An American Werewolf in London

An American Werewolf in London (1981)
Director: John Landis
Cast: David Naughton, Griffin Dunne, Jenny Agutter
Memorable Line: "The wolf's bloodline must be severed; the last remaining werewolf must be destroyed."

Imagine you're a fun loving college guy bumming around England with your best friend -- just looking for a good time. It's a dark night and you stumble into a rural inn with some sour and morbid looking locals who warn you to stay off the moors. "Stay off the moors" resonates with you for a moment, but you're young -- immortal and invincible. So, it's off you go and into certain doom. That's the introduction to An American Werewolf in London.

David (Naughton) and Jack (Dunne) are backpacking around England, having a good old time when they attacked by some creature on the moors. David is bitten and Jack is killed along with the creature. But now the creature isn't a creature, it's a man. David regains consciousness in a London hospital under the care of an attractive London nurse (Agutter). His wounds mysteriously heal almost overnight and although he's lost a friend, he gains a girlfriend in the nurse. Not all is well, as they say, as David begins to feel strange urges and things go from bad to worse when his friend Jack starts to haunt him from beyond the grave. Then comes the full moon.

An American Werewolf in London isn't the most polished production made and the directing is workman like, but there are moments in the movie that are truly inspired. The ghostly visitations by Jack are real highlights of the movie and there's a dream sequence not to be missed. Naughton (best known for a series of Dr. Pepper commercials) has charisma, but a more seasoned actor might have been better in the part. Griffin Dunne has a peach of a role as the ghostly Jack and he fills the character with a snarky brio.

An American Werewolf in London was produced at a time with special effects such as werewolf transformations were just revving up into a fever pitch, therefore the transformation sequences take center stage and actually slow down the pace of the movie for the modern film goer as these sorts of transformations are now common place. What I appreciate about An American Werewolf in London is the script. While not perfect, there are some moments in which Landis tries to de-construct the horror genre and seems years ahead of his time.

An American Werewolf in London is not for the faint of heart as it has some pretty gory moments. Landis lets a couple scenes such as a multiple car crash in Piccadilly Circus get a little out of hand, but still, I can heartily recommend An American Werewolf in London for those looking for a fun night of horror.