"I saw a werewolf drinking a pina colada at trader Vick's, his hair was perfect" Warren Zevon - Werewolves of London
I fucking love werewolf movies, and besides the Howling, An American Werewolf in London is my favorite. What's not to like? You have the amazing Rick Baker, David Naughton star of Midnight Madness and singer of my favorite disco song and yours Makin' It! And the once great John Landis, director of Animal House, the Blues Brothers, the doomed segment of Twilight Zone the movie and of course the abysmal Blues Brothers 2000 (thus the once great remark)behind the camera. Plus throw in an awesome Nazi monster massacre scene (I still don't get it though) and you have arguably one of the best horror films ever made. Jenny Agutter plays the pretty British love interest of David the poor bloke who watches his hiking buddy get his ass chewed off by a werewolf. David survives and as legend goes he is cursed with lycanthropy. He is advised to commit suicide by his poor undead friend Jack. If David dies Jack will no longer roam the earth, or kill others. The scene in the hospital with Jack was incredible in High Definition; it truly looked like the poor bastard was sitting in your living room. After a second visit from a rapidly decaying jack in his nurse girlfriend's flat, and of course the obligatory 80's sex scene, Rick Baker's magic literally changes man into a giant horrifying wolf-beast right before your eyes. This scene alone warrants the purchase of the bluray upgrade. Jumping Jesus on a pogo stick! And the action doesn't stop! David the wolf proceeds to eat winos, a bloke down in a subway, some poor schmuck having a smoke waiting for his wife, and wakes up naked at the wolf pen at the local Zoo. I can only imagine the wolves must have had the hell scared out of them! I've spoiled too much of the film already. Needless to say more carnage ensues, and of course the beast must die. Let's talk Blu Ray
Video: 4 out of 5
This movie is 30 years old and looks pretty good. They saved the best restoration for the transformation and kill scenes. Makes sense to me. The scenes in the Slaughtered Lamb were dark, but the blacks were true black and looked like a real pub through and through. The main transformation scene looked damn real! Charles Bronson himself would have soiled himself if he saw that going on in front of him! This was not as awesome as Halloween as far as restoration, but still very good.
Audio: 4.5 out of 5
The 5.1 DTS HD soundtrack sounds awesome. On the moors when the original werewolf howls, you really know its coming! The screams, the music, and the attack roars of David/Werewolf sound like it is you being attacked. You can literally hear David's spine grow and twist during the transformation. I really cannot imagine this sounding better than it does in this version. Bad Moon Rising, and Blue Moon sounds a hell of a lot better than obviously ever dreamed of. Very Fucking Cool.
Extras: 5 out of 5
There are extras for miles here. Anything you want to know about this film is presented here. The one featurette you must see, is of course how David transforms into the Werewolf. Rick Baker exposes it all!
"I saw a werewolf drinking a pina colada at trader Vick's, his hair was perfect" Warren Zevon - Werewolves of London
