Review of An American Werewolf in London (1981) by Chris W — 23 Dec 2009

Few films are able to blend humor and scares as well as the 1981 cult classic horror/comedy "An American Werewolf In London." The movie was directed by John Landis, whom had received great recognition for directing classic comedies such as "Animal House" and "The Blues Brothers" This movie is about friends David and Jack on a hiking trip through Europe. While crossing through a small English town, they are both attacked by a Werewolf. Jack is killed, but David survives. After being taken to London, David is haunted by the ghost of Jack, who tells him that on a full moon, he will become a werewolf himself.

The movie really does a fantastic job scaring you while making you laugh. A lot of the humor is so disturbingly macabre while many of the scares are so over-the-top, that they're hilarious. Its really hard to explain and needs to be seen to be fully understood. One of the highlights is the actual werewolf transformation scene. Unlike many previous werewolf films, which generally kept the transformation in shadows or hidden, this one is done in a fully lit room, showing every inch of David's body transforming. Its really neat to watch, the makeup and special effects were accomplished very effectively. In fact, the movie even won the Academy award for best makeup. Considering how many horror films win Oscars, thats quite an accomplishment.

The script, unfortunately, has quite a few flaws. Landis apparently wrote the movie when he was only 19 and made very few changes. It definitely shows. The lack of character development and the abrupt ending sometimes come off as a bit amateur. Not to mention, the love story comes off as a bit tacked on. However, that same love story does lead to some of the movie's funnier moments too, so I can let that one slide.

Overall, I really enjoyed this movie. Its actually one of my favorite horror films and definitely one of the best horror/comedies ever made.