Customer Reviews

An American Werewolf in London (Two-Disc Full Moon Edition)

5 star:		(65)
4 star:		(38)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Every one of the DVD's that I have purchased of this movie has been defective! Do not waste your money!

many people believe the Howling to be a better film than An American werewolf in London.i happen to disagree.i do think The Howling is a pretty decent movie,but i don't think it measures up to An American Werewolf in London.in my opinion,it has better dialogue than The Howling,better characters,better creature effects i:e.transformations.i also found it much more suspenseful.the tone of the film is much more serious(for the most part)than the howling,and there aren't any unintentional laugh out loud scenes,as i felt there were in The Howling.The Howling may have been played partly for laughs,but it didn't work for me.A.W.I.L was played mostly straight though there are some comedic elements in the movie.In A.W.I.L these scenes work.but in The Howling i don't think they do. many people say that The Howling is the best werewolf movie ever made,but i don't agree.it's a pretty decent,fun movie to watch,i just don't think it's as good as An American Werewolf in London.i also think A.W.I.L is more substantial as a horror movie.these are just my thoughts,of course and others may disagree.anyway,for me An American Werewolf in London is a 4/5

1981 was The Year of the Werewolves...the furry fiends leaped onto movie screens in three major films: "The Howling," "Wolfen," and the classic of the genre, "An American Werewolf in London." There has never been a greater werewolf film, there has never been a better transformation scene, and few horror movies can match the entertaining mixture of humor and scares that writer/direction John Landis ("Animal House," "The Blues Brothers") achieved here.

Although there had been humor in horror films before this movie, "An American Werewolf in London" showed once and for all that having comedy in a horror film didn't mean that the film would lose out in the scare department. Landis makes it clear that the film is NOT a comedy -- the horror scenes are carried with dead-seriousness and shocking impact -- but there is so much quirky humor surrounding these scenes that the film becomes incredibly likable and buoyant. Most of the laughs come from seeing the old movie werewolf premise dropped into the modern day and watching the characters try to deal with it.

Actors Griffin Dunne and David Naughton, neither of whom had been in a movie before, create a wonderful 'ordinary guy' feeling to their characters of two young American boys backpacking through Europe. In rural England, they have a nasty encounter with a legendary monster, and Naughton faces the consequences of being bitten when he returns to London and takes up living with a pretty nurse (Jenny Agutter).

The transformation scene is justly famous and a milestone in visual effects. Make-up wizard Rick Baker lets the viewers watch a real-time twisting of a human body into a wolf shape: limbs stretch, snouts pop, hair grows, the body contorts...it's amazing to watch. (And on DVD, you can watch it over and over and over again). Even computer graphics can't achieve an effect as startling as this one.

This DVD offers some nice extras. The image is good, and the 5.1 Surround Sound is decent (although there's not a lot of back speaker sound). Actors Naughton and Dunne do feature commentary on the film, and provide some interesting information and sound as if they were having a great time reliving the experience. I wish that Landis had been on the commentary as well, but you can hear his thoughts on the film in an 18-minute interview. Landis is an absolute hoot to listen to; the guy is as funny as his movie, and he absolutely bursts with ideas and observations. To go along with the Landis interview is an 11-minute interview with make-up maestro Rick Baker. He provides a fascinating look at crafting what he calls "the coolest werewolf film ever made." Also included is a vintage featurette on the making of the film, although it's only about five minutes long (but you get more of wise-cracking John Landis), ten minutes of archival footage of Baker making a cast of David Naughton's hand, and an assortment of storyboards, outtakes, and production photos.

"An American Werewolf in London" is a major turning point in horror films and visual effects -- and even over twenty years later, it is still one of the most entertaining movies of its decade. It hasn't aged at all, and this DVD lets you experience it the way it should be seen (and in the company of wild-man John Landis!)

This is deff. the most scariest, thrilling, werewolf movie out there. It has tonz of gore, blood, and awesome deaths. This is the first werewolf movie where you actually see the transformation between man and wolf. All the other werewolf movies show some features being transformed but then stop the camera and the guy magically grows hair and huge teeth. The acting is great and the screen shots are very well done to give the movie more thrill. The blood and scary music really keep you focused throughout the whole film. This is deff. worth buying, don't wste your time on american werewolf in Paris!! Absolutely herendous!!! The movie dosn't come close to being as good as this one. A deff. Buy in your dvd collection!!!

Still a great film all these years on. It has dated a bit so I'm knocking a star off for that. And one or two of the leads miss the mark occasionally.

What can you say? The werewolf transformation is still the basis for everything since. The silence in the Slaughtered Lamb is just spot on - you get that in most rural English pubs to this day. It's not a cliché. Jenny Agutter is adorable but when is she not?

And it's really funny to boot.

I bought An American Werewolf in London, 2-disc full moon edition, from amazom.com. The picture is great, widescreen, very colourful, unlike the VIDEOGAME colours of today's movies (An American Werewolf in Paris).
It has 2 audio tracks, English 5.1 and French 2.0 mono, on feature disc. Disc 2 has extras including,"Beware the Moon, I Walked with a Werewolf", etc in English.
Both discs have subtitles in English, French and Spanish, which I display because I am a fanatic for subs. Not only it improves my hearing/pronunciation and spelling/reading, writing skills as far as English is concerned but also helps me learn other languages. This way I kill more birds with one stone.
The movie's length is 1h 40 min. approximately.

Written and directed by a young John Landis, this 1981 release was a hit and rightly so. It is a smart, sharp, scary, and ultimately satisfying horror flick with a dash of romance tossed into the brew. Boasting a young and energetic cast, it succeeds brilliantly in what it sets out to do: entertain.

David Naughton (I'm a Pepper; you're a Pepper) is terrific as a young American backpacking along the moors in Northern England with his friend, played with comic deftness by Griffin Dunne. They are advised to stay on the road and off the moors. When they come upon a strangely named roadside in, they stop in for refreshments, only to get a very odd and funny reception upon their arrival. Feeling unwelcome, they decide to move along, but not before being told once again to keep to the road and off the moors.

Though they are able to see the road, as there is a full moon, they carelessly wander off onto the moors. No sooner do they do so that they start to hear the baying and howling of some creature. Scared and realizing that they have wandered off the road, they start running for it, when suddenly "it" is upon them, killing Griffin almost instantly before attacking David. David is saved by those very folk who had made them feel unwelcome in the inn. How they do it makes for a great scene.

The unconscious David finds himself waking in a London hospital several weeks later, remembering that he and his friend had been attacked by a viscious wolflike animal, a story at odds with what the police had been told by the local villagers. David begins to have some disconcerting dreams and visits by his now dead friend, who claims to be part of the undead. David, who thinks he is going crazy, is looked after in the hospital by an interested doctor, played by John Woodvine, and a lovely and caring nurse, played by a very young Jenny Agutter. David and Jenny happens to fall in love and upon his release from the hospital, he goes and stays with Jenny in her apartment. It is there that, during a full moon, David experiences what he has become.

What happens next is both frightening and, at times, humorous, due to the wonderful script penned by Landis. The doctor, intrigued by David's claims that he was bitten by a wolf like animal, coupled with a bizarre series of murders where the victims are found half eaten, travels to where David had been attacked and discovers the same roadside inn, where he encounters a reception similar to that which David and Griffin had received. Returning to London, he sets about trying to help David. Meanwhile David is himself confronted by what has happened, though he has no recollection of having done anything. What transpires next, however, will keep the viewer riveted to the screen.

This is a great horror film, well acted by the entire cast. The special effects won make up artist, Rick Baker, the first of his six Academy Awards for special makeup effects (Star Wars, The Nutty Professor, Planet of the Apes, Men in Black, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas). This is a DVD well worth having in one's collection.

And if you love werewolves, all the better. "An American Werewolf in London" works on so many levels, that its small wonder so many regard it as a latter-day classic of the genre. A quarter of a century has passed since its original release and An American Werewolf in London still stands (hairy) head and shoulders above any other lycanthrope movie. Its perfect direction from John Landis, great black humor, groundbreaking make-up effects, and wonderful performances make the 1981 classic absolutely unmissable. Naughton plays David Kessler, an American back-packer traveling across Europe with his best pal Jack (Griffin Dunne). However, stopping off to visit the Yorkshire moors turns out to be a big mistake when the two lads are attacked by a werewolf and so goes the story.

As the "Werewolf" of the title, Naughton does very well, especially in scenes where his costume consists mostly of excess hair. And as his buddy, Dunne easily steals the film with his observations and his worsening situation. And the special effects! Rick Baker once again makes his name supreme as makeup wizard unparalleled with so many different effects for werewolf transformations, attacks, zombified victims, etc. But there's another side to this film you may not see coming. This film has one of the best senses of humor in this genre since "The Bride of Frankenstein". You'll forever try to mimic the mother's response when her son tells her, "A naked American man stole my balloons!"

I would never dream of telling you how it ends; but consider that this was directed by John Landis, think about the other films he's directed then see if what you expected comes out in the end. It did for me. One final note: I haven't seen "An American Werewolf in Paris", but I have no desire to see any film trying to ape on the greatness achieved here. Let well enough alone. Great film but one ugly disc cover.

David (David Naughton "Be a Pepper") and Jack are Americans visiting England. Evidently they are not aware of the many werewolf movies. Everyone knows to beware of the moors. Not these two. Yep one gets bit the other ripped. Of course no one believes David when he mentions his hairy dreams and his suspicion that he may be experiencing that change in life. Long before the movie "Six Sense". David also saw dead people.

While in hospital for his bite recovery, a nurse (Jenny Aggutter of "Logan's Run" fame) takes a special interest in him and takes him home like a stray. So is he a bit unbalanced or does he have a nocturnal apatite that includes a lot of dumb people?

There is lots of great and not so great music with a moon motif in the background.

The movie stretches the theme too far. The jokes are just enough off to not be jokes. The pacing is off enough to make your fangs grate. Many opportunities were missed. And the abrupt ending leaves you wondering why?

An American Werewolf in London(Aug.81)stars David Naughton and Griffin Dunne in this decent man turned wolf-er film of the early 80s,all under the aegis of director John Landis.The film has been remastered well and looks better than ever.
I hadn`t seen this film since its`debut in 81,so I was just going by recollection.I remember the film as a whole not being an outstanding effort but more so recall the wonderfully eery special effects and top notch makeup jobs.The story involves the two stars as tourists roaming the English Moors in England.It gets late,it is raining and miserable and the two decide to seek shelter in a small local pub.The locals don`t like these intruders and when Dunne asks about a pentagram on the wall the two decide it is warmer outside than it is in.While hiking in the dark they are attacked by something that kills Dunne and leaves Naughton bitten and in the hospital to recover in London.The local police do not believe the distraught Naughton but over time his attending doctor seems to find enough in his story to investigate it personally.
Naughton boards with his attending nurse and the two become closerthanthis.However Naughton over time receives some visits by his dead buddy warning him that he has been bitten by a werewolf and that by the next full moon it is HE that will be roaming the streets of London on a killing spree.Naughton is at first totally skeptical but in the end he does indeed turn and starts a killing rampage.On one of them at the end of the film Naughton,the werewolf,has been cornered in an alley by a theatre and is subsequently shot and killed by police as he tries to lunge towards his loving nurse.
What is really compelling about this film is not so much the story,which is a decent one overall,but the special effects and make up.The detail of the man turning into a werewolf and the sight of a decaying Dunne as he reappears to Naughton in order to help his buddy,even in death,holds up brilliantly even today.It was so impressive even back in the early 80s that I believe that the AMPAS created a new award category just for this film-Outstanding Achievement in Makeup-which has been presented ever since.And speaking of Dunne`s reappearances,this was also what made AWIL such a hit then;the sly sense of humour throughout.Both the stars under-acted in order to provide us with a more natural and realistic interpretation of two buds,far from home and homesick,in for the long haul,as it were.The overall effect and impact of the film today isn`t,however,as sharp as I recall it back then.This is in large part due to myself and the vast improvement of SFX in general since that time.
Technically speaking the film is in its original widescreen aspect ratio of 1:85:1 and has been remastered,looking better than I remember.This two disc edition does the entire film up right.In fact I would give the package a five star rating.It includes such extras as:the trailer,commentary by the two stars,two features on the film with the cast,director and make up artist Rick Baker,another looking at Bakers handy work,a featurette on the making of AWIL,a talk with Baker about the film,outtakes,storyboards and much more.
I recommend AWIL to all looking for a decent scary movie to watch at home with some friends and alot of popcorn.The story takes a back seat to the SFX which were groundbreaking for its time.Give it a peek-see!