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After having made several terrible horror movies on his own, such as 1960’s “Teenage Zombies,” American filmmaker Jerry Warren struck upon the idea of buying horror movies from other countries and reworking them to create new titles that were more palatable for American audiences. Unfortunately, “Creature of the Walking Dead” (1965) and other stitch jobs were equally atrocious: Warren ignored even the most basic linear plot, a situation made worse by bad dubbing, edits and confusing new footage shot by Warren.
Perhaps the most bizarre of Warren’s Frankenfilms was “Face of the Screaming Werewolf,” a 1965 fusion of two Mexican features: the horror-comedy “La Casa del Terror,” which featured actor Lon Chaney Jr. as a mummified werewolf who returned to life, and “The Aztec Mummy,” about an ancient warrior revived by the theft of his treasure. Much of the comedy from “Casa” was trimmed away, though that film’s star, Tin-Tan, still shows up at the end of “Werewolf,” seemingly out of nowhere, to save the day. Warren also added new footage featuring American actors playing policemen and newscasters in an attempt to make some sense of the plot. It didn’t help.
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Chaney hadn’t donned werewolf makeup on film since 1948’s “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein,” so his appearance in the role lends a touch of nostalgic pleasure. Unfortunately, Chaney’s health was in decline, due in part to alcoholism and other issues, and he looks worn out when not wearing the makeup. However, once the (cheap-looking) fur and fangs are added, he seems to find his old energy, and howls and growls with abandon.
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