I loved to watch horror movies as a child. I would regret watching them later when it was time to walk the long, dark wood paneled hallway to my bedroom. A single light lit the length of the hall and five doors opened off of it, five dark rooms that could hide any number of dangerous creatures. I would sprint to my bedroom, jump into bed, and cover up to my neck. Sleep did not always come easily. Yet, I was always hungry for more. I cut my teeth on the original “Friday the 13th” and “My Bloody Valentine.” I grew up watching Freddy, Jason, and Michael slash their way to stardom. So, when asked to write a review for a horror movie, I was at an impasse as to what to review. However, it did not take long for me to decide upon “The Howling,” the first modern werewolf movie.

The film follows Karen White, a newswoman, who visits a resort treatment facility with her husband after helping police capture her stalker in an encounter so terrifying that she blocks it entirely from her memory. The facility, called The Colony, is secluded and populated with characters whose actions and behaviors are just a little off the norm. Soon, Karen discovers that some, if not all, of the residents of the The Colony are werewolves, and she is determined to tell the world.

The horror in “The Howling” comes in several forms. Of course, there are plenty of jumps and scares, but the true horror is the psychological torment the director, Joe Dante, puts his audience through by forcing them to watch and hear the transformations from man to wolf in agonizing detail. It is these details that make “The Howling” the first modern werewolf movie. Previous werewolf films of the 1970s cut away from the transformation and had actual wolves in the post-transformation roles. Dante wanted to show the human in his wolves, and in doing so he set the standard for werewolves on film.

*Disclaimer: Not all films reviewed are appropriate for all ages. This film is rated R by the MPAA for nudity, violence/gore, and frightening scenes.