Director - Hope Perello (Pet Shop, St. Patrick's Day)
Starring - Brendan Hughes (Torchwood, Return to Horror High), Michele Matheson (Kingpin, Revenge of the Nerds III: The Next Generation), and Sean Sullivan (Wayne's World, Back to the Future III)
Release Date - 1991
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "Vampire vs. werewolf. The ultimate clash of the forces of evil"
Format - DVD (Personal Collection (Screener)
Rating (out of 5):
I know Howling VI: The Freaks is not the last in the Howling series. If memory serves I think there is two more after this one but I knew this would the last one in the set so I didn't have high expectations. This 1991 horror film is often mentioned in groups and compared to the first Underworld series that features a werewolf/vampire hybrid. People often bashed The Freaks but referenced it when Underworld was released. I had never seen The Freaks until now and I finally understand why people compared the two. Way different stories but the beast is very similar. I was not looking forward to this one but it actually surprised me and I liked it. This box set begins and ends with solid films while the middle is murky.
The film follows an English handyman who goes to a small town during a drought looking for work. A preacher who is a single father hires him to help restore the church in hopes of inspiring others in the community during this troubling time. Everything goes smoothly until the night of a full moon. The handyman changes into a werewolf and the owner of a traveling carnival that is traveling through knows exactly what he is so he cages him to use in his sideshow. The preacher's daughter is in love with him and tries to free him but discovers that the sideshow owner is harboring a dark secret as well.
I didn't know what to expect from this one but at the end of the day I really enjoyed it. It was just as flawed as the previous installments but I really enjoyed myself. The acting in this one is actually pretty entertaining. We get some rather enjoyable characters with some great development mixed with some very forgettable characters. The cast does give the scenes everything they have to offer but there is a few where it just comes up short or falls flat. With that being said, it is leagues better than Howling IV. The story for this one really held my interest. I've always enjoyed horror films centered around traveling carnivals and sideshows. Carnies have such a horrifying appeal to me. They could be roaming serial killers that bounce from town to town or vampires that drains entire towns during their visits. The possibilities are endless. With that being said, I really liked how it was added to the Howling universe and even expanded upon. However, there is several scenes that are painfully slow to watch as the film progressed. The first 45 minutes or so coasted by but the film does start to wonder after the hour mark. Finally, the film has some solid practical effects. We get some blood and great practical effects and the creatures are great with the exception of the one werewolf scene where he is caged. He was very laughable. Overall, Howling VI: The Freaks may not be perfect but it doesn't deserve the shit that it gets It definitely deserves a watch.
I know Howling VI: The Freaks is not the last in the Howling series. If memory serves I think there is two more after this one but I knew this would the last one in the set so I didn't have high expectations. This 1991 horror film is often mentioned in groups and compared to the first Underworld series that features a werewolf/vampire hybrid. People often bashed The Freaks but referenced it when Underworld was released. I had never seen The Freaks until now and I finally understand why people compared the two. Way different stories but the beast is very similar. I was not looking forward to this one but it actually surprised me and I liked it. This box set begins and ends with solid films while the middle is murky. 
The film follows an English handyman who goes to a small town during a drought looking for work. A preacher who is a single father hires him to help restore the church in hopes of inspiring others in the community during this troubling time. Everything goes smoothly until the night of a full moon. The handyman changes into a werewolf and the owner of a traveling carnival that is traveling through knows exactly what he is so he cages him to use in his sideshow. The preacher's daughter is in love with him and tries to free him but discovers that the sideshow owner is harboring a dark secret as well.
I didn't know what to expect from this one but at the end of the day I really enjoyed it. It was just as flawed as the previous installments but I really enjoyed myself. The acting in this one is actually pretty entertaining. We get some rather enjoyable characters with some great development mixed with some very forgettable characters. The cast does give the scenes everything they have to offer but there is a few where it just comes up short or falls flat. With that being said, it is leagues better than Howling IV. The story for this one really held my interest. I've always enjoyed horror films centered around traveling carnivals and sideshows. Carnies have such a horrifying appeal to me. They could be roaming serial killers that bounce from town to town or vampires that drains entire towns during their visits. The possibilities are endless. With that being said, I really liked how it was added to the Howling universe and even expanded upon. However, there is several scenes that are painfully slow to watch as the film progressed. The first 45 minutes or so coasted by but the film does start to wonder after the hour mark. Finally, the film has some solid practical effects. We get some blood and great practical effects and the creatures are great with the exception of the one werewolf scene where he is caged. He was very laughable. Overall, Howling VI: The Freaks may not be perfect but it doesn't deserve the shit that it gets It definitely deserves a watch.
No comments:
Post a Comment