Michel Levesque, a director and writer active in the early 1970s, made significant contributions to cult cinema with his distinctive style. He directed Werewolves on Wheels (1971), a unique blend of horror and biker culture, showcasing his ability to merge genres. In addition, he helmed Sweet Sugar (1972), a provocative exploration of exploitation themes. Levesque's work, particularly in Hot Summer Week (1972) as a writer, reflects the audacious spirit of the era, solidifying his place in the annals of grindhouse cinema.
Werewolves on Wheels
"As it is, the story takes up the tracks of a California biker gang, the Devil’s Advocates, as they speed across a barren highway on a drug-infused journey of undisclosed intent. Losing their way, they stop for the night on the grounds of a “church” tucked away in some hills off the beaten path. Much to their initial pleasure, they are fed by a kindly group of hooded priests before settling into a deep, inebriated stupor." As a group of bikers moves across the desert, they come across an old church that a Satanic cult has taken over. The cultists give them drugged food and the bikers soon fall asleep. That night the cultists cast a curse on the biker leader's girlfriend that makes her turn into a werewolf after nightfall; she soon infects her boyfriend. The bikers leave the church and begin to be killed off whenever they stop for the night. Things come to a climax when the couple changes in front of the bikers, who quickly kill the beasts. The bikers return to the church to have their revenge, but stop when they see themselves in the cult-procession.
