The Company of Wolves
Encyclopedia
The Company of Wolves is a 1984
gothic fantasy
-horror film
directed by Neil Jordan
, and starring Sarah Patterson
and Angela Lansbury
.
The film is based on the werewolf story of the same name in Angela Carter
's short story
collection The Bloody Chamber
. Carter herself co-wrote the screenplay with director Neil Jordan, based on her own short story and her earlier adaptation of "The Company of Wolves" for radio
.
Carter's first draft of the screenplay, which contains some differences from the finished film, has been published in her anthology The Curious Room
(1996
).
), a young girl. Rosaleen dreams that she lives in a fairytale forest with her parents (Tusse Silberg and David Warner
) and sister (Georgia Slowe
), but one day her sister is killed by wolves. While her parents are mourning, Rosaleen goes to live with her grandmother (Angela Lansbury
), who knits a bright red shawl for her granddaughter to wear. The superstitious old woman gives Rosaleen an ominous warning, to beware men whose eyebrows meet. Rosaleen returns to her village, but finds that she must deal with the advances of an amorous boy (Shane Johnstone). Rosaleen and the boy take a walk through the forest, but the boy discovers that the village's cattle have come under attack from a wolf. The villagers set out to hunt the wolf, but once caught and killed, the wolf's corpse transforms into that of a human being.
Rosaleen later takes a basket of goods through the woods to her grandmother's cottage, but on her way she encounters an attractive huntsman (Micha Bergese), whose eyebrows meet. He challenges her, saying that he can find his way to her grandmother's house before she can, and the pair set off. The hunter arrives at Rosaleen's grandmother's house first, where he reveals his bestial nature and eats her. Rosaleen arrives later and discovers the carnage, but her need to avenge her grandmother is complicated by her desire for the hunter. In the ensuing scuffle, Rosaleen succeeds in shooting the huntsman with his own rifle. But instead of dying, the hunter contorts in pain and transforms into his wolf shape. Rosaleen takes pity on the wounded beast, noting that his pack is leaving him behind. She sits down, and begins petting the wolf kindly and tenderly.
Ultimately the villagers arrive at the house, looking for a werewolf within. Instead, they discover that Rosaleen herself has become a wolf. She and the huntsman escape to the forest, joined by a growing pack. It is strongly suggested that the couple have chosen each other as mates.
Back in the present day, Rosaleen awakes with a scream, wolves apparently breaking through the window of her bedroom.
Perrault's
moral
from Le Petit Chaperon Rouge
is then read over the beginning of the credits. The moral warns girls to beware of charming strangers.
Throughout the course of the film, a number of stories are interspersed into the main narrative as tales told by several of the characters:
Whilst ultimately based upon the short story of the same name from The Bloody Chamber
, the plot of the film bears closer resemblance to Angela Carter's 1980
adaptation of "The Company of Wolves" for radio, which introduced such elements as the additional stories being told within the narrative by the characters themselves such as Granny. Originally, these stories had been placed before the main narrative.
Carter and Jordan met in Dublin in 1982 to discuss extending Carter's radio drama adaptation of her own story, which Jordan called "too short for a feature film."
In an L.A. Weekly interview published to correspond with the film's U.S. debut, Jordan said "in a normal film you have a story with different movements that program, develop, go a little bit off the trunk, come back, and end. In this film, the different movements of the plot are actually separate stories. You start with an introduction and then move into different stories that relate to the main theme, all building to the fairy tale that everybody knows. The opening element of the dreamer gave us the freedom to move from story to story." According to Jordan, it was he who suggested adding the frame story
to the narrative: that of the dreaming girl Rosaleen in the modern day. This makes clear the story's focus on subconscious fears and desires. It also gives the film what Jordan called "a Chinese Box
structure." This structure was supposedly based upon the structure of the film The Saragossa Manuscript
, which both Jordan and Carter had seen.
The script reached its third draft by July 1983.
Carter's proposed ending for the film would have featured Rosaleen diving into the floor of her bedroom and being swallowed up as by water. In the DVD commentary for the film, Jordan notes that the limited technology of the time prevented the production of such a sequence, whereas later CGI
effects would in fact make it quite simple. The original screenplay (as presented in The Curious Room) also featured an additional story being told by the huntsman, a very different final tale by Rosaleen (reminiscent of Carter's "Peter and the Wolf" from her collection Black Venus
) and a scene set in a church with an animal congregation.
in England
. The film's cast was primarily made up of British actors. Sarah Patterson made her screen debut, despite being much younger than the kind of actress the casting director had been looking for, and likely too young to understand some of the film's more adult concepts. Her youth also meant having to make special arrangements with her school in order for her to be away for nine weeks while shooting took place. Northern Irish
actor Stephen Rea had already worked with director Neil Jordan in Angel
and would later work with him again in The Crying Game
, Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles
, and Breakfast on Pluto
, amongst others.
Jordan worked for several weeks in pre-production with artist filmmakers Nichola Bruce and Michael Coulson to create hundreds of detailed storyboard drawings. Also involved with production was art director/production designer Anton Furst who would later go on to work on Tim Burton's
Batman
. The film's visuals were of particular importance, as Jordan explains:
The script calls for a great number of wolves to appear. Due to budgetary constraints and other factors such as cast safety, most of the 'wolves' shown in the film are in fact evidently Belgian Shepherd Dog
s, mainly Terveurens and Groenendals, whose fur was specially dyed. In the DVD commentary for the film, Jordan notes the bravery of young star Sarah Patterson when acting amongst the genuine wolves. Using particular light angles, the eyes of both real and "shepherd" wolves are made to glow dramatically in the film.
Jordan notes how Carter was "thrilled with the process" of making a film, as she "had never really been involved with one." After the film, Jordan and Carter looked for other projects which they could work on together. However, no others came to fruition, partly because of Carter's later illness. According to Jordan, he and Carter discussed a possible adaptation of Vampirella, Carter's radio play which served as the original version of her short story "The Lady of the House of Love" from The Bloody Chamber. This is not to be confused with the actual film Vampirella, released in 1996
and based upon the comic book
character of the same name
.
in Canada
on the 15th of September, 1984. It was released in the United Kingdom
on September 21st later that same year and was released in the United States
on the 19th of April 1985 where it was shown in 995 theatres.
The film was distributed in the United States by Cannon Films. Jordan notes that Cannon pushed the concept of the film as primarily a horror film
. Jordan maintains that it is not a horror film and that such a label might actually be misleading to audiences.
The film was later released on VHS
in numerous countries. A Region 1
DVD
release came several years later on the 15th of October 2002. A Region 2
special edition version of the film was released on the 17th of October 2005, approximately 20 years after the film's initial release in theatres. This special edition came in a metal case and included an audio commentary
by director Neil Jordan, stills galleries, the film's theatrical trailer and a printed "Behind the Scenes Dossier". This special edition version was also released on Universal Media Disc
for the Sony
PlayStation Portable
on the 30th of January 2006.
's Little Red Riding Hood
fairy tale
.
In April 1985, upon the film's U.S. debut, Roger Ebert
gave the film three stars out of four, and called it a "disturbing and stylish attempt to collect some of the nightmares that lie beneath the surface of "Little Red Riding Hood
."
Years later, Louise Watson, writing for BFI Screenonline, said Neil Jordan "evokes an eerie, dreamlike atmosphere for the film's heightened reality. Its otherworldly scenery and costumes seem to have been inspired by fairytale illustrations, mixed with the studio-bound visual style of Hammer horror
. The Hammer-like theatrical forest creates a sense of brooding claustrophobia where no sunlight can reach, accentuating Rosaleen's trapped existence. An intensely visual film, teeming with rich symbolism and imagery, the BAFTA-winning settings and special effects dominate the film, often at the expense of the (perhaps deliberately) underdeveloped characters."
Won
Nominated
, featuring the George Fenton
score from the film, was released on 15 February 2000.
Track listing
1984 in film
-Events:* The Walt Disney Company founds Touchstone Pictures to release movies with subject matter deemed inappropriate for the Disney name.* Tri-Star Pictures, a joint venture of Columbia Pictures, HBO, and CBS, releases its first film....
gothic fantasy
Fantasy film
Fantasy films are films with fantastic themes, usually involving magic, supernatural events, make-believe creatures, or exotic fantasy worlds. The genre is considered to be distinct from science fiction film and horror film, although the genres do overlap...
-horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
directed by Neil Jordan
Neil Jordan
Neil Patrick Jordan is an Irish filmmaker and novelist. He won an Academy Award for The Crying Game.- Early life :...
, and starring Sarah Patterson
Sarah Patterson
Sarah Patterson is a British film actress.For her acting debut, Patterson starred as Rosaleen, a Little Red Riding Hood counterpart, in the Neil Jordan and Angela Carter film The Company of Wolves in 1984. In 1987 she starred alongside Diana Rigg in another fairy tale-inspired film, playing the...
and Angela Lansbury
Angela Lansbury
Angela Brigid Lansbury CBE is an English actress and singer in theatre, television and motion pictures, whose career has spanned eight decades and earned her more performance Tony Awards than any other individual , with five wins...
.
The film is based on the werewolf story of the same name in Angela Carter
Angela Carter
Angela Carter was an English novelist and journalist, known for her feminist, magical realism, and picaresque works...
's short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
collection The Bloody Chamber
The Bloody Chamber
The Bloody Chamber is a collection of short fiction by Angela Carter. It was first published in the United Kingdom in 1979 by Gollancz and won the Cheltenham Festival Literary Prize. All of the stories share a common theme of being closely based upon fairytales or folk tales...
. Carter herself co-wrote the screenplay with director Neil Jordan, based on her own short story and her earlier adaptation of "The Company of Wolves" for radio
Radio programming
Radio programming is the Broadcast programming of a Radio format or content that is organized for Commercial broadcasting and Public broadcasting radio stations....
.
Carter's first draft of the screenplay, which contains some differences from the finished film, has been published in her anthology The Curious Room
The Curious Room
The mysterious Chiken Buckt is a book collecting various plays and scripts by Angela Carter. Its full title is The Curious Room: Plays, Film Scripts and an Opera....
(1996
1996 in literature
The year 1996 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Harper Lee's novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, is removed from an advanced placement English reading list in Lindale, Texas because it "conflicted with the values of the community."* In the United Kingdom, the first...
).
Synopsis
Set in modern times, the film takes place within the dreams of Rosaleen (Sarah PattersonSarah Patterson
Sarah Patterson is a British film actress.For her acting debut, Patterson starred as Rosaleen, a Little Red Riding Hood counterpart, in the Neil Jordan and Angela Carter film The Company of Wolves in 1984. In 1987 she starred alongside Diana Rigg in another fairy tale-inspired film, playing the...
), a young girl. Rosaleen dreams that she lives in a fairytale forest with her parents (Tusse Silberg and David Warner
David Warner (actor)
David Warner is an English actor who is known for playing both romantic leads and sinister or villainous characters, both in film and animation...
) and sister (Georgia Slowe
Georgia Slowe
Georgia Slowe is an English actress.-Background:Georgia grew up in a Jewish home as the daughter of parents, Michael and Zsuzsi. Her Hungarian-born mother, Zsuzsi, was hidden in a cellar during the Second World War after her mother Litzy was murdered by Hungarian Nazi soldiers. Her father had been...
), but one day her sister is killed by wolves. While her parents are mourning, Rosaleen goes to live with her grandmother (Angela Lansbury
Angela Lansbury
Angela Brigid Lansbury CBE is an English actress and singer in theatre, television and motion pictures, whose career has spanned eight decades and earned her more performance Tony Awards than any other individual , with five wins...
), who knits a bright red shawl for her granddaughter to wear. The superstitious old woman gives Rosaleen an ominous warning, to beware men whose eyebrows meet. Rosaleen returns to her village, but finds that she must deal with the advances of an amorous boy (Shane Johnstone). Rosaleen and the boy take a walk through the forest, but the boy discovers that the village's cattle have come under attack from a wolf. The villagers set out to hunt the wolf, but once caught and killed, the wolf's corpse transforms into that of a human being.
Rosaleen later takes a basket of goods through the woods to her grandmother's cottage, but on her way she encounters an attractive huntsman (Micha Bergese), whose eyebrows meet. He challenges her, saying that he can find his way to her grandmother's house before she can, and the pair set off. The hunter arrives at Rosaleen's grandmother's house first, where he reveals his bestial nature and eats her. Rosaleen arrives later and discovers the carnage, but her need to avenge her grandmother is complicated by her desire for the hunter. In the ensuing scuffle, Rosaleen succeeds in shooting the huntsman with his own rifle. But instead of dying, the hunter contorts in pain and transforms into his wolf shape. Rosaleen takes pity on the wounded beast, noting that his pack is leaving him behind. She sits down, and begins petting the wolf kindly and tenderly.
Ultimately the villagers arrive at the house, looking for a werewolf within. Instead, they discover that Rosaleen herself has become a wolf. She and the huntsman escape to the forest, joined by a growing pack. It is strongly suggested that the couple have chosen each other as mates.
Back in the present day, Rosaleen awakes with a scream, wolves apparently breaking through the window of her bedroom.
Perrault's
Charles Perrault
Charles Perrault was a French author who laid the foundations for a new literary genre, the fairy tale, with his works derived from pre-existing folk tales. The best known include Le Petit Chaperon rouge , Cendrillon , Le Chat Botté and La Barbe bleue...
moral
Moral
A moral is a message conveyed or a lesson to be learned from a story or event. The moral may be left to the hearer, reader or viewer to determine for themselves, or may be explicitly encapsulated in a maxim...
from Le Petit Chaperon Rouge
Little Red Riding Hood
Little Red Riding Hood, also known as Little Red Cap, is a French fairy tale about a young girl and a Big Bad Wolf. The story has been changed considerably in its history and subject to numerous modern adaptations and readings....
is then read over the beginning of the credits. The moral warns girls to beware of charming strangers.
Throughout the course of the film, a number of stories are interspersed into the main narrative as tales told by several of the characters:
- Granny's tale to Rosaleen: A young groom (Stephen ReaStephen ReaStephen Rea is an Irish film and stage actor. Rea has appeared in high profile films such as V for Vendetta, Michael Collins, Interview with the Vampire and Breakfast on Pluto...
) is about to bed his new bride (Kathryn Pogson) when a 'call of nature' summons him outside. He disappears and his bride is terrified to see wolves howling outside. A search the following day yields a wolf paw print only. Years later, she remarries and has children, only to have her original husband finally return. Angered at her having had children with a new husband, the groom transforms into his werewolf form, but is slain when the new husband (Jim Carter) returns.
- Granny's second tale to Rosaleen: A young man is walking through the enchanted forest when he encounters the Devil (Terence StampTerence StampTerence Henry Stamp is an English actor. Since starting his career in 1962 he has appeared in over 60 films. His title role as Billy Budd in his film debut earned Stamp an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor and a BAFTA nomination for Best Newcomer.His other major roles include...
; anachronistically arriving in a chauffeured Rolls-RoyceRolls-Royce (car)This a list of Rolls-Royce motor cars and includes vehicles produced by:*Rolls-Royce Limited *Rolls-Royce Motors , which was owned by Vickers between 1980 and 1998, and after that by Volkswagen...
), who offers the boy a transformative potion, which ultimately monstrously transforms him against his will.
- Rosaleen's story to her mother: A woman (Dawn Archibald) 'done a terrible wrong' by a rich, young nobleman (Richard MorantRichard MorantRichard Morant was an English actor.Morant was born in Shipston-on-Stour, Warwickshire. He was a nephew of actors Bill and Linden Travers, and a cousin of actress Penelope Wilton...
) turns up at his wedding party, where she magically transforms the groom, the bride and the guests into wolves. They flee into the forest, but the sorceress commands that the wolves 'serenade' her and her child each night.
- Rosaleen's story to the huntsman/wolf: A she-wolf from the world beneath arrives at a village. Despite meaning no harm, she is shot by a villager. She reveals herself in her human form (Danielle DaxDanielle DaxDanielle Dax is an experimental musician and producer most active from the late-1970s to the mid-1990s. She was born in Southend-on-Sea, Essex.- Biography :...
) to an old priest (Graham CrowdenGraham CrowdenClement Graham Crowden was a Scottish actor. He was best known for his many appearances in television comedy dramas and films, often playing eccentric 'offbeat' scientist, teacher and doctor characters.-Early life:...
), who bandages her wound. Ultimately she returns to her world through the village well.
Cast
- Sarah PattersonSarah PattersonSarah Patterson is a British film actress.For her acting debut, Patterson starred as Rosaleen, a Little Red Riding Hood counterpart, in the Neil Jordan and Angela Carter film The Company of Wolves in 1984. In 1987 she starred alongside Diana Rigg in another fairy tale-inspired film, playing the...
as Rosaleen - Angela LansburyAngela LansburyAngela Brigid Lansbury CBE is an English actress and singer in theatre, television and motion pictures, whose career has spanned eight decades and earned her more performance Tony Awards than any other individual , with five wins...
as Granny - David WarnerDavid Warner (actor)David Warner is an English actor who is known for playing both romantic leads and sinister or villainous characters, both in film and animation...
as Father - Tusse Silberg as Mother
- Micha Bergese as Huntsman (his first role in a feature filmFeature filmIn the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...
) - Brian GloverBrian GloverBrian Glover was an English character actor, writer and wrestler. Glover was a professional wrestler, teacher, and finally a film, television and stage actor. He once said, "You play to your strengths in this game. My strength is as a bald-headed, rough-looking Yorkshireman".-Early life:Glover was...
as Amorous Boy's father - Graham CrowdenGraham CrowdenClement Graham Crowden was a Scottish actor. He was best known for his many appearances in television comedy dramas and films, often playing eccentric 'offbeat' scientist, teacher and doctor characters.-Early life:...
as Old Priest - Kathryn Pogson as Young Bride
- Stephen ReaStephen ReaStephen Rea is an Irish film and stage actor. Rea has appeared in high profile films such as V for Vendetta, Michael Collins, Interview with the Vampire and Breakfast on Pluto...
as Young Groom - Georgia SloweGeorgia SloweGeorgia Slowe is an English actress.-Background:Georgia grew up in a Jewish home as the daughter of parents, Michael and Zsuzsi. Her Hungarian-born mother, Zsuzsi, was hidden in a cellar during the Second World War after her mother Litzy was murdered by Hungarian Nazi soldiers. Her father had been...
as Alice, Girl Killed by Wolves - Susan Porrett as Amorous Boy's mother
- Shane Johnstone as Amorous Boy
- Dawn Archibald as Witch Woman
- Richard MorantRichard MorantRichard Morant was an English actor.Morant was born in Shipston-on-Stour, Warwickshire. He was a nephew of actors Bill and Linden Travers, and a cousin of actress Penelope Wilton...
as Wealthy Groom - Danielle DaxDanielle DaxDanielle Dax is an experimental musician and producer most active from the late-1970s to the mid-1990s. She was born in Southend-on-Sea, Essex.- Biography :...
as Wolfgirl (a non-speaking role) - Jim Carter as Second Husband (uncredited)
- Terence StampTerence StampTerence Henry Stamp is an English actor. Since starting his career in 1962 he has appeared in over 60 films. His title role as Billy Budd in his film debut earned Stamp an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor and a BAFTA nomination for Best Newcomer.His other major roles include...
as The Devil (uncredited)
Writing
Angela Carter, author of the original short story "The Company of Wolves" worked with director Neil Jordan on the script for the film. This was Carter's first experience of writing for film. However, it was also only Jordan's second feature film as director.Whilst ultimately based upon the short story of the same name from The Bloody Chamber
The Bloody Chamber
The Bloody Chamber is a collection of short fiction by Angela Carter. It was first published in the United Kingdom in 1979 by Gollancz and won the Cheltenham Festival Literary Prize. All of the stories share a common theme of being closely based upon fairytales or folk tales...
, the plot of the film bears closer resemblance to Angela Carter's 1980
1980 in radio
The year 1980 in radio involved some significant events.-Events:* 20 March - The pirate radio station Radio Caroline sinks.* 29 October - President Carter on a visit to Pittsburgh gives a nationally broadcast campaign interview to KDKA-AM of that city....
adaptation of "The Company of Wolves" for radio, which introduced such elements as the additional stories being told within the narrative by the characters themselves such as Granny. Originally, these stories had been placed before the main narrative.
Carter and Jordan met in Dublin in 1982 to discuss extending Carter's radio drama adaptation of her own story, which Jordan called "too short for a feature film."
In an L.A. Weekly interview published to correspond with the film's U.S. debut, Jordan said "in a normal film you have a story with different movements that program, develop, go a little bit off the trunk, come back, and end. In this film, the different movements of the plot are actually separate stories. You start with an introduction and then move into different stories that relate to the main theme, all building to the fairy tale that everybody knows. The opening element of the dreamer gave us the freedom to move from story to story." According to Jordan, it was he who suggested adding the frame story
Frame story
A frame story is a literary technique that sometimes serves as a companion piece to a story within a story, whereby an introductory or main narrative is presented, at least in part, for the purpose of setting the stage either for a more emphasized second narrative or for a set of shorter stories...
to the narrative: that of the dreaming girl Rosaleen in the modern day. This makes clear the story's focus on subconscious fears and desires. It also gives the film what Jordan called "a Chinese Box
Chinese boxes
Chinese boxes are a set of boxes of graduated size, each fitting inside the next larger box.A traditional style in Chinese design, nested boxes have proved a popular packaging option in the West for novelty or display reasons....
structure." This structure was supposedly based upon the structure of the film The Saragossa Manuscript
The Manuscript Found in Saragossa
The Manuscript Found in Saragossa , is a frame-tale novel by the Polish Enlightenment author, Count Jan Potocki...
, which both Jordan and Carter had seen.
The script reached its third draft by July 1983.
Carter's proposed ending for the film would have featured Rosaleen diving into the floor of her bedroom and being swallowed up as by water. In the DVD commentary for the film, Jordan notes that the limited technology of the time prevented the production of such a sequence, whereas later CGI
Computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
effects would in fact make it quite simple. The original screenplay (as presented in The Curious Room) also featured an additional story being told by the huntsman, a very different final tale by Rosaleen (reminiscent of Carter's "Peter and the Wolf" from her collection Black Venus
Black Venus
Black Venus is an anthology of short fiction by Angela Carter. It was first published in the United Kingdom in 1985 by Chatto & Windus Ltd...
) and a scene set in a church with an animal congregation.
Principal photography
The Company of Wolves was filmed in Shepperton StudiosShepperton Studios
Shepperton Studios is a film studio in Shepperton, Surrey, England with a history dating back to 1931 since when many notable films have been made there...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The film's cast was primarily made up of British actors. Sarah Patterson made her screen debut, despite being much younger than the kind of actress the casting director had been looking for, and likely too young to understand some of the film's more adult concepts. Her youth also meant having to make special arrangements with her school in order for her to be away for nine weeks while shooting took place. Northern Irish
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
actor Stephen Rea had already worked with director Neil Jordan in Angel
Angel (1982 film)
Angel is a 1982 film directed by Neil Jordan and starring Stephen Rea. The film was Neil Jordan's directorial debut, and the executive producer was John Boorman.-Plot summary:...
and would later work with him again in The Crying Game
The Crying Game
The Crying Game is a 1992 psychological thriller drama film written and directed by Neil Jordan. The film explores themes of race, gender, nationality, and sexuality against the backdrop of the Irish Troubles...
, Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles
Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles
Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles is a 1994 American drama and horror film directed by Neil Jordan, based on the 1976 novel Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice. The film focuses on Lestat and Louis, beginning with Louis' transformation into a vampire by Lestat in 1791...
, and Breakfast on Pluto
Breakfast on Pluto
Breakfast on Pluto is a 1998 novel by Patrick McCabe. The book was shortlisted for the 1998 Booker Prize, and was adapted for the screen by McCabe and Neil Jordan; Jordan directed the 2005 film.-Plot summary:...
, amongst others.
Jordan worked for several weeks in pre-production with artist filmmakers Nichola Bruce and Michael Coulson to create hundreds of detailed storyboard drawings. Also involved with production was art director/production designer Anton Furst who would later go on to work on Tim Burton's
Tim Burton
Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
Batman
Batman (1989 film)
Batman is a 1989 superhero film based on the DC Comics character of the same name, directed by Tim Burton. The film stars Michael Keaton in the title role, as well as Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl and Jack Palance...
. The film's visuals were of particular importance, as Jordan explains:
The visual design was an integral part of the script. It was written and imagined with a heightened sense of reality in mind.In the DVD commentary, Jordan notes the difficulty of having to create the look of the film on a limited budget, having to create a fairytale forest out of essentially "twelve trees." He nevertheless succeeded in creating a sunless, mystical, wondrous and claustrophobic setting saturated with fantastic elements and symbols.
The script calls for a great number of wolves to appear. Due to budgetary constraints and other factors such as cast safety, most of the 'wolves' shown in the film are in fact evidently Belgian Shepherd Dog
Belgian Shepherd Dog
The Belgian Shepherd is a breed of medium-to-large-sized herding dog. It originated in Belgium and is similar to other sheep herding dogs from that region, including the Dutch Shepherd Dog, the German Shepherd Dog, the Briard and others...
s, mainly Terveurens and Groenendals, whose fur was specially dyed. In the DVD commentary for the film, Jordan notes the bravery of young star Sarah Patterson when acting amongst the genuine wolves. Using particular light angles, the eyes of both real and "shepherd" wolves are made to glow dramatically in the film.
Jordan notes how Carter was "thrilled with the process" of making a film, as she "had never really been involved with one." After the film, Jordan and Carter looked for other projects which they could work on together. However, no others came to fruition, partly because of Carter's later illness. According to Jordan, he and Carter discussed a possible adaptation of Vampirella, Carter's radio play which served as the original version of her short story "The Lady of the House of Love" from The Bloody Chamber. This is not to be confused with the actual film Vampirella, released in 1996
1996 in film
Major releases this year included Scream, Independence Day, Fargo, Trainspotting, The English Patient, Twister, Mars Attacks!, Jerry Maguire and a version of Evita starring Madonna.-Events:...
and based upon the comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
character of the same name
Vampirella
Vampirella is a fictional character, a comic book vampire heroine created by Forrest J Ackerman and costume designer Trina Robbins in Warren Publishing's black-and-white horror comics magazine Vampirella #1 . Writer-editor Archie Goodwin later developed the character from horror-story hostess, in...
.
Distribution
The film received its world premiere at the Toronto International Film FestivalToronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
on the 15th of September, 1984. It was released in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on September 21st later that same year and was released in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on the 19th of April 1985 where it was shown in 995 theatres.
The film was distributed in the United States by Cannon Films. Jordan notes that Cannon pushed the concept of the film as primarily a horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
. Jordan maintains that it is not a horror film and that such a label might actually be misleading to audiences.
The film was later released on VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
in numerous countries. A Region 1
DVD region code
DVD region codes are a digital-rights management technique designed to allow film distributors to control aspects of a release, including content, release date, and price, according to the region...
DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
release came several years later on the 15th of October 2002. A Region 2
DVD region code
DVD region codes are a digital-rights management technique designed to allow film distributors to control aspects of a release, including content, release date, and price, according to the region...
special edition version of the film was released on the 17th of October 2005, approximately 20 years after the film's initial release in theatres. This special edition came in a metal case and included an audio commentary
Audio commentary
On disc-based video formats, an audio commentary is an additional audio track consisting of a lecture or comments by one or more speakers, that plays in real time with video...
by director Neil Jordan, stills galleries, the film's theatrical trailer and a printed "Behind the Scenes Dossier". This special edition version was also released on Universal Media Disc
Universal Media Disc
The Universal Media Disc is an optical disc medium developed by Sony for use on their PlayStation Portable handheld gaming and multimedia platform...
for the Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
on the 30th of January 2006.
Critical reception
Feminist critic Maggie Anwell decries the film for its over-emphasis on bloody werewolf special effects, but another, Charlotte Crofts, argues that the film is a sensitive adaptation of Carter's reworking of Charles PerraultCharles Perrault
Charles Perrault was a French author who laid the foundations for a new literary genre, the fairy tale, with his works derived from pre-existing folk tales. The best known include Le Petit Chaperon rouge , Cendrillon , Le Chat Botté and La Barbe bleue...
's Little Red Riding Hood
Little Red Riding Hood
Little Red Riding Hood, also known as Little Red Cap, is a French fairy tale about a young girl and a Big Bad Wolf. The story has been changed considerably in its history and subject to numerous modern adaptations and readings....
fairy tale
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
.
In April 1985, upon the film's U.S. debut, Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
gave the film three stars out of four, and called it a "disturbing and stylish attempt to collect some of the nightmares that lie beneath the surface of "Little Red Riding Hood
Little Red Riding Hood
Little Red Riding Hood, also known as Little Red Cap, is a French fairy tale about a young girl and a Big Bad Wolf. The story has been changed considerably in its history and subject to numerous modern adaptations and readings....
."
Years later, Louise Watson, writing for BFI Screenonline, said Neil Jordan "evokes an eerie, dreamlike atmosphere for the film's heightened reality. Its otherworldly scenery and costumes seem to have been inspired by fairytale illustrations, mixed with the studio-bound visual style of Hammer horror
Hammer Film Productions
Hammer Film Productions is a film production company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction, thrillers, film noir and comedies and in later...
. The Hammer-like theatrical forest creates a sense of brooding claustrophobia where no sunlight can reach, accentuating Rosaleen's trapped existence. An intensely visual film, teeming with rich symbolism and imagery, the BAFTA-winning settings and special effects dominate the film, often at the expense of the (perhaps deliberately) underdeveloped characters."
Box office performance
Financially, the film only just broke even on its opening weekend in the U.S., having been made for approximately $2 million and taking $2,234,776 in 995 theatres. However, in total, the film took over $4 million in the U.S.Awards and nominations
Critics generally responded especially positively to the film's aesthetics. The film won one award for best film and best special effects and was nominated for four BAFTAs for costume design, make up, production design/art direction and special visual effects.Won
- Special Mention at the 1985 Fantafestival
- Three 1985 FantasportoFantasportoFantasporto, also known as Fantas, is an international film festival, annually organized since 1981 in Porto, Portugal. Giving screen space to commercial feature films, auteur films and experimental projects from all over the world, Fantasporto has created enthusiastic audiences, ranging from...
awards:- Audience Jury Award
- Critics' Award
- 1985 International Fantasy Film Award (Best Film and Best Special Effects)
- 1985 London Critics Circle Film Awards ALFS Award (Director of the Year: Neil Jordan)
- Two 1985 Stiges - Catalonian International Film Festival awards:
- Caixa de Catalunya (Best Film and Best Special Effects)
- Prize of the International Critics' Jury
Nominated
- Grand Prize at the Avoriaz Fantastic Film Festival, 1985.
- Four 1985 BAFTA Awards:
- Best Costume Design (Elizabeth Waller)
- Best Make Up Artist (Jane Royle, Christopher Tucker)
- Best Production Design/Art Direction (Anton Furst)
- Best Special Visual Effects (Christopher Tucker, Alan Whibley).
Soundtrack
A soundtrack albumSoundtrack album
A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television program. In some cases, not all the tracks from the movie are included in the album; however there are rare cases of songs in the trailers that do not appear in...
, featuring the George Fenton
George Fenton
George Fenton is a British composer best known for his work writing film scores and music for television, although he also writes music for the theatre. His real name is George Howe but he is better known by his pseudonym of George Fenton.-Selected film and television credits:Fenton has composed...
score from the film, was released on 15 February 2000.
Track listing
- "The Message And Main Theme"
- "Rosaleen's First Dream"
- "The Story Of The Bride And Groom: The Village Wedding/The Return Of The Groom"
- "The Forest And The Huntsman's Theme"
- "The Wedding Party"
- "The Boy And The Devil"
- "One Sunday Afternoon"
- "All The Better To Eat You With: Arriving At Granny's Cottage/The Promise And Transformation"
- "The Wolfgirl"
- "Liberation"
See also
- Ginger Snaps, a 20002000 in filmThe year 2000 in film involved some significant events.The top grosser worldwide was Mission: Impossible II. Domestically in North America, Gladiator won the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Actor ....
CanadianCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
film which also uses lycanthropyLycanthropyLycanthropy is the professed ability or power of a human being to undergo transformation into a werewolf, or to gain wolf-like characteristics. The term comes from Greek Lykànthropos : λύκος, lykos + άνθρωπος, ànthrōpos...
as a metaphor for an adolescent girl's burgeoning sexuality. - Valerie a týden divů (Valerie and Her Week of Wonders), a 19701970 in filmThe year 1970 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* January 9 - Larry Fine, the second member of The Three Stooges, suffers a massive stroke, therefore ending his career....
Czech film which also features a young girl experiences a series of beautiful and perilous dreams inspired by her menarcheMenarcheMenarche is the first menstrual cycle, or first menstrual bleeding, in female human beings. From both social and medical perspectives it is often considered the central event of female puberty, as it signals the possibility of fertility....
.
External links
- The Company of Wolves at ScreenonlineScreenonlineScreenonline is a Web site devoted to the history of British film and television, and to social history as revealed by film and television. The project has been developed by the British Film Institute and funded by a £1.2 million grant from the National Lottery New Opportunities Fund.Reviews...