Welcome to Werewolf Winter

The vampire countdown is officially over! While I will definitely still be reviewing and watching more vampire films in the future, 'tis the season for a different type of fanged film star.

With the popularity of the Twilight and Underworld sagas, the rivalry between vampires and werewolves have come back into fashion. I've never really been "into" werewolves myself; I remember reading a novel by Anne Rice's sister about werewolves when I was a teenager and not being overly thrilled. But not too long ago I watched the painfully mediocre Netflix series Hemlock Grove and found myself liking the werewolf story line above all else. It didn't hurt that Eli Roth developed a gruesome, amazing, and horrifying transformation scene:

So, in the season where the weather is cold and frightful (and the fire inside is so delightful), I thought I'd see what film history has given us in the werewolf genre. Once again, I'll be selecting about 20 films, and there are rules.

1. The Addiction (1995)

Happy Thanksgiving! What are you all thankful for? Well I, for one, am thankful for the strangest and most interesting vampire movie I've seen yet: The Addiction.

Do I have a hickey?

2. Perfect Creature (2006)

Steampunk. Alternate History. Conspiracies. A murder mystery. A vampire religious order. Yes please!

Today is Bram Stoker's birthday and to celebrate we're going to look at the most unique film on this countdown list, and one which actually doesn't mention the word "vampire" once. This is Perfect Creature.

3. Vampires (2010)

As we reach the final films in our countdown, it becomes clearer than ever that I'm a sucker for unique ideas. Show me the same Dracula-esque plot a thousand times and you'll catch me yawning no matter how good a variation ends up being. But show me something I've never ever seen before, and I'll forgive some stumbles. Which brings me to the greatest idea that I can't believe no one thought of sooner: the vampire mockumentary.

4. Vamps (2012)

I hope everyone had a very Happy Halloween! Now back to your regularly scheduled countdown. Oh dear... okay, this movie is embarrassingly high on my countdown despite io9 calling the film "a disaster" and it earning a questionable 50% on RottenTomatoes. However, let me just form my fingers into the shape a 'W' (yes, Clueless style) and say: "Whatever..."

You see, I grew up in the late eighties and early nineties, and I currently work with adolescents who were born after the year 2000. What I'm saying is that Amy Heckerling's Vamps is a charming movie that is pretty much made with me as the target audience. The film just makes it impossible for me not to love it.