The Werewolf of Woodstock (1975, directed by John Moffitt)


Shortly after the end of the famous Woodstock music festival, a hippie-hating local (Tige Andrews) goes out to the now-deserted festival grounds and attempts to destroy the stage. Since the stage is still attached to the power lines, he ends up getting electrocuted. He survives, but now, whenever there’s an electrical storm, he turns into a hippie-hating werewolf. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately, depending on how you look at it), the world’s most clean-cut hippie band has shown up in town so that they can say they performed at Woodstock.

The plot of The Werewolf of Woodstock sounds like a comedy, but the movie takes itself fairly seriously. Most of the film’s campiness appears to be unintentional. Producer Dick Clark was able to rope a fairly respectable cast into appearing in this short film. Along with Tige Andrews as the werewolf, Andrew Stevens appears as a member of the band, while Belinda Balaski plays a groupie who gets kidnapped by the werewolf. Michael Parks and Meredith MacRae show up as two big-city cops who are called in to deal with the town’s werewolf problem. I believed that Tige Andrews really did hate the hippies with every fiber of his being, but otherwise, no one seems that invested in their roles.

Is the movie worth watching? It is, just because it’s short and there’s a scene where the werewolf steals a dune buggy. I watched it on a Russian site, though it wasn’t a very good upload. It doesn’t appear that it’s even been released on DVD or Blu-ray. I’m surprised. I would think some company would have released it just for the title alone.

 

A Blast From The Past: Don’t Call Me Mama Anymore (dir by John Moffitt)


“The Love Boat will not be reviewed tonight so that we might bring you this special presentation….”

My Retro Television Reviews, including my reviews of The Love Boat, will return next week.  For now, let’s enjoy a blast from the past.  First aired in 1973, Don’t Call me Mama Anymore was the second television special to feature Cass Elliott.  Like the first one, it was essentially a pilot for a weekly variety show.  This special was a far better showcase for Cass Elliott and it actually led to her getting a show for the 1974 season.  Unfortunately, Cass passed away in London before filming began.

For now, here is Don’t Call Me Mama Anymore, featuring Cass Elliott, Joel Grey, Michelle Phillips, and Dick Van Dyke.