I always thought WEREWOLF OF LONDON is one of the worst Universal Horror movies from the 1931 - 1936 run, which is the equivalent of complaining about sleeping with this year's worst looking Playboy Playmate. In other words, I like it. It's been a while since I've seen it, so I'll have to give it a fresher look soon.
There is an aspect in
London, lacking in the
Wolfman films: Humor. Directer Stuart Walker HAD to be influenced by James Whale's
Invisible man (1933). Fresh off the successes of Great Expectations (1934) and
The Mystery of Edwin Drood (1935) both somber productions, LONDON was bit of a departure. The early humor in Whale's movie came from the wide eyed, screeching, howling Una O'Conner.
Walker borrowed the crazy, Cockney woman idea and expanded it to TWO crazy, Cockney women. Added to the 'strange man behind the door in the Inn' scene were these two old broads, obviously great friends, but so in love with Whiskey that at one point one knocks the other unconscious to steal her bottle, all this going on while there's a fiend on the other side of the door, spitting and snarling away!
There's another scene later where it's a lady of the Hoi Polloi (Spring Byington) that provides comic relief after watching a plant, reminiscent of the
Addams Family's "Cleopatra" that devours small critters
at a black tie affair.
In searching for a clip of the humor scenes to close out this post I found THIS, a short review/discussion of LONDON. It's worth a look.