Perhaps the only film in which the word "pentagram" is repeatedly mistaken for "the Pentagon," Werewolf of Washington is a smart horror-comedy that provides plenty of laughs and relevant social commentary.

Released in the midst of the Watergate scandal in 1973, the film tells the story of up-and-coming Washington newspaper reporter Jack Whittier (Dean Stockwell), who happens to be having an affair with the President's daughter Marion (Jane House). To avoid a scandal if the affair were to go public, Whittier asks to be transferred to the paper's Budapest, Hungary bureau.

After Whittier's departure, the President (Biff McGuire) hears a rumor that Whittier was forced to transfer because he was too supportive of the administration's policies. The President offers Whittier a job as assistant press secretary, hoping the reporter can help shield the secretive, crooked administration from the press.

Whittier accepts the job but on his way to the Budapest airport he is attacked and bitten by a werewolf. He arrives in Washington just in time for the full moon. Soon pentagrams begin to appear on the palms of people around Whittier - effectively marking the victims he will hunt down and kill each night.

In a panic Whittier tells the President, and his staff, that he's a werewolf but no one believes him. Anyway government officials had already arrested an innocent African-American man and declared the Black Panthers responsible for the violence.

As the body count rises, and Whittier continues to beg to be locked up, the President - a socially inept knucklehead who can barely form a coherent sentence if it isn't scripted - becomes increasingly focused on stifling the press, and using the violence as an excuse to convince the public to accept a declaration of martial law.

This is all strangely similar - exaggerated, but similar - to the post-9/11 Bush administration - which serves both as a reminder of the similarities between the Watergate era and today, and as a bolstering of Werewolf of Washington's political commentary 30 years after its release. Of course opinions will vary with the viewer's political stance.

Although the film is a bit uneven, writer and director Milton Moses Ginsberg skillfully mixes silly b-movie monster antics, off-the-wall slapstick humor and a satirical look at Washington bureaucracy. Stockwell delivers a fine comedic performance as the confused, conflicted Whittier. The movie is certainly cheaply made, but that only adds to its charm.

Alpha Video's full screen presentation is the only Werewolf of Washington DVD on the market, but it isn't exactly pretty. The picture is washed-out, colors are muted and nighttime scenes are so dark it can be hard to see what is going on. The print shows considerable wear and damage throughout - although it seems to lessen a bit as the film progresses. Sound is generally adequate, but does drop out a few times during the first 30 minutes.

The sole DVD extra is a gallery of Alpha Video covers.

While the presentation is far from perfect, Alpha's budget price-point makes this DVD worth a look. While not a great movie, Werewolf of Washington is a fun, smart and truly unique political monster-comedy.