MovieChat Forums > Wolfen (1981) Discussion > Why the weak and the abandoned?

Why the weak and the abandoned?

posted 11 years ago by darkmage7280
6 replies | jump to latest

I haven't read the novel, and I've only partially seen the movie, but what I'm wondering is this:
why do the Wolfen bother with attacking bums, drug addicts and others who are defenseless and won't be missed? The Wolfen are higher on the food chain than humans, practically unstoppable, and superior physically and mentally to us. Why do they even bother hiding? Why don't they just come out in the open and eat whoever they please?
It doesn't seem like humans could do anything about it.

[–] ATMinotaur 11 years ago

Because humans are still a threat to them. Their not that unstoppable, as their not supernatural. What they have in advantage, in physical ability, their not mentally superior, their about equal. They also lose out in numbers, they also lose out in technology, as they can't use it that well.

So by staying in hiding, and going for those that won't be missed they can survive. One thing the film doesn't show which the book does is, they can and do fVck up on occasion, just like humans do.

[–] darkmage7280 11 years ago

Alright, that one's clear.
Thanks, ATMinotaur.

[–] Oddark123 9 years ago

That is an important notion to make between the two. While the book versions aren't like just able to appear, they act more rationally in their moves. As for example while they can easily dispatch of a human, they are aware that some carry guns and that if they leave evidence of their existence humans will follow them to exterminate them.

The movie wolfen are more unstoppable in the way they present them and go with the natives mentioning they may be gods which makes you think more to the "why not just off the humans without fear?"

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[–] Squeeth2 11 years ago

Notice the "security" room at the start? It's a technological version of the Wolfen's superior senses etc. Normal human beings aren't being watched by bodyguards, ready to sweep the rest of us out the way. The Wolfen are an embodiment of this boss class. Occasionally they have a turf war but the rest of the time they prey on us. The scenes of derelict buidings around the church looked like a version of the Warsaw Ghetto after the uprising.

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[–] prbronx5 9 years ago

You answered your own question. They're defenseless and won't be missed. It's what they've done for centuries. They messed up when they killed Van der Veer.

In the novel, the Wolfen consume pretty much the entire body, and leave little behind. In the movie, they basically leave all three victims at the beginning, whole.

[–] DarkWolf69 8 years ago

Predators always target the weakest members of any "herd". The very young, very old, and the infirm are less likely to injure the predator than a stronger member would. After all, the meat's the same...