Howl (2015)

Howl had all the right ingredients, a train cutting through a dark and rain swept night, a monster lurking in the woods and a group of unsuspecting travelers. So why is this film so ordinary?

Howl fails for so many reasons but chief amongst these, for me, is a throughly unlikable cast of characters. The trains occupants are a cynical, selfish, rude, nasty bunch. As a result, its hard to empathize with the plight of the travelers, which in turn robs this film of any sense of tension and suspense, as you quickly stop caring what happens to them.

In most other respects, Howl is clichéd fare but, to a degree, that's forgivable. Pretty much any horror scenario you care to name has, to one degree or other, been done before. Howl is no exception. Howls sets are good, the mood reminiscent of an older generation of horror films, and the monster effects convincing. The acting is reasonable too, its a shame so little care went into the overall characterization.

I rate Howl a five out of ten. Its not dreadful but its hardly a masterpiece either.

Fmovies: No wait that doesn't make any sense. But with werewolf movies not everything has to make sense. It's the characters compilation (nicely introduced through our card inspector on the train) and the story itself that will matter. And the humor of course, if you are into this kind of thing.

If I have one complaint, it's how the Shauna McDonald story plays out. Some may like the way they chose for her character, some others like me won't. Apart from that, there is a lot to love here. Colorful if a bit predictable turns and twists. And an old school feel (even with added CGI) to the whole werewolf thing. There will be blood and a full moon

Lots of familiar faces in this fun Brit horror from effects maestro Paul Hyett - Shauna Macdonald (THE DESCENT), Sean Pertwee (DOG SOLDIERS), Rosie Day (THE SEASONING HOUSE), Ed Speleers (DOWNTON ABBEY) - a very cool young cast of up and comers too, having loads of fun with a great script that doesn't take itself too seriously. Not that it isn't full of scares too - some kick ass action as the passengers join together to fight off the werewolves. They've gone for a much more realistic kind of monster – like a human/wolf hybrid. No furry cuddly Twilight wolves in this one! Most of the visual effects look like they're done in camera rather than too much CGI which is nice to see these days. Definitely the best werewolf movie since Dog Soldiers. But apart from that just a really terrifying and entertaining movie in a claustrophobic setting that we can all relate to – a broken down train!

Howl fmovies. AGAIN , yes it is a b movie with a good budget, all characters are exposed before the "hit", There are no questions about them when the "#@4T" hits the fan! Great writing for a b movie. We have all seen worse. Yes it is predictable to point.

It deserves a viewing

Would like to see a high budget Movie with this "schooled" Character build. and have Actors really work it, from the beginning!

YES 7 for a "B" movie!

need 10 lines? gonna get critical. the over top cam was abit over used on the train.

the tension between the 2 "lets save our selves " could have been pushed abit more- using others adding conflict.

the fuel line break was just silly as they are run in side a cased frame

logic for a break would have been Electrical or jumped rail, Which still happens today!

Read the title of this horror and you know already what it's about anyway. Nothing like a good werewolf movie from time to time. Although there's still a certain shortage of decent films when it comes to this genre. The last (for me personally) successful werewolf movie that I watched, was "Wer". On the other hand you'll see some abominably bad attempts like "Wolves" and "Night Wolf". "Howl", a movie from the UK, may not be as good as "An American Werewolf in London", but still managed to surprise me. And although it's a low-budget film, you can say that the look of the creatures terrorizing the passengers of the stranded train was successful. Probably the used anatomy will ensure a bit of protest by the followers of the genre, because it seemed like a mix of a wolf and the creature from "Splice." But that first attack with a bloody close-up took my breath away. Brilliant makeup and special effects. They looked at least less ridiculous than the furry creatures of "Late Phases" (a movie in which the acting impressed) with their ears decorated with tassels.

The progress of "Howl" is well considered and balanced. First a comprehensive introduction of all the characters. The middle section with the threatening situation they find themselves in. Followed by the final confrontation with the necessary victims and a predictable turn. Don't be surprised when some of the individuals make some stupid decisions again. However, the end might be a little surprising. Unfortunately, the look of the night creatures, when you can admire them in full regalia, isn't so convincing or frightening. To be honest they looked like individuals who returned from some kind of masked ball. But believe me, the first confrontation was bloody and ruthless. Sheer aggression focused on the terrible creature that struck in a deadly and gruesome way shortly before.

Not only the suspense and tension was a positive element in this film. The performances were enjoyable. A collection of colorful characters displaying that typical reserved British attitude. It surprised me they weren't having a tea break while being attacked by those animals. First, there's Joe (Ed Speleers), an undervalued train guard, whose life is an accumulation of setbacks and adversities. He is despised by colleagues and passengers see him as an incapable figure. His colleague Ellen (Holly Weston) ignores his romantic moves. Kate (Shauna Macdonald) hated Joe the first instance after she had to pay for a new ticket. Adrian (Elliot Cowan) is a cocky guy who in the end just tries to save his own neck. Nina (Rosie Day) is a spoiled brat. And then there's this elderly couple, who won't hide their outrage about the delay, a nerd-like young boy (Amit Shah), an engineer in the making (Sam Gittins) and an obese, lazy football player (Calvin Dean). The introduction sometimes is comical and highly recognizable.

Not only the werewolves provide for the eerie atmosphere. But also the location where the train gets stuck with its dark woods and the typical English fog banks, create a creepy mood. The origin of the creatures isn't explained in detail. Only the older man is aware of other mythical stories about broken down trains and passengers disappearing or being found in a pitiful state. But otherwise, you can only guess where these fast-paced, immensely strong and bloodthirsty creatures come from. Despite being a typical B-movie and the fact that I thought Paul Hyett&

There is some development for story line and character purposes that is slightly painful to get through but it is not as excruciating as certain ritalin addicts would have u believe. The irritable characters r truly annoying and u really enjoy the scenes when they die horribly. I particularly enjoyed the death of the pre period mouth piece, although it is quite a 180 from the seasoning house.

The ticketmaster plodded along and kept everyone in line until the time came to take command which he managed to do admirably. The creatures were very well done, not as good as underworld but better then crap like wolfcop or the ewok looking fuzzies from wolves. I am not sure where all the hate is coming from but this was a decent horror film sure it was no American werewolf in London but it still entertaining for the hounds out there, British included.