An American Werewolf in London (1981 film)

A naked American man stole my balloons. - Kid at the zoo

Welcome to Happy Horror's 1981 Week!  I never realized before reading an article in Horror Hound Magazine just how much of a banner year 1981 was for horror.  Starting with Scanners and ending with Ghost Story, there were at least 40 different horror films that came out in that magic year alone.  We had Halloween II, Friday the 13th Part II, Blood Beach, The Evil Dead, Student Bodies, the list goes on and on.  And so it inspired me to do six days worth of films from that magic year, starting off with one of the most iconic, An American Werewolf in London.

So, years and years ago, I can remember my mom and I going to a movie rental place in Sodaville, OR.  While there were rental stores in my hometown of Lebanon, this place had what the others didn't: laserdiscs.  (For any readers who don't remember them, or were too young, laserdiscs were kind of a giant-sized precursor to DVDs where were big for a while in the 1980s.)  Playing on a TV at the rental place was the famous transformation sequence from today's movie.  However, I didn't get to see the whole movie until several years later.

The film starts with two friends, David and Jack, backpacking through the English countryside.  Jack's upset with David over robbing him of his chance to go to Rome with a girl he's had a thing for for years.  Getting dropped off at a crossroads by a sheep truck, the driver warns the two to stay off of the moors.  Heading to East Proctor, the friends stop in at a pub called the Slaughtered Lamb (inviting name!).  Becoming the center of attention, everyone watches them sit at a table before going back to what they're doing.  Unfortunately, an ill-timed inquiry on Jack's part sends them back out in the cold, with another warning to stay off the moors, and a further warning: beware the moon...

Well, I don't want to give too much more away!  This film has stood the test of time, with the aforementioned transformation scene standing out an an example of the effectiveness of practical special effects.  Rick Baker didn't wan an Academy Award for this film for nothing!  In addition to the werewolf makeup and animatronics, Baker aslo did extremely well with victim makeup.  Our werewolf friend gets visits from his victims in varying states of decomposition and the makeup is just amazing.

David Naughton plays David, our main character who doesn't initially believe he's becoming a werewolf.  He's also been in Midnight Madness (one of my personal favorite "road race" type films), was in the famous Dr. Pepper "I'm a Pepper" ads, and 1995's Ice Cream Man, Amityville: A New Generation and John Carpenter's Body Bags.  Jenny Agutter played Alex, David's nurse and eventual girlfriend.  She's been in other genre movies like 1987's Dark Tower, Child's Play 2, an uncredited cameo in Darkman and she also played in The Avengers, and will be in the upcoming Captain America: The Winter Soldier film.  Also, watch for a cameo early on by Frank Oz as a representative from the American Embassy.  Even after seeing his name in the credits, it's weird hearing Fozzy Bear's voice coming from a living person after hearing it coming from a bear for so many years!

One thing I thought was interesting in this film is that every single song in it has the word "moon" in the title.  From Blue Moon to Bad Moon Rising, the only songs missing are Moonshadow by Cat Stevens and Moonshiner by Bob Dylan, who both refused because they didn't think the film was appropriate for their songs.  Also missing is Warren Zevon's Werewolves of London, which would've been perfect for the film.

So, an iconic film, some great acting and fantastic special effects all add up to a 5 out of 5 on my part.  Tune in tomorrow where my string of 4's and 5's takes a small hit.  Join me at... The House by the Cemetery.  Until then, have a good day, take care of yourselves, and this is Red Hawk signing out!