Review of The Werewolf of Washington

I swear, it's getting to the point where if I see that one of the DVDs I've rented or bought is from the company known as Alpha Video, I'm tempted to return it unwatched. Lousy 16mm print sources, fuzzy images and very problematic sound have been the hallmarks of just about every DVD I've seen from this outfit. Case in point: "The Werewolf of Washington" (1973), a strange political satire/horror hybrid that fails dismally on both fronts and is rendered almost unwatchable by Alpha Video's crummy-looking DVD. In this one, Dean Stockwell goes to Budapest as a reporter, is bitten by a werewolf, and later becomes the assistant press secretary to the American president. Only prob: He's now a werewolf himself! Unfortunately, this cool-sounding plot is undone by a ridiculous script, lame acting (Stockwell excepted; he's excellent) and extremely poor editing/continuity. The sound, lighting and sets are all fairly amateurish, and Milton Moses Ginsberg's direction alternates between flashy (wait'll you see that shot taken from below water level in a toilet!) to downright inept. The initial appearance of the werewolf is ludicrous and bound to inspire more laffs than shudders, although it must be conceded that later transformations are handled well and that the monster does look pretty scary (although Stockwell's effete drug dealer in 1986's "Blue Velvet" was even scarier). But Stockwell turns into the monster five nights in a row in this picture; do we EVER get full moons five nights in a row?!?!?!?! Anyway, the film does boast two neat scenes--an attack on a woman in a tipped-over phone booth and a transformation aboard the Prez' helicopter--and I suppose does demonstrate that we COULD be stuck with worse monsters in D.C. than the ones we have now. Hard to believe, I know!