BY MARK MAWSTON
If you’re a fan of American Werewolf In London, Arrow’s
latest Blu-ray release of the film will leave you salivating as much as the
film’s titular beast. Crammed full of
extras, it’s simply stunning and the key point here is that these are mainly new
features and are as informative and essential as the best-ever “making of documentary,
Beware The Moon by Paul Davis, that appears here, as it did on the film’s
previous releases. This Arrow release is a full Rick Baker-style transformation
from good to great as far as quality and content is concerned.
AWIL is easily one of Arrow’s most impressive releases
and finally does justice to what is a fully fledged cult classic. Not only are
the extras superb (including two feature length documentaries, the pick of
which is the brand new documentary about Universal’s Wolfman mythos by Danial
Griffith) but the transfer of the film itself is outstanding.
Earlier this week I asked Director John Landis what he
thought of the transfer, to which he replied:
“I am delighted with the new Arrow release of An
American Werewolf in London. Picture quality is excellent with strong blacks
and you can choose between the original theatrical mono track or the surround
stereo remix. They packed it with extras and a small poster of Graham
Humphrey's excellent new art for the filmâ€.
Not only is the content superb but the packaging is also
up there and deserves to gain the recognition it deserves when it comes to the
Rondo Awards next year. Along those lines I also took the opportunity to ask
the man responsible for the superb new cover art, legendary poster artist
Graham Humphreys (Evil Dead, Nightmare On Elm Street) about how he approached
this commission, the execution of director Landis so admires:
“A fan of ‘An American Werewolf In London’ since going to
the cinema during its first run, I recall leaving the London West End cinema
and walking into the night, in the very same locations that I’d just witnessed
on screen. It was thrilling! I was living it! This particular painting was a
private commission from a fan of the film, one of a series I’ve been creating
for their private poster gallery of 80s horror classics. A previous
illustration of mine had already adorned the book ‘Beware The Moon’ by Paul Davis,
but with a constricted brief. The new commission provided the opportunity to go
‘the full blood’ with imagery. Starting with my client’s requested elements
list, my composition also included the decomposed Jack and the monstrous
stormtroopers, though these additions proved not to their taste, thus resulting
in a compromise and the addition of the transformation sequence (filling the
otherwise vacant space). So although not satisfying my own preferred direction,
the compromise has proven attractive enough to find its way beyond the private
collection. It’s an honour that it has been recognized and appreciated by the
director himself. At some point in the future I’ll ensure my own version makes
it onto paper.â€
I’m hoping this review persuades those with two minds
about updating their copy of this film go out and add this new Arrow release to
their collection. It will be worth it, I can assure you, and it illustrates
just how time and effort spent on packaging pays as many dividends as a new transfer
of the film it celebrates.
I was surprised when I mentioned I was reviewing this film
to my father, who turned around and described the whole movie. He’s not an
ardent cinema-goer but he remembered all the key aspects of the film years
after seeing it, saying it (along with Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein)
was one of the few films to get the mixture of horror and comedy just right. (Tell
that to the makers of the recent IT Part 2.) In Landis’s film, comedy is taken
from the character’s reactions to the situation they find themselves in and adds
a pathos missing from most films of the genre. This really is the ultimate
video release of this horror film classic.
For those who haven’t see the film, it centers on American
tourists David (David Naughton) and Jack (Griffin Dunne), who are savaged by an
unidentified vicious animal whilst hiking on the Yorkshire Moors. David awakes
in a London hospital to find his friend dead and his life in disarray. Retiring
to the home of a beautiful nurse (Jenny Agutter) to recuperate, he soon
experiences disturbing changes to his mind and body, undergoing a full-moon
transformation that will unleash terror on the streets of London.
An American Werewolf in London had audiences howling with
laughter and recoiling in terror upon its cinema release. Landis’s film has
gone on to become one of the most important horror films of its era, rightly
lauded for its masterful set-pieces, uniquely unsettling atmosphere and Rick
Baker’s truly ground-breaking, Oscar-winning special makeup effects. Now
restored in 4K, it is presented with an
abundance of extra features:
LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS
• New 2018 4K restoration from the original camera negative supervised by John
Landis
• High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation
• Original uncompressed 1.0 mono and optional 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
• Optional subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• New audio commentary by Beware the Moon filmmaker Paul Davis
• Audio Commentary by actors David Naughton and Griffin Dunne
• Mark of The Beast: The Legacy of the Universal Werewolf: newly produced,
feature-length documentary by filmmaker Daniel Griffith, featuring interviews
with John Landis, David Naughton, Joe Dante and more
• An American Filmmaker in London: a newly-filmed interview with John Landis in
which he reflects on his time working in British cinema
• I Think He's a Jew: The Werewolf's Secret, a new video essay by filmmaker Jon
Spira about how Landis’s film explores Jewish identity
• The Werewolf’s Call: Corin Hardy, director of The Nun, chats with writer
Simon Ward about their formative experiences with the movie.
• Wares of the Wolf: new featurette in which SFX artist
Dan Martin and Tim Lawes of The Prop Store look at some of the original
costumes and special effects artefacts from the film.
• Beware the Moon: Paul Davis’s acclaimed, feature-length exploration of
Landis’s film which boasts extensive cast and crew interviews.
• Making An American Werewolf in London: a short archival featurette on the
film’s production.
• An Interview with John Landis: a lengthy archival interview with the director
about the film.
• Rick Baker on An American Werewolf in London: the legendary make-up artist
discusses his work on the film.
• I Walked with a Werewolf: exploring Universal horror and its legacy of
Wolfman films.
• Casting of the Hand: archival footage from Rick Baker's workshop.
• Outtakes
• Original trailers, teasers and radio spots
• Extensive image gallery featuring over 200 stills, posters and other ephemera.
• Reversible sleeve featuring original poster art and artwork by Graham
Humphreys.
• Double-sided fold-out poster
• Six double-sided, postcard-sized lobby card reproductions
• Limited 60-page booklet featuring new writing by Travis Crawford and Simon
Ward, archival articles and original reviews.
CLICK HERE TO ORDER FROM AMAZON USA
CLICK HERE TO ORDER FROM AMAZON UK