Rating: 
Summary: Amusing, scary and smart
Review: Having been released the same year as "The Howling," one would think one of those films would be remembered and the other sink to oblivion. This has not happened. Both films seems to have their devotees, and I myself think that "American Werewolf" is the stronger film of the two. This film held my interest from the first few minutes and never let go. The blending of the old Welsh village inflicted by a curse with the carefree, American college students having a fun holiday works very well. The tension at the strange, hostile Inn and the moody cinematography greatly enhance the mood. I can't think of many situations that would be more terrifying than being stranded on those dark moors while an unearthly howling gets closer. I would have been content to have the film stay in the highlands rather than moving the action to London.Once we get to London though, we, like the characters, play a waiting game to see how long it will take for the transformation of David to occur and for the carnage to begin. There are many great moments in this film, and the scenes when the wolf stalks his victims are not only terrifying but admirably restrained as well. I do feel that the climax of the film, set in London's Piccadilly Circus, does get a bit too graphic and bizarre, but I suppose this was mainly to show the chaos that most likely could occur were a werewolf to suddenly pop out seeking food. The performances in this film are decent. Griffin Dunne is funny as Jack, dead and undead and Jenny Agutter does what she can with the thankless role of love interest whose sole purpose seems to provide sex and material comfort for David. David Naughton does an okay job, but at times, his acting range is a bit limited and he seems to be about the only person who seems pretty unaffected by what is transpiring. (Another neat trick is to close your eyes when Naughton reads his lines and you'd swear you were listening to David Schwimmer.) It wasn't until recently that I saw this film (having been a scaredy cat 9 year old in 1981 whose parents wouldn't let him see R-rated movies anyhow), and it wasn't until watching the film that I realized the title was a nod to Mark Tawin's "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court." It doesn't hurt either that Twain's book is explicitly mentioned in the film also. "An American Werewolf in London" is an enjoyable, thrilling and terrifying film that will keep you laughing even as you hide under the covers. Good stuff.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, buuut......
Review: I must admit, I was extremely disappointed with this film. 1)It's not scary (although the scenes in the moors were excellent, and turn out to be the highlight of the entire film). 2)Since it's a John Landis (THE BLUES BROTHERS, TRADING PLACES, ANIMAL HOUSE), I had expected there to be a TON more humor . . . . . there was hardly any at all! 3)The ending is simply atrocious! It's so disappointing, that it's on the verge of destroying the entire film. I mean, the film wasn't very original to begin with (though the living dead segments were cool), but they had to go and use the ending that was used in THE WOLF MAN, THE CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF, and it goes on and on. Shoot the werewolf, see him in human form, flash to the credits!! The whole thing happens in less than 30 seconds (very, very sloppy and rushed). One thing I must say in its defense, however: the transformation scene. It may very well be the greatest ever put to film! Rick Baker is simply the best makeup man who has ever graced the silver screen with his extraordinary talents. Not all it's hyped up to be. You want werewolves? Go see the previously-mentioned two werewolf films, or SILVER BULLET and WOLF, and I hear that THE HOWLING is really good, too. It had at least be better than this overrated movie.
Rating:
Summary: A real howler
Review: American werewolf in london is a great horror comedy and stands out as one of my personal favourites. Its stars, David Naughton and Griffin Dune, play good roles as a man bitten by a werewolf whilst walking out on the moors and his dead best friend (surely the nearest contender to a posthumous oscar!). David Naughton, one presumes, is meant to be the star of the show, but is instead overshadowed by his friend who died in the opening scenes!
The plot is slight, but well constructed, pure and uncomplicated and bounces along at a rate fast enough to keep the viewer hooked. With this film, we get straight into the action very quickly, and it wastes no time in getting into the story. David has been bitten by a lycanthrope and has only a matter of time before he totally becomes one, and his decomposing friend returns in the 'dream' sequences to warn him of what may happen. In these sequences, Dune appears grotesque but actually plays quite a comic role.
American werewolf is cheifly a horror movie, but it is a horror movie with a keen sense of humour, and often between the gore are scenes where the gallows humour is played up to extremes. The gore itself in this movie is quite frequent and gives the movie added bite (pardon the pun), but is never unnecessary or cheapening to the movie.
Parts of this film are hilarious, partciularly the bit near the end were the wolf is stalking the Brit underground on the tube, who warns it that if it doesn't stop he'll get 'very cross'. His face when he sees the thing is one of the highlights of the film. This is action-packed, relentless in pace and keeps the viewer hooked and in my opinion, is well-constructed, pacy and thrilling. A definite horror classic that anyone should have in their collection.
In relation to the SFX, compared to many of today's high-budget films, yes, they do look slightly dated but the transformation itself still holds true to its praise as a ground-braking sequence, and unlike some horror movies, that have obviously been superseded by computer animation, the SFX are still thrilling to behold. The man who made them possible in the early 80's is a genius.
The film is intense and quite gory but is never overpowering and the film feels quite charming in places for a horror movie. I would recommend this to almost anyone, only the very squeamish would dislike this film. It's certainly a contender for my personal favourite horror, and only just falls short of 5 stars, i would say 4 1/2 is quite fair.
The bottom line is, it's a riot with a wicked sense of humour.
Rating:
Summary: More stupid than good
Review: An American Werewolf in London disappointed me. There was too much humor, too many living-dead people, and the werewolf was too small. The turning scene was pretty good, but not as good as THE HOWLING.
Rating:
Summary: One of my favorite films!
Review: The horror classic AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON, directed by John Landis, is definately a must-see film and now a cult favorite. It's also one of my favorite films! Everything's great here and Rick Baker's effects are top-notch. It's just awesome! This DVD is also great, with a load of special features and a great presentation. A must-have for horror fans!
Rating: 
Summary: THE BEST WEREWOLF MOVIE TO DATE!!!...
Review: This movie is the real deal. Rarely do we get a really good werewolf film. And this one still stands the test of time 21 years later. There still hasnt been a better werewolf film made by far. Some people think the Howling was better then this,... but if you read MY review on that movie...you'll get the true deal. Rick Bakers stuff on this was so good it scares me... BUY THIS ONE RRRIIIIIGGHHHHTTTTTT NOOOOOWWWWWWW!!!...
Cheers to all who put this wonderful classic together!
Rating:
Summary: 5 STARS AS COMEDY, 2 STARS FOR HORROR!
Review: This movie really isn't that scary, but the ending is the only thing that you could possibly consider scary in this movie. This movie is so freaking funny and not that scary. Heck I'm sure it scared children, but come on this isn't scary. If you're looking for a good laugh buy this now, but if your looking for a good scare, look elsewhere, because you won't get scared in this, because this is a comedy, and not a horror film.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful fun, and scary!
Review: This is a wonderful movie that has one sole aim: to entertain. Two American lads in Britain are attacked one dark night by a werewolf, and the fun is on! Great scenery and atmosphere, very very good special effects, and decent acting all come together with a brisk storyline to really keep this movie going. There are some cool shock scenes too, but that would be telling. Some cute English girls don't do this movie one bit of harm, either! This is a highly entertaining horror/comedy flick that elicits both chills and laughs. Great fun.
Rating:
Summary: it'll be classic, I think
Review: So these two american guys are walking around england, on vacation. And they come to this creepy little town out in the middle of the misty moors. And ... they don't stay the night; instead they choose to push on, despite the rain and general nastyness and their being on foot. Which, given the general attitude of the townsfolk, seems perfectly reasonable. Anyways, I'd never seen it, I'd never heard anything about it when I watched it. It's funny and gross and silly, and I love the music. (Is there a soundtrack? "I seeeee a baa-aad moon risin'...") I recommend it to werewolf & horror fans everywhere.
Rating:
Summary: Four for Effects
Review: Great special effects in this movie push my rating to a four. As a fan of the old time werewolf movies this one lacks in atmosphere and acting. Its a fun watch but without Lon Chaney Jr. it just aint the Wolfman. Sound and picture quality are excellent.
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