cult film freak: MICHAEL J. FOX GETS HAIRY IN 'TEEN WOLF' WITH LORIE GRIFFIN

Michael J. Fox and Lorie Griffin in TEEN WOLF Year: 1985

Since Tom Cruise did COCKTAIL after TOP GUN, maybe it's not very strange that Michael J. Fox starred in TEEN WOLF after the game-changing success of BACK TO THE FUTURE: but it's said WOLF happened before knowing the FUTURE, and the b-homage horror-comedy was deliberately released afterward...

Which isn't bad now since TEEN WOLF has become a well-regarded cult movie in its own right: Centering on a small group of high school kids who aren't exactly popular but can still somehow rule over a popular party. That's where Fox as Scott Howard secretly turns into the title creature, and eventually becomes the campus hero. In this case, unlike another Michael in Michael Landon from I WAS A TEENAGE WEREWOLF, the transformation is positive: making him an A-student, star basketball player, and substitute lover to gorgeous blonde Lorie Griffin as Pamela, whose boyfriend plays on the rival team: one of several antagonists to our furry protagonist...

Lorie Griffin is smoking hot in TEEN WOLF Rates: ****

But ego is Scott's biggest setback, ball-hogging without including his lesser teammates — the crowd cheers and yet, off court, he can't avoid personal daggers from young Matt Adler and most important, the girl-next-door, Boof, pretty cute in her own right...

But it's Jerry Levine as Scott's best friend Stiles who, ruling scenes like Judd Nelson's John Bender had he been a game show host, is all for the popularity as TEEN WOLF symbolizes two contrary aspects of high school: fitting in with the crowd and standing on your own. Meanwhile, this risky venture could've been a literal howler, but it's made with the perfect balance of self-aware humor, pathos, romance and, while an angered/transitioned Scott's never actually scary (resembling more of an extremely hairy monkey than wolf), he can sometimes — warned by his mild-mannered werewolf father James Hampton — scare himself, which is felt by the audience thanks to a somewhat intrusive but overall eerie 1980's keyboard score.