The Wolf Man (1941) Vs. The Wolfman (2010)

I love monster movies, and when The Wolfman (2010) opened in theaters, I was first in line to see if this remake of the horror flick, The Wolf Man (1941), held the same thrills and heart-stopping scenes. I was not disappointed. Although The Wolf Man (1941) is an old black and white film, in its day, it was considered a masterpiece in the motion picture industry. As a child, I remember being scared for weeks after seeing Lon Chaney, Jr. change from gentle and kind Larry Talbot into the throat-ripping wolf man.

Although The Wolfman (2010), held its own special twists and turns, such as when Larry receives "treatment" in an insane asylum, or when it is revealed that Sir John Talbot (Larry's father) is also a wolf man, and Larry eventually kills him; it also had similarities to the 1941 version. One similarity that intrigued me was the wolf's head cane. All through the movie, I could not tell if they were using the original cane from the 1941 version or not, and as soon as I got home, I started searching the Internet for my answer. I was somewhat disappointed to find that the 1941 cane was not used, but I was happy in that I discovered some interesting facts about both canes.

The wolf's head cane in the 1941 movie played a significant part in the story. It was the weapon Larry used to beat Bela to death, a gypsy, who was also a werewolf. He was able to kill Bela because the wolf's head on the cane was made of silver and everyone knows that only silver (usually in the form of a bullet), can kill a werewolf. During the struggle, Larry is bitten and because he does not die from the wound, is cursed for all eternity as a werewolf. The wolfs head on the cane was actually made of cast rubber and painted silver, so that no one would get seriously hurt when it was being used in a scene. The cane head also depicted a pentagram with a wolf inside.

Just as the Wolf Man himself in the 2010 version has been made more fierce in appearance, so has the wolf's head cane. It has a sleek-looking design and sharper teeth than the one used in the 1941 film. Although it does not have the wolf inside the pentagram, it is still a scary-looking cane. A sword was attached to the wolf's head, which extended down into the shaft of the cane. At one point in the movie, the sword is used.

The wolf's head cane from the 1941 movie is in excellent condition and is owned by avid collector, Bob Burns.

I thought the movie was good, holding to the original story, except for a few surprises.

Sources: The Wolf Man (1941), The Wolfman (2010), drgangrene.blogspot.com