The first half of the movie has a compelling set up that will remind you of "In The Heat of The Night", a film made five years earlier. The story diverges pretty rapidly though in the second half, preceded by an ominous breathing pattern that heralds the first hint of the title character. By that time, you should have had enough hints to figure out who the "loup-garou" was, though for the life of me, I could have sworn old Hugh was talking about a 'lucaruk'. No matter, when Louise Rodanthe (Barbara Rush) reaches for her brother's scholarly text on lycanthropy, you know it's only a matter of time before Andrew (Bradford Dillman) reveals his hairy side.

The story makes use of some tried and true werewolf lore, like death by burning and silver bullets, and throws in some new ones like sulfur induced seizures. I particularly enjoyed the reference to Black Water Fever as an offshoot of malaria to describe Andrew's medical problem. However I don't recall Lon Chaney ever being this strong; those iron jail cell doors were ripped right out of their brick wall moorings with no effort at all.

If there were to be a remake of this made for TV flick, I would suggest they tone down the werewolf wardrobe a bit. The pressed slacks and fitted shirt were suitable attire for the daytime Andrew, but didn't really go with his after hour activities. Ditto for the well groomed facial hair and manicured nails. But then again, this was a refined Southern werewolf, so maybe it makes sense.

"Moon of the Wolf" has some well known folks doing a pretty good job in their respective roles. David Janssen is suitably methodical in his investigation as Sheriff Aaron Whittaker, and unwilling to rush to judgment. Fine character performances are turned in by Geoffrey Lewis and Royal Dano, who look as comfortable in their bayou locale as in any of the Westerns they appeared in. With a stronger second half, the film might have achieved a more memorable name recognition than it has today.

You can't expect feature film quality from the TV movies of the 1970's. The equivalent of B movies from the golden age of Hollywood, the movies of the week were "stay at home" family nights where 75 minutes of feature gave enough entertainment to entice the family to anticipate these low budget films. Often, the subjects were horror related, and this is a modern day retread of what Universal had done with "The Wolf Man" in the 1940's as well as dozens of other similar themes made on a dime.

This TV movie, set in the Louisiana bayou, surrounds the sudden discovery of a possible werewolf, responsible for the death of a young girl. Sheriff David Jansen is at his wit's end trying to discover what is really going on, but the pressures on him are incredible. Town boss Bradford Dillman and his sophisticated sister Barbara Rush are involved. As well as medical examiner John Beradino who happened to have impregnated the young victim. Beradino, the star of TV soap "General Hospital", is far from noble and a few years older than his supposed 50 years.

There's also Geoffrey Lewis as a Bayou local, his hospitalized father Royal Dano (basically just mumbling sounds while attempting to make accusations) and their housekeeper, the lovable Claudia McNeil. It's Jansen's tongue in cheek performance as the cynical sheriff that stands out, similar in its weariness to Darren McGavin in "The Night Stalker". The identity of the culprit comes as no surprise, but it's fast moving, often funny and occasionally chilling.

David Janssen and Barbara Rush lead a cast of characters as a southern Louisiana town is suddenly struck by a series of lycanthropic murders. With no rhyme or reason behind the killing, and with a raving old bed-ridden cajun seeming to be the only person who fully understands what's going on, Janssen, the town's sheriff, seems to have his work cut out for him.

Aided by an old friend with old money (Rush),and a posse of would-be wolf hunters, Janssen does not seem to know where to turn. But soon enough, he no longer needs to navigate at all - as the problem comes to him.

Though the plot is not terribly original, the setting and characters certainly are. Also, Moon of the wolf is particularly well acted for its genre and better directed and filmed than most of its competitors. Dan Petrie certainly has made his share of good TV movies, and this, despite its pedigree, is no exception