An American Werewolf in London

Blue Moon...

     Ah, the 80's. A time when horror films branched out further with more gory effects and dark humor. Throw in some gratuitous sex, maybe some rock and roll and voila- entertainment of the warped variety. John Landis' An American Werewolf in London (1981) is another film widely considered a classic in the genre, and with good reason. The twisted humor and visual effects blew away the audience of the time.

      The story is fairly straightforward; David and his friend are attacked by a werewolf on the road to London. David survives, only to become a werewolf himself and wreak havoc on the metropolis before he is gunned down. Add in a sexy nurse to romance with, a creepily cultist rural pub, and the undead victims of werewolf attacks, including David's deceased friend, and you have a film that still stands up 35 years later. The beauty of this film is not in the story line per say, but in the manner in which the story is told. The cliche traveler turned monster tale is infused with pop culture from the era and a dark humor bend that makes the plot feel fresh.

     The rock and roll modern vibe brings the werewolf out of the old secluded villages into modern day. There are at least three versions of Blue Moon played throughout the film and even Credence Clearwater's Bad Moon on the Rise (small side note, as a kid I was positive this song said "there's a bathroom on the right"). This may seem unimpressive today as many horror films utilize popular rock music, but at the time this was a new approach in the genre. The dream sequence where David's family is attacked my mutant Nazi monsters feels very much like a poke at the Neo-Nazi punk movement of the time. The sexy nurse Alex's flat if a treasure trove of little pop culture references, like Micky and Minnie Mouse figurines. The Muppets make a brief appearance. You get the picture, these bits took the werewolf out of the old 1940's Universal monster era and dropped it snap dab into the early 80's.

     Humor is sprinkled through the story to wondrous effect. David's nude romp through the zoo. David's undead friend, Jack is full of sarcasm and wit. His personality becomes even more amusing as his body decays. He is chalk full of best friend quips and that causal tone with David while deteriorating to nearly a skeleton, sitting in a porno theater. Oh, the theater scene. The interaction of all the victims with David is pure gold as far as funny goes, and then by the time David, in werewolf form, is creating chaos on the streets I was laughing out loud. I have a twisted sense of humor and this movie tickled my funny bone in perfect ways.

     No review of this movie is complete without mentioning the special effects and makeup.I much prefer the physical feel of puppets, makeup, and costumes over computer generated special effects. This movies is one of the pinnacles of the physical variety of special effects. The transformation scene is astounding, considering the old style of cuts of various stages of makeup application. Wolf claws forcing their way through fingers, limbs elongating and warping. Really brilliant stuff here. As a former makeup professional, this movie kills in that department.

     As always, I have to mention the little issues with the work. One is the relationship between David and Alex. I can believe that the nurse is attracted to someone they pity and want to take care of. I also can believe how Alex's affection could be appealing to David who is in turmoil, alone in a foreign country. However, the speed of this couple's relationship is tough to swallow. In a mere few days, they go from patient and nurse, to live in lovers, to Alex risking her life in a dark alley to save David. It's breakneck fast, and came off improbable to me. The lack of in-depth information on the werewolf curse is both a positive and a negative. The information isn't really needed to keep the plot going. At the same time, I'm left with a lot of questions that leave me itching for answers. Especially regarding the tavern and it's patrons. The village knows of the curse, why haven't they wiped out the werewolf before David and Jack come to town? How is Jack sure David is the last one? Why did the police cover up the case? Part of me feels this is nit-picking, as this was meant to be a fun romp with a modern twist on an old monster. The other part of me feels I've been denied much of the juicy bits of the werewolf mythology.

      Overall, this is a great entertaining movie with a funny slant. Well worth watching if you are a fan of the 80's, a werewolf buff, or just looking for something gruesome to laugh at.