The Boy Who Cried Werewolf (1973) - Corny, but watchable

During the pandemic, hairdressers around the world were closed, meaning I couldn't get my hair cut for months.  By the end of it, I looked about as scary as a 'werewolf' from this film.  I may be being a little harsh, but what I'm trying to say is not to expect too many scares from this 'horror' film.

Within the opening five minutes you should basically know what you're in for.  After a heavy exposition dump, delivered by a curly-haired boy, we see our first monster.  It's basically a bloke in a Halloween mask (and a cheap one at that) that, at some angles, even looks more like a baboon than a werewolf!  Werewolves are a difficult creature to make look believable on the big screen and it seems you either need to have a mega budget behind you, or some really inventive ways of filming, combined with practical effects.  This movie has neither.

But it's not all bad.  In fact, it's quite good fun - even for a film that relies heavily on a young actor to carry much of it.  Yes, he's a bit annoying, but not as bad as many of a similar age when on screen.  He tries to tell the local population of a werewolf ravaging the surrounding woods, but - as the title suggests - they don't much take to his tales.

There's definitely fun to be had here.  It's cheap and cheesy and if you're in a forgiving mood you can certainly have fun with this one.  Just don't expect any real scares, let alone special effects.  For some reason the scenes which are supposed to be set in the middle of the night (as the characters even state!) are clearly filmed at dusk, or with an odd exposure setting on the film camera, making it look like dusk.  I'm guessing this is simply because it would be too dark to shoot at night, but it adds to the 'low budget' feel of it all.

It's no masterpiece and possibly not even up there with the best of the werewolf genre, but if you're bored and don't have your expectations set too high then you can pass some time with this one.

6/10 Should probably keep you awake if Freddy Krueger was haunting your nights