A British Werewolf In London

A guy dresses up like a werewolf and goes into the woods to take a dump. Then, after using various leaves and fronds to clean himself, he sets about to lure campers to his campsite. Then a real werewolf shows up. How embarrassing. If you could see the guy under the wolf costume, I bet his cheeks are red. His face, too. People are shredded like wheat/pork and the police think the costumed guy did it. I can see why as his suit, now covered in evidence gunk on both the inside and out, paints a fairly convincing picture of full on guiltiness. (That better be a real word.)

Except for the dumping/wiping part I threw in there because I can, a clever premise for the British-made horror comedy The Furred Man, finished in 2010 and making a few more rounds on the film festival circuit before becoming available in this part of the woods. Those paying attention were already able to see it since last February on 4oD, Britain’s Channel Four on-demand video service. Blimey.

If you live in/on/near Athens, Greece, you can see The Furred Man at Athens International Sci-Fi & Fantasy Festival right now. (Too far away for me to even think about going.) Alternatively, you can catch the movie at the Faux Film Festival this April (2011, duh) in Portland, Oregon. (I live about three hour’s drive from there. Could be do-able.) Or you can stand in the rain this June to get into The Reel Short Film Festival in Seattle, WA. (I live in Seattle, so BULLS-EYE, though I do like Portland. They have nice buildings ’n stuff.)

The Furred Man has already won a ton of film festival awards, including Best Sci-Fi/Horror Film (The Dam Short Film Festival, Nevada), Best Film Audience Award (University of Television & Film Munich Film Festival, Germany) and Best Horror Short (International Sci-Fi & Horror Film Festival, Arizona). Scoring 18 awards, clearly the critics pre-fur The Furred Man. (C’mon, that was funny. Cut me some slack. You try and do better with a Defcon 4 hangover.)

If you go see The Furred Man, best not to sit in front of me, as I tend to yell at the screen with my mouth full of artificial popcorn, healthy movie theater hot dogs, wallet-crippling red vines, teeth-chipping peanut M&Ms™ and life-sustaining Diet Coke™. And don’t sit behind me, either, as that goons me out.