An American Werewolf in London (1981)

American Werewolf is such a great film, I'm not sure what I liked most. It's funny, very, very funny, and a bit scary, and all the characters are so likable. Oh and it's funny. Much more comedy than horror, this film features David Naughton (who? no idea) as an American back-packer exploring the Yorkshire Moors with his buddy Griffin Dunne (who I know from Scorsese's excellent and pretty unknown After Hours) and it's not long before Dunne has been killed by a werewolf, while Naughton escapes with his life... and the werewolf curse. Taken to London by creepy Yorkshire villagers, he wakes up in hospital and seen to (in many ways...) by Jenny Agutter's nurse, oh and dead Dunne pops back to say hello and tells him to kill himself before he becomes a werewolf.

It sounds like such a familiar, cheesy set up, and this is acknowledged in the dialogue - the classic Wolf Man films of yore are directly referenced. Everything about the film has it's tongue placed firmly in cheek, without resorting to farce or parody. Even all of the songs played on the soundtrack have 'Moon' in them! The banter between Naughton and Dunne is effective and Agutter is a great love interest. John Woodvine plays a doctor treating Naughton, and it is he who fills in Agutter in on the fact that her beau is a werwolf, and he's a wonderful creation. Just one of the many well-rounded characters - even the small roles of detectives investigating Dunne's murder are treated well, with excellent lines and characterisations. 

The gore during the werewolf attacks, and the bizarre alien-like dream sequence, is very schlocky and thankfully lacks the realistic gore-porn of today's horror/slasher movies. The werewolf transformation effects are very well done for 1981, a time when CGI meant nothing and stop-motion was king of special effects. I always think it's difficult to do a werewolf well, without making the end result look like a man in a suit. Buffy's Oz was a case in point, and his werewolf costume never really convinced; Being Human's George is better; and this film's falls somewhere in between - thankfully director John Landis doesn't spend a lot of time with the werewolf in full shots, other than his transformation most of the wolf's time is spent in a blur as it runs amock. Nicely, Landis (and Naughton) don't shy away from the fact that to become a werewolf a body needs to shed clothing, and thus before and after transforming, Naughton is pleasing naked. Not a bad thing! 

I had high hopes for An American Werewolf in London, and thankfully the movie lived up to it's promise. Other than a very abrupt ending, which actually makes sense but is still jarring, this is a perfectly formed beast and I'd happily watch it again.