The Howling: New Moon Rising

Film: The Howling: New Moon Rising

Year: 1995

Director: Clive Turner

Writer: Clive Turner

Starring: John Ramsden, Ernest Kester and Clive Turner

Review:

This is a film that I learned about when seeking out the different films in the franchise. I grew up with part 2 and I believe I saw part 4 before going back to see the original. This is one that I saw when living in Cleveland. It was one that I knew wasn’t very good. I’m now giving this a rewatch for my Voyage through the FiVes.

Synopsis: a number of vicious murders occur in a small Southern California town after a motorcycle-riding stranger arrives. The gruesome slaying looks to be done by an animal. In a nearby town, a priest is convinced it is the work of a werewolf and enlist the aid of a local detective.

A detective, played by John Ramsden, finds a heavily decomposed corpse in the desert. He’s looking at the scene with a couple of other guys as they try to make sense of what they’re seeing. He then meets with a Catholic priest, Father John (Jack Huff), who tells him about werewolf history, referencing events from The Original Nightmare (Part 4), The Freaks (Part 6) and The Rebirth (Part 5). Ramsden is skeptical but listens.

We then meet the biker from the synopsis as he rides into the small town. His name is Ted Smith (Clive Turner). He goes into a bar, looking for work. There we meet the bartender Ernie (Ernest Kester) as well as the owners of the bar, Pappy (Claude ‘Pappy’ Allen) and Eveanne (Sally Harkham). Ted makes eyes at a woman, Jaqueline (Jaqueline Armitage). What we’ll learn is that she’s a widower who isn’t necessarily looking for someone.

Ted takes a job at the bar and fits right in with all of the regulars. He also grows close to Jackie. There is something that we see being off though. He goes off to make phone calls to check in. There are a couple of women who don’t trust him, Bonnie (Bonnie Lagassa) and Cheryl (Cheryl Allen).

Soon after his arrival, a man he argued with goes missing, and Eveanne's deer are bothered by an animal, followed by other disappearances. Ted, the newcomer, is the easy suspect, but animal prints suggest a mountain lion or a large wolf. Father John believes the werewolf is one of the survivors from The Rebirth at a Romanian castle, naming Ted and Mary Lou (Elizabeth Shé). They must identify the stalker before it's too late.

That is where I’ll leave my recap and introduction to the characters. Where I’ll start is that this isn’t very good. I try to find the positives in anything that I watch. What I’ll credit here is that they did get a movie made. I like setting by putting this in the desert. It becomes a murder mystery. The problem there is that Ted doesn’t know he’s a suspect. We’re following a duo of women who are trying to prove he’s the killer, but it doesn’t do enough to fully build suspense or tension there unfortunately.

Something else that I’ll give credit to is the fact that this is a direct sequel to parts 4 through 6, to an extent. There are references to those films. Father John uses it in trying to convince the detective what is happening. It does become a bit of a clip show for the amount of old footage that is used here. I’ve seen other movies use way more, but I’d say that a good third of this is reusing that footage. A bit is a good way to get the viewer up to speed without going dialogue heavy. This just uses too much.

This also uses way too many montages. It feels like the script and footage shot wasn’t enough to make a feature film. They then added in filler of people line dancing to musical acts that are playing at the bar. A scene or sequence of this would be fine, especially early. The fact that they use as much as they did bog this down. It made it difficult for me to focus.

There are other themes that you could pull from this. My issues with dancing scenes can be seen at celebrating the small-town culture. I do get that to an extent. There is also an added element to the werewolf lore here, that someone cursed after three years can inflict it on others. They also play with the idea that it could be seen as a possession that can take over others.

Now that I have that out of the way, let’s shift over to the filmmaking aspects. The cinematography and framing are adequate, with the red filter on the monster's eyes being a nice detail. The effects are limited; the werewolf appears to be a rubber mask, and the transformation scene, while basic, shows an effort. The music, though not my preferred genre, appropriately complements the depicted culture.

All that is left then would be the acting performances. Turner is an acceptable lead, despite his odd accent for the country setting, and his personality makes his acceptance by the town plausible. Ramsden and Huff work as a duo, with the latter trying to convince the detective about werewolves. Kester, Allen, Harkham, Armitage, and the rest of the cast, including Shé, are fine. The amateur feel is acceptable, but the poor comedy is worsened by the actors' delivery.

In conclusion, this is a low-budget entry in the franchise that struggles to justify its existence, primarily due to an over-reliance on stock footage from earlier sequels and excessive filler in the form of dance montages. While it manages to create a unique desert-set murder mystery and connect the lore from parts four through six, the weak suspense, limited practical effects, and amateur comedy detract significantly from the viewing experience. Despite the adequate efforts of the cast and the successful production of a feature film, its narrative deficiencies ultimately make this one of the weaker installments, earning it a very low rating.

My Rating: 2.5 out of 10