An American Werewolf in London (1981)

Two American college students on a walking tour of Britain are attacked by a werewolf that none of the locals will admit exists.

Director:

John Landis

Writer:

John Landis

Stars:

David Naughton, Jenny Agutter, Joe Belcher

Won 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Joe Belcher	...	Truck Driver
David Naughton	...	David Kessler
Griffin Dunne	...	Jack Goodman
David Schofield	...	Dart Player
Brian Glover	...	Chess Player
Lila Kaye	...	Barmaid
Rik Mayall	...	2nd Chess Player
Sean Baker	...	2nd Dart Player
Paddy Ryan	...	First Werewolf
Jenny Agutter	...	Nurse Alex Price
Anne-Marie Davies	...	Nurse Susan Gallagher
John Woodvine	...	Dr. J. S. Hirsch
Frank Oz	...	Mr. Collins / Miss Piggy
Don McKillop	...	Inspector Villiers
Paul Kember	...	Sergeant McManus

Storyline

Two American college students are on a walking tour of Britain and are attacked by a werewolf. One is killed, the other is mauled. The werewolf is killed but reverts to its human form, and the local townspeople are unwilling to acknowledge its existence. The surviving student begins to have nightmares of hunting on four feet at first but then finds that his friend and other recent victims appear to him, demanding that he commit suicide to release them from their curse, being trapped between worlds because of their unnatural deaths.

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Plot Keywords:

werewolf | college student | american | nurse | full moon | 

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Taglines:

Beware the Moon

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Genres:

Comedy | Horror

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

The porn theater as written by John Landis in 1968 was supposed to be a theater that showed old cartoons. By the time he shot the film in 1980, the cartoon theaters in London were replaced by porn theaters so he adjusted the script accordingly.

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Goofs

In the final scene an RT bus is shown as being in service in Piccadilly Circus. In fact, the last RTs were withdrawn from service in London in 1979.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Truck Driver: That way is Proctor, and over here is the moors. I go this way.
Jack: Thanks for the ride, sir. You have lovely sheep.
Truck Driver: Boys, keep off the moors, stick to the roads. The best to ya...
David: Thanks again.
[then to the sheep]
David: We'll miss you.
David: Bye girls...

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Crazy Credits

Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy star as themselves.

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Alternate Versions

The recent blu-ray release from Arrow Video restores the original mono mix and includes the same previous 5.1 remix as a second option. However, unlike past releases, the remix on this release corrects the pitch issue so now it's correct.

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Connections

Referenced in Neighbor (2009)

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Soundtracks

Past Present And Beyond
(uncredited)
Music by Trevor Bastow
Bruton Music Ltd

User Reviews

It's not a comedy!

John Landis directed this at the early 80's. It was a screenplay he wrote when he was only 19 years old. The story is about 2 north American tourists that get attacked by a werewolf during their tour in England. One of them will become the most vicious and unforgettable werewolf ever.

With stunning FX's (the guy behind this won an Oscar for this job), Landis gives us a terrifying story with a lot of comedy, romance, adventure, and friendship. And of course, gore. Some scenes were so explicit they even shock today.

Yes, the plot has a lot of holes, and some things happen way too fast, and some explanations seem forced but this is a movie that is pure fun and even today is pretty enjoyable and wild.

David Naughton and the beautiful Jenny Agutter star in this picture and remember: It's not a comedy!

But it's still funny as hell!

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 August 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

An American Werewolf in London

Filming Locations:

Burnham Beeches, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,786,512, 23 August 1981

Gross USA:

$30,565,292

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$30,669,378

Company Credits

Production Co:

Polygram Pictures, Lyncanthrope Films, American Werewolf

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min 92 min (heavily cut)

Sound Mix:

DTS (re-release) Mono Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1