Hello, horror fans. Welcome to this edition of Horror With a Side of Cheese. I am searching for the cheesiest, silliest, weirdest and funniest genre films ever created. Twice each month, I come here to discuss my latest finds. The journey takes me through sub-genres, decades and locations. Each chosen film is rated on a scale of one to five cheese slices. Several factors go into the ratings, including story, effects, dialogue, acting and re-watchability. In this edition, I present the 1985 film Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf. Stick around to find out how many cheese slices this one earns.
About Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf
In this sequel to The Howling, a man discovers his sister is a werewolf. He then teams up with a mysterious man bent on taking out the werewolf queen. To save humankind, the two unlikely comrades head to Transylvania with a plan to kill the queen and end werewolves for good. They must face a few obstacles to achieve this goal, not the least of which is the queen’s immortality. Is this an impossible mission, or will the pair succeed?
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This film stars Christopher Lee, Reb Brown, Annie McEnroe, Marsha A. Hunt, Sybil Danning, Judd Omen and Ferdy Mayne. Philippe Mora directed the movie, and Gray Brandner and Robert Sarno wrote the story.
Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf has a 31 percent Tomatometer Score and a 14 percent Audience Score on Rotten Tomatoes. IMDb users give it 3.7/10.
My Thoughts
There are many things to be said about The Howling franchise. Among those thoughts is the fact that they are all unique in terms of werewolf films. Lycanthropes are my favorite horror monsters, so I watch anything featuring the furry beasts. This means I have seen some incredible movies and some absolute travesties. All these movies fall somewhere closer to travesties than anything else, but I do not think anyone can argue that they are unlike anything else on the market.
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The first aspect I want to get into is the special effects. I read a review that referred to the wolves as looking like Bigfoot wearing a monkey costume, and this is easily the best description I have found. They do not resemble any werewolves I have seen in any other media. For me, it puts me outside the film, unable to connect. Also, it is uncommon for lycans to have magical powers, a featured aspect in this movie. The effects of the “magic” are on par with ’80s movies, if more on the cheesy side. The blood is just meh.
On to the story, it is ok but also ridiculous. This is the least cheesy aspect, but it is still pretty high on the charts. Werewolves are trying to take over the world. A random guy sees his sister change on live TV. Said guy teams up with a strange man who says he will kill the Lycan’s queen. If they can manage that, everything will go back to normal. Of course, this is no simple task. The obstacles they face are interesting, to say the least.
The dialogue matches the rest of the factors in terms of cheesiness. Someone asks what is wrong, and the response, in a werewolf apocalypse, is, “I lost my earplugs!” Several moments just include gesturing. There are not too many lines worthy of featuring here, but a lot of the dialogue is quite funny in its absurdness.
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Christopher Lee is in Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf, so there is some talent. However, the overall experience is certainly over the top. Generally speaking, there is nothing so spectacular in either direction as to warrant mention.
Finally, re-watchability. I admit to having watched this one a couple of times but do not actively seek it out. If it is all that is available, I will watch it, but that is the extent of my efforts. If you have not seen this one, I recommend giving it a chance. I am giving this one 3.5 cheese slices. If you have not seen it yet, it is streaming on Tubi.
What are your thoughts on Howling II? Let me know in the comments! Until next time, horror fans, stay spooky, stay cheesy, and above all, watch more horror movies. Before you go, check out the trailer below.
https://www.geekgirlauthority.com/movies-weve-watched-more-than-10-times/
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