ThisWasHisTrueForm
* TorchesAndPitchforks
* TragicMonster: Things don't go so well for either Lawrence....

!! The 1941 version has:
* [[ChekhovsGun Chekhov's Gun]]: Larry's cane
* CleaningUpRomanticLooseEnds: Pretty much the reason for the existence of Frank Andrews in the film. Universal had used this same trope in ''WerewolfOfLondon'' (and indeed in the original cut of ''{{Frankenstein}}'' as well, in which Henry had been killed).
* DamselInDistress: Gwen, as per the page picture.
* TheDanza: Bela Lugosi plays Bela the Gypsy.
* EvilDetectingDog
* FootFocus:[[spoiler: On the night of his first transformation, Larry removes his shoes and discovers strands of fur on his shins.]]
* FurryConfusion: When Bela the werewolf attacks Jenny and Larry, it is in the form of a quadrupedal, totally bestial-appearing wolf; when Larry the werewolf attacks, it is in the bipedal form of a WolfMan.
* HeyItsThatGuy: Sir John and Frank Andrews are [[Film/TheAdventuresOfRobinHood Prince John and Will Scarlet]]; Colonel Mountford is [[HisGirlFriday Bruce Baldwin]].
* HumanToWerewolfFootprints
* JeannieCut: The transformation sequences were shot as a series of these.
* NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: Though Larry's accent is [[JustifiedTrope justified]] by the statement that he has been away in America for years, it is still remarkable that in a story set in Wales ''not a single character'' speaks with a Welsh accent. Perhaps the most glaring examples are Ralph Bellamy's Colonel Mountford and Warren Williams' Dr. Lloyd, both clearly Americans -- but even the British cast members are all clearly either English or Irish.
* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: In addition to introducing the WolfMan variant to popular culture, this movie also introduced the silver vulnerability to the mythos, as well as the forced shape-shifting under the full moon, and being marked with a pentagram.
* {{Roma}}: Maria Ouspenskaya's old gypsy fortuneteller, Maleva.
** And to a lesser extent, Bela Lugosi's role as her son.
* StalkerWithACrush: Larry. At least, he comes off as this for the first ten minutes of the movie, because it becomes less stalker-ish as the movie goes on. Gwen is initially perturbed because she's already engaged to another man and she's uncomfortable at the thought of Larry being able to peer into her window.
* TropeCodifier / TropeMaker: For the werewolf movie. Also for werewolves in general, as there's no lycanthrope's equivalent of ''{{Dracula}}''.

!! The 2010 version has:
* ActionGirl: [[EmilyBlunt Gwen Conliffe]] eventually becomes the Victorian equivalent of this when she becomes so motivated by trying to save Lawrence that she totes a gun around while running around in a dark forest in the middle of the night -- certainly breaking the DamselInDistress version of her character from 1941.
* AdaptationExpansion: The 2010 version explores a very different side of the relationship between Lawrence and his father as well as the psychological aspects the 1941 version wanted to do intentionally.
** Gwen and Lawrence's romance gets a little more foundation than in the original, mostly due to the fact that this time around Gwen doesn't exactly have a living fiancé.
*** It also does away with the creepy stalker undertones that took hold of the beginning of their relationship in the original.
** The [[MysteriousAnimalSenses side effects]] of becoming a werewolf, such as [[GoodThingYouCanHeal fast healing]], [[SuperSenses more acute hearing]], and [[SuperStrength increased physical strength]] are shown.
** Abberline is a new character, added to serve as a sort of an AntiVillain.
** Sir John's butler, Singh, is a new character as well.
** We actually get to ''see'' Lawrence's brother and mother, who only received a passing mention in the original.
*** Albeit, we only see either of them [[WeHardlyKnewYe very briefly.]]
** In the extended cut, a good chunk of pre-establishment about Lawrence's father and mother are left out.
* AdrenalineMakeover: Gwen gradually gets this over the course of the movie. Initially, she comes off as a very proper and somewhat quiet woman. However, as she becomes determined to find a cure for Lawrence towards the end of the movie, she starts to wear less fancy attire and her hair is noticeably a little unkempt from her nights of searching for answers. By the finale, her hair is down, she is wearing a slightly lower cut and dirtier looking dress than her earlier attire, and carries around a silver bullet loaded pistol.
* AffablyEvil: [[spoiler: Sir John turns out to be quite evil indeed...but dang! is he suave.]]
** [[spoiler: He ''is'' played by Hannibal Lector, after all, the ''king'' of Affably Evil]]
* TheAlcoholic: Lawrence comes off as this in the movie. Played pretty straight in the book adaptation of the movie.
* AllJustADream: Lawrence has quite a few hallucinations while recovering from his nasty little bite.
** Also the hallucinations in the asylum.
* [[AlwaysSaveTheGirl Always Save The Guy]]: Gwen's actions [[spoiler: in protecting Lawrence from Abberline are understandable, but she is also putting the ''chance'' that he can be cured above the likelihood that he will kill again (and in fact Lawrence ''does'' end up infecting someone directly because of her.)]]
* AnyoneCanDie
* AscendedFanboy: Del Toro himself had been a long-time fan of Lon Chaney, especially of his performance as Lawrence Talbot. He reveals in an interview that he always wanted to portray him, and wouldn't you know it, he got his wish.
* AudioErotica: HugoWeaving and AnthonyHopkins.
** Don't forget Benicio's soft yet slightly gruff voice with slight traces of an accent going on.
* {{Badass}}/BadassNormal: Abberline. But then again, when has Hugo Weaving ever played anything '''but''' a [[VForVendetta bad]][[TheMatrix ass]]
** ''TheAdventuresOfPriscillaQueenOfTheDesert''?
*** Well, recently.
* BallroomBlitz: The extended version has Lawrence's rampage through London take him into a conservatory ballroom. Carnage ensues.
* BattleAmongstTheFlames: As part of the GrandFinale.
* BattleButler: Sir John's butler, Singh, is armed to the teeth with silver bullets and other monster-killing devices.
** [[spoiler: Didn't do him much good in the end though...]]
** [[spoiler: Also he loses points for not realizing the silver bullets are sabotaged]]
* BedlamHouse: Lambert Asylum.
* BenignBullets: During his first rampage, Lawrence takes a pretty nasty bullet wound to the shoulder. But lucky for him it wasn't silver and he shrugs it off like it's nothing.
* BetterToDieThanBeKilled: Averted. During one of Lawrence's rampages, he chases one of his hunters into a bog. Trapped, the hunter fires his revolver at Lawrence. It doesn't work, and the hunter attempts to shoot himself. Turns out that he spent his six on the beast, and gets graphically decapitated instead.
* BigScrewedUpFamily: The Talbots got issues to say the least.
* BloodFromTheMouth: One of the more squicky parts of the werewolf transformation. What? You think those pointy teeth just poof into your mouth?!
** Might also possibly be from internal organs shifting around and what not...
* BloodierAndGorier: So very much more so than the original...
* BodyHorror: Just about all the transformation sequences, in all their [[PainfulTransformation bone-cracking]], [[NauseaFuel blood vomiting]] horror.
* CampbellCountry: Blackmoor definitely fits this trope, and it even comes complete with scary woods!
* {{Chiaroscuro}}
* CompositeCharacter: [[spoiler: Sir John Talbot]] replaces the Gypsy's son, Bela, [[spoiler:as the werewolf who gives Lawrence his curse.]]
** Also, Ben Talbot replaces Frank Andrews as Gwen's fiancé.
* DaddyHadAGoodReasonForAbandoningYou: [[spoiler: He didn't want you to out him about being a werewolf and on inadvertently killing your mommy.]]
* DarkAndTroubledPast: You've had quite a nice little messed up childhood, haven't you, Lawrence? What with witnessing your mother's death and all.
** Then being sent to a mad-house where you underwent all sorts of nasty treatments and then shipped off to live with a distant relative in America.
* DeathByAdaptation :[[spoiler: Sir John]]
* DeathByCameo: Rick Baker (the head make-up designer for the remake's wolfman and noted special effects guru for films like ''AnAmericanWerewolfInLondon'') plays one of the first victims.
* DeathByIrony: Dr. Hannigan claims that Lawrence will no more likely change into a werewolf than he is likely to sprout wings and fly out the window!
** Well, he doesn't sprout wings at any rate...
* DeletedScene: In the trailer, there's a scene where Wolfman!Larry, on his London rampage, bursts into a masquerade ball and then proceeds to kill and [[BloodSplatteredInnocents splatter blood on the guests]]. However, this scene was sadly cut probably due to time constraints.
** Apparently there's actually ''20 minutes'' of footage left out of the final cut of the movie that will be featured on the DVD.
* DemotedToExtra: Maleva, who was one of the more helpful and prominent characters in the original, gets this. Although, Gwen [[AscendedExtra sort of fills her shoes]] as the figure trying to help Lawrence with his curse this time around.
* DevelopmentHell: The movie was planned out and was to be directed by Mark Romanek (of ''OneHourPhoto'' fame), but he left due to not being able to make changes during the writer's strike at the time. Joe Johnston took over and shot the film in spring/summer of 2008 for a fall 2008 release, but was held back until 2010 due to re-shoots by demand of the studio.
* DiedInYourArmsTonight [[spoiler: After Gwen's ShootTheDog moment, Lawrence [[ThisWasHisTrueForm returns to human form]] and spends his last moments of life in Gwen's arms before he appropriately dies at the end]]
* DivingSave: Lawrence saves a gypsy child by doing this right before the first werewolf attacks her.
* DreamWithinADream: During one of Lawrence's hallucinations while in the Asylum and while healing.
* DrowningMySorrows: Lawrence after learning of Ben's death and then seeing what's left of him.
* EtherealChoir: This ''is'' DannyElfman we're talking about, but it's not used as much as an effect compared to his other scores and is only used in a few scenes.
* EroticDream: Err, Somewhat. During one of Lawrence's hallucinations in the asylum, we see a back-naked Gwen for a few moments.
** Probably {{Foreshadowing}} to his growing feelings toward her and a possible subconscious desire to be with her.
* EvilDetectingDog: More like "Evil Detecting Horses", in this case.
** Also evil detecting bear and evil detecting deer. Ironically averted by the single one dog (it ''always'' growls at Lawrence, well before he is infected, while it is completely oblivious to the original werewolf [[spoiler: because he is its owner]])
* ExcuseMeComingThrough: A more humorous moment in the film where Abberline invades a house and interrupts an in-progress violin recital in order to catch up to Lawrence during his London rampage
* ExecutiveMeddling: The reason the prologue is so short and why a good chunk of character development and establishment are left out. Suits though the [[ViewersAreMorons audience]] would want more Wolfman and less storytelling.
* ExtraExtraReadAllAboutIt: Complete with the classic little Victorian British boy in a cap on the corner of the sidewalk selling newspapers.
* ExtremelyDustyHome: Talbot Hall is certainly untidy to say the least.
* EyesOfGold: Werewolves' eyes turn gold as part of their transformation.
* FakeMemories:[[spoiler: As a child, Lawrence's memories of his mother's death were re-formed during his time in the asylum so he would believe that his mother killed herself and concealed his real memories of his werewolf father tearing her throat out.]]
* ForgingScene: When practically the entire village brings their silver to be forged into bullets for protection.
* FridgeBrilliance: Lawrence's [[spoiler:rewritten memories of his mother's death]] make a lot more sense if one assumes that his childhood stay in the asylum was like his stay during the movie. [[spoiler:All while he's tortured, the doctors keep trying to convince him that his father isn't actually a werewolf and that he was mistaken about everything. A child who undergoes all of that with the added trauma of witnessing his mother's death would eagerly grasp the explanation that he was mistaken, especially if it meant being set free.]]
* {{Fridge Logic}}: All evidence points to the werewolves of this universe being incapable of controlling their actions while wolf-ified, and mostly unable to remember what happened the next morning. Despite their heightened senses, there is no evidence that they can distinguish blood relatives, or that such a distinction would hold any value for them while in that state. It takes a huge effort for [[spoiler:Gwen to break through to Wolfman Lawrence, and it doesn't take. Yet when young Lawrence stumbles on his wolfed-out father just after he's failed to recognize his wife and brutally murdered her - his father somehow avoids attacking him.]]
* [[spoiler: GainaxEnding: Sorta...It's more of a really ambiguous [[{{Cliffhanger}} cliffhanger ending]] ]]
* GlowingEyesOfDoom: When Lawrence begins his first transformation, his father moves into the shadows, with his eyes creepily glowing in the darkness - albeit only for a moment.
* GodHelpUsAll: Inspector Abberline upon the seeing the Wolfman escape a barrage of gunfire during the London rampage.
* GorgeousPeriodDress: Love it or hate it, the movie had awesome costumes.
* GraveClouds
* HandsOnApproach: In the stone-skipping scene. Oops, is that a little [[LuminescentBlush blush]] we see on your face, Gwen?
* HannibalLecture: From [[spoiler:Sir [[SilenceOfTheLambs John Talbot]], appropriately enough]]
* HealingFactor: One of the upsides of being a werewolf.
* HearingVoices: Lawrence
* HerrDoctor: Dr. Hannigan
* HeWhoFightsMonsters: [[spoiler: Abberline spends most of the movie hell-bent on killing Lawrence, but in the end he's bitten by Lawrence and it's implied the curse has been passed on to him.]]
* [[HeyItsThatGuy Hey, It's That Guy!]]: So let me get this straight: [[SinCity Jack Rafferty]] is a werewolf, is the son of [[SilenceOfTheLambs Hannibal Lecter]], falls in love with [[TheYoungVictoria Queen Victoria]], and gets chased around by [[TheMatrix Agent Smith]]? Dear Lord...
* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Abberline is a fictionalized version of the real life [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inspector_Aberline Inspector Frederick Abberline]].
* HopeSpot: [[spoiler: In the final scene, we see that Gwen is able to reach Lawrence and stops him from attacking her. It seems, for a moment, that Lawrence may actually pull through. That is, until the hunters show up, and [[HulksCooldownHugCorollary break]] his moment of clarity, which inevitably forces Gwen to shoot him.]]
* [[HulksCooldownHugCorollary Hulk's Cooldown Hug Corollary]]: [[spoiler: Gwen was giving this to Lawrence in the end, but of course, that dang angry mob just had to come by and ruin everything.]]
* [=~I'll Kill You!~=]:
-->'''Lawrence Talbot:''' I will kill '''ALL OF YOU'''!'''
** Oddly enough, it's [[PlayingWithATrope almost a subversion]]. [[LargeHam Despite the delivery]], Lawrence is [[CassandraTruth trying to warn]] the assembled doctors that he's a dire threat, rather than making a promise of revenge.
** Played straight with Lawrence to [[spoiler: his father when he learns he was the werewolf who bit him '''AND''' killed his mother and brother]]
* IKissYourHand
* [[spoiler:ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Dr. Hannigan]]
* InspectorJavert: Inspector Abberline, appropriately enough.
* InASingleBound: Larry quite impressively clears an entire police blockade in a single leap, much to Abberline's dismay.
* ItsPersonal: Larry in relation to [[spoiler:his own father, who is revealed to have killed his wife and oldest son and bit Larry, thus spreading the curse to him.]]
* JackTheRipper: It's mentioned that Abberline was in charge of the Ripper case before being assigned to Blackmoor. [[HistoricalInJoke Historically]], he [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Abberline was]].
* KillTheOnesYouLove: And how!
* LaserGuidedAmnesia: [[spoiler: It's not so much that he forgot, but rather Lawrence's memories were literally ''re-wrote'' so that real memories of his werewolf father killing his mother were made to appear that she had killed herself with a razor.]]
* [[spoiler: LetThemDieHappy: Lawrence dies in the end, but he stays alive for a few moments to reassure and thank Gwen for "setting him free." However, he dies before learning that he has bitten Abberline and that he may very well be cursed as well.]]
** [[spoiler: He could also be happy from realizing that since he was still alive to that point meant he had succeeded in defeating his father, meaning neither of them will hurt anyone again. However, this only makes the [[DownerEnding ending more tragic]] when we find out what becomes of Abberline.]]
* LikeFatherLikeSon: [[spoiler: Lawrence's father is the werewolf who bit him, and in turn, passed his werewolf curse on to him.]]
* LogoJoke: The Universal earth reveals a full moon. Also the unrated version kept the ''Art-Deco Globe'' logo featured in the original 1941 version.
* LosingYourHead: Several people are quite headless by the end of this movie.
* MadeOfPlasticine: You might as well be if you're unfortunate enough to cross paths with the werewolves in this movie.
* MadnessMantra: '''"Where is my father?"'''
* MadnessMontage: Did we mention all the hallucinations poor Lawrence has?
* MenAreTheExpendableGender: A big offender; dozens of men are killed and messily dismembered on screen while the very few female deaths are merely implied. [[spoiler: Or, in the case of Lawrence's mother played for maximum tragedy and horror as against the {{Gorn}} the male victims go through.]]
** A particularly bad example occurs in a deleted scene, in which the werewolf hears a blind woman giving a singing performance and goes to investigate. As he approaches the singer, a man grabs him by the wrist, thinking he's another guest (the performance is also a costume party). It makes sense that the werewolf would freak out and kill the guy for that, given how crazy we see werewolves are. Then we get all of the guests running away, leaving the blind singer alone and confused, not knowing who the growling person in front of her is. She starts touching the werewolf's face ''and he doesn't do a thing to her''! In fact, he doesn't move until Abberline shoots at him through a window! The singer is left entirely untouched.
* MindRape: What essentially happens to Lawrence after his time in the asylum, poor man.
* MindScrew/ [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic What Do You Mean It's Not Symbolic?]]: Did Gwen really visit Lawrence in the asylum? Or did Sir John for that matter? Is there some hidden symbolism behind the razor and all the candles everywhere?! Not to mention all the symbolism and foreshadowing in the hallucination sequences.
** [[WildMassGuessing Perhaps Lawrence just imagined the whole movie!]]
* MoralDissonance: [[spoiler: Gwen stops Abberline from shooting Lawrence, which in turn causes him to get bitten. However, this really didn't do much good since Gwen ended up shooting Lawrence herself in the end.]]
** [[spoiler: Although, she's somewhat justified since she was still convinced she could reach Lawrence, and well...[[IKnowYouAreInThereSomewhereFight she was right]]. Plus, she probably figured that Lawrence would have finished off Abberline instead of chasing after her instead.]]
** [[spoiler: It might be more of a NiceJobBreakingItHero -- Abberline getting cursed ''is'' directly her fault and presumably she's going to feel guilty about it, but it's not like she ''deliberately'' [[IncrediblyLamePun threw Abberline to the wolves]]. She was instinctively trying to save Lawrence and things went awry.]]
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Most of the movie takes place in sleepy little English hamlet of ''Blackmoor'', that's not ominous at all!
* NoisyNature
* NotableNonSequitur: Sir John Talbot warns his son not to go out on the full moon, which, of course, [[SchmuckBait sets up]] the inevitable werewolf attack. [[spoiler: The Notable part of this is where Sir John tells Lawrence this because Sir John is the werewolf and ([[XanatosSpeedChess at least, initially]]) doesn't want to be responsible for his remaining son's death.]]
* NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent: {{Justified}} with Lawrence, since in this version he spent most of his life in America where his accent probably dissipated, but even this American troper heard Sir Anthony's lilt.
** Also since Benicio is a native Spanish speaker, his accent does seem to slip in a few scenes with varying degrees.
*** ''Might'' be justifiable as well, since his mother in this version was visibly of some Spanish decent.
*** But he still gets Brownie Points for a good effort.
* NightmareSequence
* OneSceneWonder: an uncredited Max Von Sydow, in the extended version, as the mysterious man who gives Lawrence the silver cane.
* OnlyICanKillHim: After many days of sleepless research, Gwen discovers only how to kill Talbot, not how to cure him. In desperation she searches for the Gypsy fortune-teller, but she only confirms it: A werewolf can only be slain with silver, ''and'' only by someone who loves him.
* OrWasItADream?: Did Gwen really visit Lawrence in the Asylum or was she just a hallucination?
** She probably did visit, although Lawrence was probably so whacked out his memories of her visit became very convoluted and hallucination filled.
* [[spoiler: PaterFamilicide: Given that John is the one who killed his wife and Ben and probably would have succeeded in killing Larry if the hunters hadn't come along...]]
* PapaWolf: An instance of this occurs when Sir John tries to protect Larwrence from the angry mob trying to capture him by '''shooting''' at them, and possibly even blinding someone in the process, [[PetTheDog showing]] that he may truly [[WellDoneSonGuy care for his son]].
** [[spoiler:''Highly'' Subverted when he ends up trying to kill Lawrence later on after revealing he already killed his brother and mother...and that he's a werewolf himself...TraumaCongaLine much?]]
** [[spoiler:Also subverted when he lets the angry mob drag Lawrence off to an insane asylum right after the poor guy wakes up after the full moon and is scared and confused.]]
* PainfulTransformation: ''Much'' more painful than the ol' days of the stop motion transformation sequences where the worst part was just sitting still long enough while they applied makeup.
* ParentalAbandonment: Lawrence witnessed his mother's "suicide" as a child, and if that's not traumatic enough, his father throws him into an asylum and then ships him off to live with his aunt in America afterwards.
* PeekABooCorpse
* PlayingHamlet: In this version, Lawrence is an actor who's currently performing ''Hamlet'' with his theater troupe in London in the beginning of the film.
* ThePowerOfLove: Lawrence's feelings for Gwen[[spoiler: bring out what's left of his humanity, but only right before Gwen "sets him free."]]
* PragmaticAdaptation
* RageAgainstTheReflection: More like, ''push away the reflection'', once it starts to sink in what Lawrence [[WolfMan is becoming]], or that he might be going insane.
* ReflectiveEyes: "''Gwen...''"
* RevisedEnding: Apparently the original ending, in the rough draft of the screenplay that was leaked online before the movie's release, had Lawrence[[spoiler: ''throw himself off a cliff'' in order to save Gwen from himself. Yeah, glad they re-worked that one.]]
* RoofHopping: Werewolf style!
* RustproofBlood: Averted: the dried blood we see on Lawrence ranges from rust colored to almost [[BlackBlood black]] in some instances.
* ScareChord: The overwhelming majority of the frights in the film are solely due to this, rather than anything that actually happens on screen. Part of why YourMileageMayVary on the quality of the film.
* SceneryPorn: There's countless gorgeous shots of the English country side coupled with the elaborate sets and props.
* SequelHook: [[spoiler:Lawrence Talbot bites Inspector Abberline]]
* SlashedThroat: Several!
* ShoutOut: Even though the remake differs significantly from the original, they did keep a few tidbits from the 1941 version:
** Gwen's family owns an antique shop
** Lawrence's cane is similar to the one in the original, sporting a wolf's head and star.
** Plus, Sir John beating the crap out of Lawrence with said cane [[spoiler: but not in self defense, oh, [[OffingTheOffspring far from it]]]]
** The telescope
** Also a possible ShoutOut combined with a meta-example of a StealthPun:
*** Lawrence, who has lived in the United States since he was a child, and who has recently contracted lycanthropy, is sent to an asylum in London. Making him, naturally, AnAmericanWerewolfInLondon.
** The gypsy girl Lawrence saves is named Maria, which might possibly be a subtle nod to Maria Ouspenskaya, who played Maleva in the original.
** del Toro's Talbot bears a striking resemblance to {{Oliver Reed}}'s Leon from the HammerHorror ''Curse of the Werewolf.''
*** And you don't get more Spanish with a name like Benicio del Toro.
*** The idea that love might inhibit the transformation is also from ''Curse''.
** Also might be a subtle shout out to ''WerewolfOfLondon''. Not just for the fact Lawrence terrorized London for part of the film, but mainly for the ending scenes. [[spoiler: Lawrence stays alive long enough to thank Gwen for shooting him and reassures her that it was the right thing to do, much like Dr. Glendon reassures his wife and friends in a similar nature.]]
*** [[spoiler: And the remake keeps it shorter, simpler, and much more [[TearJerker emotional]] than ''WerewolfOfLondon'' which got long winded, wordy and a little silly.]]
** And this troper couldn't help but feel there may have been some slight parallels to ''Film/BeautyAndTheBeast'' with Gwen and Lawrence [[spoiler: especially in the ending scene. However, love wasn't enough to break this curse and the couple in question [[DownerEnding doesn't get a happy ending]]... ]]
** The fact that [[spoiler: Sir John received the curse from the bite of a feral child is an even subtler one. In the earliest treatment of the original movie, the titular Wolf Man would have been an orphan raised by wolves. This upbringing would have been the source of his lycanthropy.]]
* ShoutOutToShakespeare: Quite a few from ''Hamlet'', considering Lawrence is an actor in this version whose most recent play '''was''' ''Hamlet'' and the references and parallels to the play are played pretty creepily in the film. And ''Hamlet'' was famously played by Sir ''[[MeaningfulRename Lawrence]]'' Olivier.
* SilverBullet: What kind of remake would it be if it didn't have at least one silver bullet?
** And [[RedHerring unlike the original]], [[spoiler:the silver bullet is actually fired into a werewolf's body!]]
* SuperWindowJump
* SwordCane
* TheseHandsHaveKilled / BloodOnTheseHands: Lawrence the morning after his first transformation.
** ''"You've done terrible things..."''
* TimeLapse: The film is guilty of probably using one too many time lapses of the sky and moon. Although the majority are used as a part of a TimePassesMontage.
* TonightSomeoneDies: It's never actually said, but it's strongly implied that someone ain't living to see the end of this movie.
* TraumaCongaLine: Things just keep [[ItGotWorse getting worse]] for Lawrence...
* TravelMontage
* TravellingAtTheSpeedOfPlot: In preparation for the climax, Lawrence, Gwen, and Inspector Abberline all travel from London to the village, leaving at roughly the same time. Lawrence is on foot and seems to be keeping away from the roads. Gwen is on horseback. Abberline is in a horse-drawn carriage with several other policemen. They all arrive on the same day.
* UnspokenPlanGuarantee: Maleva tells Gwen that there ''might'' be a way to [[ThePowerOfLove lift the curse]], albeit very risky one... but we don't get to hear it. [[spoiler:Cruelly subverted: looks like it's working, but ultimately the plan fails due to hunters arriving.]]
* VictorianBritain: Setting for the majority of the film, until we eventually venture to...
* VictorianLondon: The setting for part of the second and third act.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: Ben Talbot is killed only a few minutes into the film.
* WeirdMoon: Subverted: The time between each transformation is roughly 28 days apart.
* WhiteShirtOfDeath: Played for full horrific effect when Lawrence wakes up after his first transformation. The white shirt he was wearing was ''quite'' messy.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity:[[spoiler: Sir John's lycanthropy has most certainly gone to his head.]]

----

* PointyEars

Larry Talbot (Lon Chaney, Jr.) is about to have a really bad night. He's just returned to his family's home in Llanwelly, Wales, to reconcile with his father. While there, he meets and starts pursuing Gwen Conliffe (Evelyn Ankers), a shopkeeper who sold him a walking stick adorned with a silver wolf's head (which she says represents a werewolf). In the course of rescuing Gwen's friend Jenny from an apparent wolf attack, Larry is bitten. He soon learns from a gypsy fortuneteller that the wolf in question was actually a werewolf, specifically her son Bela roaming the countryside in the form of a wolf. Bela had been a werewolf for years, and has now passed on the curse to Larry.

* [[HeyItsThatGuy Hey, It's That Guy!]]: Sir John and Frank Andrews are [[TheAdventuresOfRobinHood Prince John and Will Scarlet]]; Colonel Mountford is [[HisGirlFriday Bruce Baldwin]].

* TropeCodifier / TropeMaker: For the werewolf movie.

* DesignatedVillain: Inspector Abberline is really only an antagonist so far as he's trying to kill the hero. [[spoiler: Sir John is the actual villain of the story.]]

* FetishFuel: The furry and transformation fetish community already had much to squee about.
** But then there was the scene where Lawrence is BoundAndGagged in front of a crowd of doctors in the asylum.
*** Strapping him down in a chair was understandable and was done to ensure the crowds safety as he was classified as a highly unstable patient. But c'mon, was binding his mouth really necessary?
** Did anyone else see the scene where the werewolves rip their shirts off, tackle eachother, and leave claw marks down eachother's backs as a DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything moment?

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/TheWolfMan.jpg
[[caption-width:250:"The way you walked was thorny..."]]

* ''{{Abbott and Costello}} Meet Frankenstein''

** del Toro's Talbot bears a striking resemblance to Oliver Reed's Leon from the HammerHorror ''Curse of the Werewolf.''

* ForgingScene: When practically the entire village brings their silver to be forged into bullets for protection.

* CrowningMusicOfAwesome: Even with the small orchestra that they had, they still managed to create a tragic, haunting, suspenseful, and well done score.

* HilariousInHindsight: Larry Talbot, played by Lon Chaney, Jr., comes home because his brother died in a hunting accident. Lon Chaney is in fact distantly related to Dick Cheney. Put two and two together.
** It should also be noted that [[DannyElfman Danny Elfman's]] score for ''Batman'' shared some uncanny resemblances with Salter and Skinner’s score for the original. Guess who ended up composing the score for the remake?

* TheWoobie: Larry, although not the ChewToy extent of his character in the remake.

* AdaptationDisplacement

* AndTheFandomRejoiced: Fans' reaction to the news that a remake was in the works was generally well recieved and spazz-worthy.
** Not so much that it was being remade, but the fact that it was going to use '''actual make-up''' and not just be another generic CGI-suckfest.
** Also, that it would star BenicioDelToro, who already looked kind of like the Wolfman.

* CompleteMonster: [[spoiler: Sir John, both figuratively ''and'' literally.]]

* CrazyAwesome: Sir John is basically a proper, English gentleman who's also a keen shot with a rifle, a keen liar/actor, and a great hunter as he is dressed in different furs and his home is decorated with different stuffed beasts is a testimony of this.
** [[spoiler: Plus he's completely INSANE and a werewolf to boot.]]
** May also be a perspective of the movie as a whole, [[YourMileageMayVary depending on your perspective]] of course.
* CrowningMomentOfFunny: Abberline's explanation of why he's in the pub, not out looking for the werewolf. ''"Pint of Bitter, please."''
** And the look on Dr. Hannigan's face when he realizes Lawrence really ''is'' a werewolf.
* CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming: Just about anything involving Gwen and Lawrence in the latter half of the movie.
* CrowningMomentOfSadness: The ending...enough said.
* CrowningMusicOfAwesome: DannyElfman, you've done it again.

* EverybodyRemembersTheStripper: You know what we are talking about.

* MagnificentBastard: [[spoiler: Sir John]]

* MissedMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler: Abberline seizes Sir John's silver headed cane, after being the only man to fight close quarters with the werewolf and survive and with incredibly Badass music playing rushes out to settle the score...and arrives when Gwen has already shot the lycanthrope.]]

* TearJerker: The ending...dear god the ending.
** This troper's heart got jerked particularly hard when Lawrence is ''begging'' someone to ''' '' kill him '' ''' right before he transforms for the second time, this time in a room full of doctors and spectators.
** No love for the end of the MadnessMontage, when Gwen comes to visit and tries desperately to calm him down, all while he's clearly hurt and scared and having hallucinations of werewolves lunging at him. Even worse is the fact that it's entirely possible that Gwen wasn't there at ''all''.

* TravelsAtTheSpeedOfPlot: In preparation for the climax, Lawrence, Gwen, and Inspector Abberline all travel from London to the village, leaving at roughly the same time. Lawrence is on foot and seems to be keeping away from the roads. Gwen is on horseback. Abberline is in a horse-drawn carriage with several other policemen. They all arrive on the same day.

* VisualEffectsOfAwesome: Admit it...the transformation sequences are pretty damn awesome.
** Not to mention Rick Baker's incredible makeup effects. No wonder they won an Oscar for Best Makeup.

* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity:[[spoiler: Sir John's lycanthropy has most certainly gone to his head]]
* TheWoobie/ ChewToy: You can't help but feel pretty crappy for Lawrence after his time in the asylum.
** Heck, you feel pretty crappy for him for most of the entire movie!
** Arguably an IronWoobie at the end, when [[spoiler:he goes off to kill his father.]]

A remake of ''The Wolf Man'', starring BenicioDelToro as Lawrence Talbot, was released on February 12, 2010, is a PragmaticAdaptation and more of an {{Homage}} to its predecessor. Some of the most noticeable differences from the original are that it's now set in [[VictorianBritain 1891 England]] as opposed to 1940's Wales, and is also much [[DarkerAndEdgier darker]] and more [[BloodierAndGorier violent]] than its 1941 counterpart.

* ActionGirl: Gwen Conliffe eventually becomes the Victorian equivalent of this when she becomes so motivated by trying to save Lawrence that she totes a gun around while running around in a dark forest in the middle of the night -- certainly breaking the DamselInDistress version of her character from 1941.

Despite not being a box office success, the remake did receive an Oscar for Best Makeup. Shortly afterwards, Universal announced plans to make the Wolf Man into a direct-to-video film franchise.

A remake of ''The Wolf Man'', starring Benicio Del Toro as Lawrence Talbot, was released on February 12, 2010, is a PragmaticAdaptation and more of an {{Homage}} to its predecessor. Some of the most noticeable differences from the original are that it's now set in [[VictorianBritain 1891 England]] as opposed to 1940's Wales, and is also much [[DarkerAndEdgier darker]] and more [[BloodierAndGorier violent]] than its 1941 counterpart.

* AudioErotica: HugoWeaving and Anthony Hopkins.

** [[spoiler:Perhaps it was close enough to dawn for young Lawrence to escape?]]