‘The Company of Wolves’: The unlikely British horror movie loved by Stanley Kubrick
As one of the greatest filmmakers ever to grace the silver screen, Stanley Kubrick had the opportunity to touch almost every genre, tackling the war epic, sci-fi extravaganza and even the world of horror. He didn’t just dabble in the genres, though; he innovated in each one, crafting some of the best movies of the 20th century, including Paths of Glory, 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Shining.
Of his greatest contributions to horror, Kubrick’s adaptation of Stephen King’s 1977 novel The Shining is his very best, telling the story of Jack Torrance and his steady descent into madness whilst caretaking the desolate Overlook Hotel. Yet, the director was obsessed with the genre, instilling moments of terror throughout his filmography, from the chilling finale of Dr. Strangelove to multiple uncomfortable moments in A Clockwork Orange.
He took such moments from the landscape of horror history, inspired by such movies as George Sluizer’s The Vanishing, which he called “the most horrifying film I’ve ever seen”, as well as more recognisable Hollywood hits like William Friedkin’s The Exorcist and John Landis’ American Werewolf in London.
However, one more lesser-discussed movie that Kubrick was a particular fan of was the 1984 film The Company of Wolves by director Neil Jordan. Something of a modern-day adaptation of Little Red Riding Hood, the gothic horror told the story of a teenage girl who falls asleep in a country manor only to dream of wolves prowling the forests beyond her bedroom window.
Starring the likes of Angela Lansbury, David Warner and Sarah Patterson, the film gained a decent critical response thanks to its impressively crafted story and neat production design, with the latter being a feature that Kubrick particularly adored.
The production design of the movie, carried out by Anton Furst, made reference to such artists as Samuel Palmer and Pieter Bruegel, with this being so adored by Kubrick that he employed Furst to work on a forthcoming project together, the Vietnam War flick Full Metal Jacket.
Furst later reflected on his collaboration with Kubrick, stating that working with the filmmaker was “Like being suspended in a black hole of high thought and creativity…When he told me we’d be making Vietnam in England, my reaction was ‘Great, we can do it better!’ because we could blow the bloody thing up. Go for broke. I don’t think you can fault it in terms of looking like Vietnam… We had large amounts of research material”.
So, if you’re looking for a horror flick that has the essence of Kubrick’s own love of cinema, look no further than Neil Jordan’s The Company of Wolves this Halloween.
