Silver Bullet
|
Our Price: $29.99 Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Buy Used: from $16.49 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
Movie Reviews of Silver Bullet
Movie Review: Put down the silver bullets because the only way to stop a werewolf is uncle Gary Buesy
Summary: 5 Stars
Of one the most intense creatures in the horror world has to be the werewolf. What could be worse then having a huge, fast, blood thirsty man beast hunting you down? On top of there size and other beastly features they can sniff you out no matter where you try to hide. That's certainly enough reason to fear the wolfman also making him a must during Sid's personal horror film festival (this being the 10th on the season). Now there's a lot out there in the wolf department but when given the option to see a young Corey Haim team up with Gary Busey there really was no other choice as far as we're concerned.
Silver Bullet takes place in the small town of Tarker's Mill that seems to have nothing interesting going on. Marty Coslaw (Corey Haim) is a young handicapped kid who lives at home with his parents and sister and is viewed as helpless. We'd have to suspect his experience from playing a paraplegic here helped him very much today when he pretends to be a crippled war vet begging for change outside a local diner. Anyway, a lot of extreme murders begin to take place putting the towns folk in fear. As they hunt for the killer it is soon discovered by Marty that a werewolf is doing the murders. So naturally his first option is to enlist the help of his drunk uncle Red (Busey). With a team compiled of a handicapped kid, his sister, and wasted uncle Busey how can you go wrong?
Despite the jokes Silver Bullet was a killer flick packed with some great wolf action and laughs. Unlike most, this one doesn't waste anytime with the wolf as we see a decapitation within the first 3 mins! That right there is something revered by Sid in any film. Not only was the werewolf kick a** but Gary Busey is so entertaining to watch. Especially when he builds his nephew a motorcycle wheel chair to tear around town in. Sure came in handy when he had to run from the werewolf. This one is a great choice for any fan of the genre especially if you want to see a still somewhat sane Busey on screen. Even have to give it to Haim to was really good too. Unfortunately seems he shot all his talent away early on leaving him too bad to even get cast in a horrible B. Due to the great enjoyment this one get's close with the Drive-In Totals:
2 Decapitations
1 preacher moonlighting as a werewolf
7 shotgun bearing drunk werewolf hunting rednecks, 1 getting caught in bear trap
Illegal fireworks smuggled by drunk Uncle Gary Busey
4.5 bottles of Wild Turkey downed
hand crafted motorcycle wheelchair
3 fantastic werewolf murders within the first half hour
and a body count total of 9
Movie Review: Love it!
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm not really a big Stephen King fan. But, this story is a gem. A werewolf tale done from a very different perspective. Corey Haim is the main character in the film and plays the part of Marty, a young boy confined to a wheelchair to get around. Megan Follows is his sister and best friend and Gary Busey is his Mom's brother, a well-soaked Uncle, called Red. To me, the relationship between Marty and his sister and Marty and his Uncle Red are the main attractions in this movie. The special effects aren't really all that great, the screen-play is mediocre, overall and the supporting cast do a pretty good job in their flat, one-dimensional roles.
But, Uncle Red loves his nephew and likes to spend time with him. He's drunk on a regular basis, which leads you to think that, maybe somehow, he's partly to blame for Marty's condition. It's never even suggested, but the pain he shows at times over Marty's disability seems telling. He also likes doing things to make Marty happy, like building him a souped-up, decked-out three wheel motorized wheel chair, with way too much power for an eleven year old kid. You can sense his fear for Marty's safety when he gives it to him. But, his desire to make his nephew happy overwhelms his sense of responsibility. There are many other scenes that are really wonderful to watch Busey playing Uncle Red and his role is a true highlight of this film.
Megan Follows as Marty's sister, Jane is also wonderful to watch. It's one of the heart warming aspects of this movie. As she's frustrated at being cast, by her parents, as Marty's gofer and getter, so to speak, and also being constantly berated for not keeping her brother on a tight enough leash, there's also the love she feels for her brother and the fact that she believes in him. This is a very important aspect of the film. Marty believes he has seen a werewolf, which is, of course, an unbelieveable thing and he desperately needs someone to believe him and believe in him. His sister is there for him and gives him the faith that he needs.
This movie is judged best, in my opinion, on it's characterizations and the relationships between the characters. In the end, though, those are the most importasnt aspects of any film. It's simple, but loads of fun!
My wife and I both really liked to see Corey in the movies back when he was popular and I was very saddened to hear about his untimely passing, last month. He did such a wonderful job playing the sweet, good natured, innocent kid and he was such a welcome addition to any movie. I wish that he could have had a more happy life as an adult.
Movie Review: Underrated werewolf movie
Summary: 5 Stars
I first saw Silver Bullet in the cinema in 1986 when it was released. It was kinda dumped into cinemas without much marketing and was four years behind the big grossing werewolf films of the 1980s - The Howling and An American Werewolf In London. The result was that it did not perform at the Box Office. That is a shame because it is a little gem of a film, and is a better film than An American Werewolf in London. In fact it is up there with The Howling as the best werewolf film of the 1980s.
What makes Silver Bullet so good? It is based on Stephen King's short story The Cycle Of The Werewolf. King himself wrote the screenplay. The cast are very good in their roles and bring the tale to life with a result that you care for, and can identify with the characters as the tale unfolds. Corey Haim gives probably his best performance as the young crippled lad, Marty who has to face life (and a werewolf) in a wheel chair. Megan Follows turns in a great performance as his resentful sister Jane who is also the films narrator. Gary Busey is very good as Marty's sympathetic but alcoholic uncle. Sterling support from other actors such as Quest For Fire's Everett McGill who is superb as the town's creepy minister and Terry O'Quinlan who plays the town sheriff.
This film version of a Stephen King book succeeds so well because it brings King's book to life on the screen in a way that so many other film adaptations of King books fail badly to do. It combines the horror with the realistic depiction of everyday life. Friendship, loyalty, drunkeness, pettiness, and bigotry all feature among the townsfolk. The support crippled Marty gets from family and friends contrasts with the attitude of his girlfriend's slob of a father who thinks that cripples sponge off the welfare and should be put down....
This film succeeds where so many fail and that is to place Stephen King's warts and all depiction of humanity up there on the screen.
The horror is well catered for, scenes with the werewolf are scary and gory. The beast itself is a huge monstrousity, well brought to life by SFX whizz Carlo Rambaldi who created ET.
I do have a criticism of the dvd though and that is the mono sound. I am disappointed that if they could not put the film into 5.1, then the distributor could at least have given it a surround sound soundtrack.
I do though recommend the film to anyone who likes the genre, plus any fan of Stephen King's books who would like to see a decent adaptation up there on the screen.
Movie Review: great fun!
Summary: 5 Stars
"Silver Bullet" is proof that you don't need great werewolf F/X to have a great werewolf movie. It's not that the werewolf looks particularly bad, just... average. But the fun is in the story.Corey Haim (before he got famous and became an irritating joke) stars as Marty, a wheelchair-bound youngster who, midway through the movie, has an encounter with the beast that has been murdering townsfolk, including Marty's best pal and (in a very amusing scene) his sweetheart's drunken father. The beast is clearly a werewolf, but who will believe him? Surprisingly, only his snotty sister (Megan Follows) does, and this is the bond that carries the movie. The rapport between Haim and Follows is excellent, and their scenes together are often touching. The rest of the energy in the movie is provided by former (?) cocaine fiend Gary Busey as the siblings' alcoholic Uncle Red. Busey, whose career peaked in the 70's with his excellent work in "The Buddy Holly Story" and has been declining ever since, rebounds slightly in this movie with his highly entertaining character. Although Uncle Red is not the greatest role model for Marty, they clearly adore each other, even if Red's skepticism regarding the werewolf sometimes borders on the hysterical. The siblings discover the werewolf's human identity and try to come up with a plan for killing it, while Uncle Red struggles to swallow their story. It all builds to an exciting conclusion as the trio confront the beast on Halloween night.
The supporting cast of colorful townspeople adds immeasurably to the movie's enjoyment factor. The viewer is also treated to some genuinely touching moments, a few decent scares (like when the vigilante mob goes werewolf-hunting and winds up getting slaughtered by the crafty beast), and a thrilling chase scene between the werewolf (in human form) and Marty in his souped-up wheelchair.
While there are certainly better-looking werewolves out there, "Silver Bullet" can't be beat in terms of pure fun. It would even make an excellent family movie (except for the gore), because of the love and trust shared by Marty, his sister, and their uncle, which provides the movie with its strong moral center. Check it out. You won't regret it. If you do, you're just a boring, cynical person, and I pity you.
Movie Review: I wish I had seen this when I was a kid.
Summary: 5 Stars
It was probably just the result of an excellent marketing campaign, but Stephen King is known around the world as THE Master of Horror. I've read a lot of Stephen King novels and seen even more movies based on them, and I have always felt that King achieves mixed results in his work. Some of it is excellent, and some of it leaves you feeling as though he lost interest in the story and just stopped writing. Hardly the work of a "master". However, the one thing that King does consistently succeed at is his portrayal of childhood. King has a talent for describing the childhood that you wish that you had. The best example of this is "The Body" (a novella contained in Apt Pupil : A Novella in Different Seasons), which was turned into the movie Stand By Me (Special Edition). A lesser known, but still equally excellent example is "Silver Bullet".
"Silver Bullet", loosely based on King's "Cycle of the Werewolf" and scripted by King, is the story of Marty Coslaw (played by Corey Haim when he was still young and cute), a young, wheelchair-bound, boy who becomes convinced that a werewolf is murdering people in his small town in Maine. Ultimately, he convinces his sister (played by Megan Follows of "Anne of Green Gables" fame) and uncle (Gary Busey) that what he believes is true and together they must defeat the werewolf before it gets them.
Although "Silver Bullet" is an excellent horror movie that is still very watchable, even more than 20 years after it was made, it is as a film about people that this film excels. King insights into the relationship between brothers and sisters and into how things can change as people transition from childhood to adulthood are deeper than many that I have seen in award winning dramas.
This is an intelligent movie that speaks, without condescension, to the child in all of us. I would recommend this film to all children, but since many people out there are, like me, no longer children, I recommend this film to all adults too, as a way of revisiting the childhood memories you wish you had.