Year of Release: 1974 Directed by: Dan Curtis Running Time: Approx. 74 minutes Rating: Not Rated Listing on the A.K.A. Page: Nope! A Second Opinion: ? Buy it on DVD at: Amazon.com or buy it on VHS at Movies Unlimited.com. My Rating:

John- Peter Graves! An old hunting and tracking expert. He helps the local police track the "werewolf." Though I'm sure it pained him to do so, he kills Byron and his "mad-dog."

Sandy- John's love interest. She dislikes Byron and accuses him of being the murderer, little does she know that she's right.

Byron- An eccentric and psychotic game-hunter. He creates this werewolf hoax to bring back the old hunting habits of his friend John. Shot by John.

Grant- Byron's servant. His mangled corpse is mistaken for Byron. That's right he became dog chow.

Byron's Dog- A pooch trained to attack, kill, and partially devour his victims. His killing days are over after John takes it out with a rifle. So much for a "werewolf."

I have never heard of this movie in my life, and came upon it accidentally really. This movie is shrouded in mystery, at least to me it is. It was made for T.V. but has some suspenseful moments and fairly decent acting. The movie starts off with a traveling salesman getting lost and running out of gas on a dark abandoned highway. The man gets out of his car but makes a hasty retreat back to it after being chased by some type of animal. He curls up in his car as the animal breaks through the windshield and enters the car. In the morning the police arrive and discover the mangled corpse. John, an expert tracker is brought in to track down the animal, but he is unable to do so.
Apparently it was a wolf, that ran on four legs, walked upright on two, covered it's tracks, and changed it's scent. Ummm... can you say werewolf?! Well three more people are killed and John repeatedly asks for the aid of his friend Byron. We learn that Byron is a little off his rocker and enjoys hunting dangerous animals. Well John's woman Sandy is attacked by the werewolf, but she escapes it. A curfew is posted but John ignores it and goes searching the woods at night for the savage beast. Unfortunately he is found by the sheriff and sent home. The next evening a deputy is found torn apart in a field not too far from Byron's house, but we know that he was killed in Byron's basement (hinting that perhaps Byron is a werewolf!).
After a lot of pressure and annoyance from the sheriff and John, Byron decides to join in the hunt. The two seperate and search the forest around Byron's home. Shots are fired, screams are heard, and growling and howling fills the air. When John arrives he discovers Byron's mangled corpse. Then he makes his way back to Byron's house. When he walks into the main hall- way guess what happens?! Byron tells John to put the gun down and then holds him at gunpoint. Then he tells John all about the werewolf hoax. It turns out that it was Grant's corpse in the field. Byron then gives John a 5 minute head start (which I think is more than fair) and an empty gun before unleashing his ravenous attack dog. Out in the clearing where the deputy's body was found, there are two rifle rounds on a log.
John takes off and reaches the bullets just in the nick of time. He loads the gun, turns, and shoots both shots at the approaching dog. Only one hits of course and John ends up chasing Byron without a weapon. Oh yeah did I tell you? Byron used his dog to kill people, but he smashed in doors and windows so that the dog could do it's work (thus creating the illusion that a werewolf was the culprit). Anyways Byron sneaks up on John and is about to lay a massive ass whooping on him until John pulls out a concealed pistol. Byron then tries to walk away, thinking John doesn't have the guts to shoot him. Unfortunately John does and Byron is shot twice and dies. With that, John walks off into the darkness, and now he and all the people of the town can rest safely in their beds.

Byron: "... a good hunter is never sure of anything except that his prey will do the unexpected."

Sheriff: "The governor has declared this area a state of emergency and the National Guard will be brought in."
Reporter: "Armed with silver bullets?"