Wolf Blood

Wolf Blood, also known as Wolfblood: A Tale of the Forest, is a silent 1925 werewolf film starring George Chesebro, who also co-directed it with B-serial veteran Bruce M. Mitchell. The film has been referenced in a number of books as being the first werewolf movie ever made. This however is erroneous; the first werewolf movie is The Werewolf, a film made in 1913. However that film is considered to be lost. Therefore, Wolf Blood could be called the earliest surviving werewolf film. Wolf Blood is available commercially as an extra on a DVD together with F.W. Murnau's The Haunted Castle.

Not to be confused with Wolfblood.
Wolf Blood
Directed byGeorge Chesebro
Bruce Mitchell
Produced byRyan Brothers
Written byCliff Hill
Bennett Cohen
StarringGeorge Chesebro
Roy Watson
Milburn Morante
Frank Clark
Marguerite Clayton
Ray Hanford
Jack Cosgrave
CinematographyLesley Selander
Production
company
Ryan Brothers Productions
Distributed byLee-Bradford Corporation
Release date
  • December 16, 1925 (1925-12-16)
Running time
68 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)

Plot

Dick Bannister is the new field boss of the Ford Logging Company, a Canadian logging-crew during a time when conflicts with the powerful Consolidated Lumber Company, a bitter rival company, have turned bloody, like a private war. His boss, Miss Edith Ford, comes to inspect the lumberjack camp, bringing her fiancé Dr. Horton with her. Dick is attacked by his rivals and left for dead. His loss of blood is so great that he needs a transfusion, but no human will volunteer, so the doctor uses a wolf as a source of the blood. Afterwards, Dick begins having dreams in which he runs with a pack of phantom wolves, and some rival loggers are killed by wolves. Soon, the news has spread through the camp and most of the lumberjacks begin to believe that Dick is a werewolf. Dick attempts to jump off a cliff, but is rescued by Edith.

Cast
  • George Chesebro as Dick Bannister.
  • Marguerite Clayton as Miss Edith Ford, owner of the Ford Logging Company.
  • Raymond "Ray" Hanford as Dr. Eugene "Gene" Horton, Edith's fiancĂ©.
  • Roy Watson as Jules Deveroux, envious owner of the Consolidated Lumber Company.
  • Milburn Morante as Jacques Lebeq, notorious bootlegger.
  • Frank Clark as Old Pop Hadley, alcoholic woods guard for the Ford Logging Company.
  • Jack Cosgrave as Edith's uncle and manager.

Criticism

Critic Troy Howarth writes "The film spends an eternity dwelling on its old-fashioned romantic scenario before even beginning to toy with the notion of a man turning into a wolf. Even more disappointing, no actual transformation ever occurs. The filmmaking is crude and antiquated, even for its time.".[1]

References
  1. Workman, Christopher; Howarth, Troy (2016). "Tome of Terror: Horror Films of the Silent Era". Midnight Marquee Press. p.295. ISBN 978-1936168-68-2.
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