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An American Werewolf in London
DVD Review by Yanman |
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"The wolf's bloodline must be severed; the last remaining werewolf must be destroyed." Most "cult classics" are also the campiest. This is certainly the case with An American Werewolf in London. With a tired and overused plot, and rather poor acting, one might wonder why this one has such a following. What this one has that other campy horror films don't is the Academy Award ® winning special effects of the extremely talented Rick Baker. Baker has gone on to have somewhat of a cult following himself, and has gone on to win more then half a dozen awards, in a category that was all but created just for him. When two American students David and Jack, get lost while on a walking tour of Europe they don't think too much of stopping to ask for directions in a local Pub. While the locals do appear to be more then just a little bit kooky, it is their apparent worship of the occult that sends these two back into the cold dark night. As they leave the Motley Crew at the bar, one warning is issued, "stay off the moors". Here as is often the case, our two young characters ignore this advice ending up lost and surrounded by an unearthly howl. One ends up dead, the other in a hospital haunted by a nightmare that eventually becomes his life. Can anything save him from what has become his fate? It has become apparent to this reviewer that it is much easier to "re-master" a soundtrack then it is to clean up very old video. This being the case An American Werewolf in London has a griping soundtrack that is offered in a choice of multi-channel formats. You won't be disappointed if you pick either the DTS option or its Dolby Digital competitor. We can't give the same high praises to the anamorphic widescreen video however. Offered in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1, the twenty year old film more then just shows its age, with lots of film grain and dirt. We had hoped that this could have looked much better, but this appears to be the best that can be accomplished with the master available. Extras are what give a Collector's Edition like this one its ultimate appeal. From a making of, to interviews with makeup artist Rick Baker the special features are nothing to be ignored. Other bonuses include outtakes, an interview with director John Landis, casting of "the hand", storyboards and more. For anyone that has never seen this now classic horror film, it is important to remember that the now rather non-impressive effects were cutting edge for their time in 1981. Long time fans will of course not need a reason to watch this one over and over again, but if you are looking for a reason to get a copy on DVD then the soundtrack and extras are more then a good enough excuse. Is that a full moon on the rise, or just a bad moon?
This DVD was reviewed on Yanman.com's Reference Theater #1, using a Toshiba SD-5109 DVD player, Toshiba TW56X81, and M&K 750 THX Speakers. Panamax protects all systems at Yanman.com. |
An American Werewolf in London Most "cult classics" are also the campiest. This is certainly the case with An American Werewolf in London Staring: David Naughton Directed By: John Landis Running time: 98 Mins.
Bonus Materials
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