An American Werewolf in London (1981) * * *

 

Directed by:  John Landis

Starring:  David Naughton, Jenny Agutter, John Woodvine, Griffin Dunne, David Schofield

An American Werewolf in London begins on the English moors where college buddies David (Naughton) and Jack (Dunne) are hitchhiking.  They come across a remote pub where the locals warn them to "stick to the road".  They don't and are soon attacked by a werewolf.  Jack is killed, while David is hospitalized with severe injuries.  He recalls little about the attack, but has eerie nightmares, but soon Jack's decomposing corpse appears to him in his hospital room warning him that he will turn into a werewolf at the next full moon.  David questions his own sanity and ignores Jack.  Wouldn't you know it?  David indeed turns into a howling, ravenous werewolf with convincing visual effects and makeup that still impress forty-plus years later.   An American Werewolf in London's Rick Baker was the first recipient of the Best Makeup Oscar.  

David kills several people during his night as a werewolf.  The next morning he awakens naked in a zoo. Jack soon visits David again in a furthering state of decomposition urging him to kill himself to spare innocent lives.  David believes him now.   What makes An American Werewolf in London work, besides the visuals, is director Landis' use of humor which lightens the mood.  You wouldn't think humor and horror could coexist, but they can.  Horror films these days are depressing enterprises full of doom, gloom, and gore.  An American Werewolf in London tames the bloodlust and actually makes David someone we care about.

We feel for David, who is stuck in a predicament not of his own choosing, and must make a decision very few would have the courage to make.  The actors have some fun with this material.  Sure it takes place in cloudy, rainy England, but the atmosphere is one of schlocky horror, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.