The Company of Wolves
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{{Infobox_Film |
name = The Company of Wolves |
image = Companyofwolvesposter.jpg |
imdb_id = 0087075 |
writer = [[Angela Carter]]<br>[[Neil Jordan]] |
starring = [[Sarah Patterson]]<br>[[Angela Lansbury]]<br>[[Stephen Rea]]<br>[[David Warner (actor)|David Warner]] |
director = [[Neil Jordan]] |
producer = [[Chris Brown (film producer)|Chris Brown]]<br>[[Stephen Woolley]] |
music = [[George Fenton]] |
cinematography = Bryan Loftus |
distributor = [[ITC Entertainment|ITC]]<br>[[Cannon Films|Cannon]] (US)|
released = {{flagicon|Canada}} [[15 September]], [[1984]] (premiere at [[Toronto Film Festival|TIFF]])<br>{{flagicon|United Kingdom}} [[September 21]], [[1984]]<br>{{flagicon|United States}} [[19 April]], [[1985]] |
runtime = 95 mins. |
language = English |
country = {{UK}} |
amg_id = 1:10603 |
budget = $2,000,000 (estimated) |
gross = $4,389,334 (domestic) |
}}
'''''The Company of Wolves''''' is a [[1984 in film|1984]] gothic [[fantasy film|fantasy]]-[[horror film]] directed by [[Neil Jordan]], and starring [[Sarah Patterson]] and [[Angela Lansbury]].
The film is based on the [[werewolf fiction|werewolf stories]] in [[Angela Carter]]'s [[short story]] collection ''[[The Bloody Chamber]]'' (''[[The Bloody Chamber#The Company of Wolves|The Company of Wolves]]'', ''[[The Bloody Chamber#Wolf-Alice|Wolf-Alice]]'' and ''[[The Bloody Chamber#The Werewolf|The Werewolf]]''). Carter herself co-wrote the screenplay with director Neil Jordan, based on her own short stories and also her earlier adaptation of "The Company of Wolves" for [[radio programming|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 in literature|1996]]).
==Synopsis==
[[Image:Sarah Patterson in The Company of Wolves 2.jpg|thumb|left|A young girl's dreams make up the setting for the film.]]
The film begins in the modern day. A young girl ([[Sarah Patterson]]) is dreaming.
In her dreams she lives in the middle of a dangerous, mysterious fairytale forest. The wolves in the forest have just killed her older sister ([[Georgia Slowe]]). After her sister's funeral, the girl - named Rosaleen - goes to stay with her Granny ([[Angela Lansbury]]). Granny knits Rosaleen a bright red shawl and as she does so, she also tells her a tale in order to warn her about werewolves.
In her tale, a young groom ([[Stephen Rea]]) is about to bed his new bride (Kathryn
Pogson) when a 'call of nature' summons him outside. He completely 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 (actor)|Jim Carter]]) returns.
The next day, Rosaleen returns to her parents' village, where she encounters a young, amorous boy (Shane Johnstone) who clearly desires her. That night, Rosaleen wakes and happens to see her parents having sex. The next day, she questions her mother (Tusse Silberg) about the nature of sex. The amorous boy flirts with her again in the morning.
Visiting her grandmother again and sitting in the church graveyard, Rosaleen is told a second story.
[[Image:Terence Stamp in The Company of Wolves.jpg|thumb|The Devil (Terence Stamp) arrives in a Rolls-Royce.]]
In Granny's second tale, a young man is walking through the enchanted forest when he
encounters the Devil ([[Terence Stamp]]; anachronistically arriving in a chauffered [[Rolls-Royce (car)|Rolls-Royce]]), who offers the boy a transformative potion, which ultimately monstrously transforms him against his will.
When the story is finished, Rosaleen receives her new, red shawl. She wears it to church and clearly stands out against the drab surroundings. After church, Rosaleen and the amorous boy go for a walk into the forest. After some coaxing from the boy, the pair of them kiss. Rosaleen soon runs off, straying from the path. Climbing a tall tree and arriving at a Stork's nest, she encounters various mysterious items, including tiny figurines of babies which hatch from the stork's eggs. Searching for her, the boy discovers cattle mutilated by a wolf, and alerts the village to the wolf's presence. Rosaleen returns to the village by herself with one of the baby figurines.
The villagers set out that night to catch the wolf that attacked the cattle. Rosaleen's father ([[David Warner (actor)|David Warner]]) goes with them, his wife offering him their late daughter's cross for protection. However, he refuses it, claiming that his rifle is the only thing "they" understand.
Rosaleen stays home with her mother and tells her a werewolf story.
In Rosaleen's story, a woman (Dawn Archibald) 'done a terrible wrong' by a rich, young nobleman ([[Richard Morant]]) turns up at his wedding party, where she magically transforms the groom, the bride and the guests into wolves. They escape into the forest, but the sorceress commands that the wolves 'serenade' her and her child each night.
The people of the village capture the wolf that attacked the cattle, but when Rosaleen's father returns with the wolf's paw as a trophy, it is revealed to have transformed into a man's hand.
[[Image:Sarah Patterson in The Company of Wolves.jpg|thumb|left|Rosaleen (Sarah Patterson) as she encounters the huntsman in the snow-covered forest.]]
Winter comes to the village and Rosaleen, now armed with a knife to protect herself, wanders into the woods and towards Granny's house. She encounters a charming huntsman (Micha Bergese). The huntsman claims that that he - with the aid of his compass - can get to Granny's house more quickly across country than Rosaleen can if she follows the path. They make a bet: if she arrives first, he will give her his compass, and if the huntsman wins the race, she will give him a kiss. The huntsman arrives at Granny's house first and his true, bestial nature is revealed. He kills Granny.
Rosaleen later arrives at Granny's house. She encounters the huntsman who first tries to fool her by mimicking Granny, but she soon realizes his identity and surmises what has happened. He has her remove her red shawl and burn it on the fire. A pack of howling wolves gathers outside the cottage. Threatened, Rosaleen pulls a gun on the huntsman, but she is gradually won over by his charms and - remembering the terms of their bet - kisses him. However, once again threatened, Rosaleen fires the gun at him, causing him to transform into a real wolf. Rosaleen, suddenly charmed by him in his new, wounded, wolf form, decides to tell him a story.
[[Image:Danielle Dax in The Company of Wolves.jpg|thumb|A Wolfgirl (Danielle Dax) appears in the village.]]
Rosaleen's story is about a she-wolf who arrives at a village. Despite meaning no harm, she is shot by a villager. She reveals herself in her human form ([[Danielle Dax]]) to an old priest ([[Graham Crowden]]), who bandages her wound. Ultimately she returns to 'hell' through the village well.
The villagers, led by the amorous boy, later arrive at Granny's house, worried for Rosaleen. They discover two wolves within the house, one wearing Rosaleen's [[Christian cross|cross]]. The first wolf escapes. Rosaleen's father tries to shoot at the other wolf but her mother recognizes the transformed Rosaleen and prevents him from firing on her.
The wolves run off into the forest and ultimately, joined by other wolves, into the house of the dreaming girl from the beginning of the film, who wakes up and screams.
The film ends with [[Charles Perrault|Perrault's]] [[moral]] from ''[[Little Red Riding Hood|Le Petit Chaperon Rouge]]'', which warns girls to beware of charming strangers.
==Production==
===Writing===
Angela Carter, author of the original short story "The Company of Wolves" worked together with director Neil Jordan on the script for the film. This would have been Carter's first experience of writing for film. However, it was also only Jordan's second ever feature film as director.
Whilst ultimately based upon the short stories from ''[[The Bloody Chamber]]'', the plot of the film bears closer resemblance to Angela Carter's [[1980 in radio|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."<ref name="Neil CR">Neil Jordan quoted in the production notes to Angela Carter's ''The Curious Room'' (London: Vintage, 1997), p 507.</ref>
According to Jordan, it was he who suggesting 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 boxes|Chinese Box]] structure."<ref name="Neil CR"/> This structure was supposedly based upon the structure of the film ''[[The Manuscript Found in Saragossa|The Saragossa Manuscript]]'', which both Jordan and Carter had seen.
Jordan and Carter worked on a script which reached its third draft by July 1983.<ref>Mark Bell, production notes to Angela Carter's ''The Curious Room'' (London: Vintage, 1997), p 507.</ref>
Carter's original proposed ending for the film would have featured Rosaleen diving into the floor of her bedroom and being swallowed up as in water. In the DVD commentary for the film, Jordan comments on how the limited technology of the time prevented the production of such a sequence, whereas later [[Computer-generated imagery|CGI]] effects would in fact make it quite simple.<ref name=AC>Neil Jordan, audio commentary to ''The Company of Wolves'' (ITC, 1984), (DVD: 2005).</ref> 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.<ref>Angela Carter, "The Company of Wolves" in ''The Curious Room'' (London: Vintage, 1997), p 185-244.</ref>
===Filming===
''The Company of Wolves'' was filmed in [[Shepperton Studios]] in [[England]]. The film's cast was primarily made up of British actors.
The cast included Sarah Patterson, whose considerable youth at the time meant having to make special arrangements with her school in order for her to be away for nine weeks while shooting took place.<ref name="Doss">Anonymous, "''The Company of Wolves'' Behind the Scenes Dossier" (2005; insert with special edition DVD).</ref> Patterson was in fact noticeably younger than the kind of actress the casting director had initially been looking for.
Jordan worked for several weeks in pre-production with artist filmamers Nichola Bruce and [[Michael Coulson (director and producer)|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|Tim Burton's]] ''[[Batman (1989 film)|Batman]]''. The film's visuals were of particular importance, as Jordan explains:<blockquote>The visual design was an integral part of the script. It was written and imagined with a heightened sense of reality in mind.<ref name="Neil CR"/></blockquote> 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."<ref name=AC/> He nevertheless succeeded in creating a sunless, mystical, wonderous and claustrophobic setting saturated with fantastic elements and symbols.
The script naturally calls for a great number of wolves to appear. However, 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 died. In the DVD commentary for the film, Jordan notes the bravery of young star Sarah Patterson when acting amongst the genuine wolves.<ref name=AC/> 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."<ref name="Neil CR"/> 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#Film|Vampirella]]'', released in [[1996 in film|1996]] and based upon the [[comic book]] [[Vampirella|character of the same name]].
==Cast==
[[Image:Sarahpatterson.jpg|thumb|right|[[Sarah Patterson]] as Rosaleen.]]
*'''[[Sarah Patterson]]''' as '''Rosaleen'''. Young actress Sarah Patterson made her debut screen appearance in this film, despite being much younger than the kind of actress the casting director had been looking for, what with her being approximately only 12/13 years old and likely too young to be able to understand some of the film's more adult concepts.<ref name="Doss"/>
*'''[[Angela Lansbury]]''' as '''Granny'''
*'''[[David Warner (actor)|David Warner]]''' as '''Father'''
*'''Tusse Silberg''' as '''Mother'''
*'''Micha Bergese''' as '''Huntsman'''. ''The Company of Wolves'' represents Bergese's first ever role in a [[feature film]].
*'''[[Brian Glover]]''' as '''Amorous Boy's father'''
*'''[[Graham Crowden]]''' as '''Old Priest'''
*'''Kathryn Pogson''' as '''Young Bride'''
*'''[[Stephen Rea]]''' as '''Young Groom'''. [[Northern Ireland|Northern Irish]] actor Stephen Rea had already worked with director Neil Jordan in ''[[Angel (1982 film)|Angel]]'' and would later work with him again in such films as ''[[The Crying Game]]'' and ''[[Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles]]'' amongst others.
*'''[[Georgia Slowe]]''' as '''Alice, Girl Killed by Wolves'''
*'''Susan Porrett''' as '''Amorous Boy's mother'''
*'''Shane Johnstone''' as '''Amorous Boy'''
*'''Dawn Archibald''' as '''Witch Woman'''
*'''[[Richard Morant]]''' as '''Wealthy Groom'''
*'''[[Danielle Dax]]''' as '''Wolfgirl'''. [[Goth subculture|Goth]] icon Danielle Dax appears in a non-speaking role as the feral "wolfgirl."
*'''[[Jim Carter (actor)|Jim Carter]]''' as '''Second Husband''' (uncredited)
*'''[[Terence Stamp]]''' as '''The Devil''' (uncredited)
==Distribution==
[[Image:Company of Wolves2.jpg|thumb|right|The cover of ''The Company of Wolves'' Special Edition DVD (2005).]]
The film received its world premiere at the [[Toronto International Film Festival]] in [[Canada]] on the 15<sup>th</sup> of September, 1984. It was released in the [[United Kingdom]] on September 21<sup>st</sup> later that same year and was released in the [[United States]] on the 19<sup>th</sup> 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.<ref name=AC/>
The film was later released on [[VHS]] in numerous countries. A [[DVD region code|Region 1]] [[DVD]] release came several years later on the 15<sup>th</sup> of October 2002. A [[DVD region code|Region 2]] special edition version of the film was released on the 17<sup>th</sup> 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 30<sup>th</sup> of January 2006.
==Reception==
===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 [[BAFTA]]s for costume design, make up, production design/art direction and special visual effects.
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
'''Won'''
*Special Mention at the 1985 Fantafestival
*Three 1985 [[Fantasporto]] 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
{{col-2}}
'''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).
{{col-end}}
===Criticism===
Feminist critic Maggie Anwell decries the film for its over-emphasis on bloody werewolf [[special effects]],<ref>Anwell, Maggie (1988), ‘Lolita Meets the Werewolf: The Company of Wolves’ in Lorraine Gamman and Margaret Marshment (eds), ''The Female Gaze: Women as Viewers of Popular Culture'', London: Women’s Press, pp. 76-85.</ref> but another, Charlotte Crofts, argues that the film is a sensitive adaptation of Carter's reworking of [[Charles Perrault]]'s ''[[Little Red Riding Hood]]'' [[fairytale]].<ref>Crofts, Charlotte (1999), ‘Curiously Downbeat Hybrid or Radical Retelling?: Neil Jordan’s and Angela Carter’s The Company of Wolves’ in Cartmell, Hunter, Kaye and Whelehan (eds), ''Sisterhoods Across the Literature / Media Divide'' (London and Sterling, Virginia: Pluto Press), pp 48-63; Crofts, Charlotte (2003), ''[[Anagrams of Desire]]: Angela Carter's Writing for Radio, Film and Television'' (Manchester University Press).</ref>
==Soundtrack==
[[Image:The Company of Wolves Soundtrack.jpg|thumb|''The Company of Wolves'' soundtrack album.]]
A [[soundtrack album]] featuring the score from the film was released on the 15th of 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 (film)|Ginger Snaps]]'', a [[2000 in film|2000]] [[Canada|Canadian]] film which also uses [[lycanthropy]] as a metaphor for an adolescent girl's burgeoning sexuality.
== References ==
<div class="references-small">
<references/>
</div>
==External links==
*{{imdb title|id=0087075|title=The Company of Wolves}}
*{{rotten-tomatoes|id=company_of_wolves|title=The Company of Wolves}}
*[http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/515281/ ''The Company of Wolves''] at [[Screenonline]]
*{{mojo title|id=companyofwolves|title=The Company of Wolves}}
*[http://irishgothichorrorjournal.homestead.com/CompanyofWolves.html The Company of Wolves analysed in the Irish Journal of Gothic and Horror Studies]
*[http://www.dareland.com/emulsionalproblems/jordan.htm LA Weekly, April 18, 1985: Interview with Neil Jordan on the making of ''The Company of Wolves]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Company of Wolves, The}}
[[Category:1980s horror films]]
[[Category:1984 films]]
[[Category:British films]]
[[Category:Films based on fairy tales]]
[[Category:Golan-Globus films]]
[[Category:ITC Distributions]]
[[Category:Monster movies]]
[[Category:Palace Pictures films]]
[[Category:Werewolves in film and television]]
[[Category:Works by Angela Carter]]
[[de:Die Zeit der Wölfe]]
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[[fi:Sudet tulevat]]
[[fr:La Compagnie des loups]]
[[it:In compagnia dei lupi]]
[[pt:The Company of Wolves]]
[[ru:В компании волков (фильм)]]