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[shaolin_monkey]

American Werewolf in London (is) my second favourite Landis film after Ghostbusters

American Werewolf is your favourite Landis film: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0718645/

D'oh! I stand corrected, and hereby burn all my geek credentials in a massive bonfire of shame. 

[CrazyFoxMachine]

Mask

A mawkish but faintly (and strangely) likeable slice of 80s melodrama. Sam Elliott - despite looking damned awesome in biker mode - is entirely pointless here, feels like the filmmakers are going "don't worry - Rocky Dennis DOES have a father figure" who fist-bumps him and smirks a lot and does fuck-all else.

The real lingering melancholy after the film ends comes from how little it actually seems to reflect reality - after all, Rocky had two siblings and was almost blind. These minor things complicate the simple inspiring Oscar-baiting nature of such films I suppose - but it's hard to get inspiration from what is essentially half-truth cynically twisted a few years after the fact to get everyone involved awards. Seriously, wee Rocky was not even a decade gone.

Interviewed after the film was released the real Rusty dismissed it as "a fairly tale" and rightly it is. Rocky doesn't seem as affectingly real as he could have been, he's just Eric Stoltz in a load of heavy make-up.

Master and Commander: The Edge of the World

A nicely retro affair - all splintered wood and shouting crewmen. It's got a fun air of blustery silliness about it and all parts are played with endearing sincerity (this is because the ship is populated almost entirely by solid British character actors - if it went down it'd be an Equity nightmare). It suffers quite heavily from "long book series condensed and polished by Hollywood script-doctors" syndrome, so every 'throw-away' line is tediously and methodically called back later on in a robotic attempt to make it look clever and meaningful. So not at all as riveting as it could be but a heartily action-filled navy lark with some very brilliant physical effects.

Also: I love that Billy Boyd was used in the promotion of it so much (because of LOTR) but he's actually barely in it and says about four things.

[Dark Jimbo]

The ending of American Werewolf seemed pretty punk at the time - no annoying little codas to tell you how to feel about what happened or clichéd hands bursting through grave dirt.

The ending's certainly grown on me since. I had a big smile on my face at the end of the film, just didn't quite expect it to be so sudden.

Late to the party as ever, I watched An American Werewolf in London for the first time today.

You're doubly blessed, then, as you still have American Werewolf in Paris to watch!  It has Julie Delpy's boobs, and a bungee jump off the Eiffel Tower, and they replaced the crappy rubber face transformation bits with proper CGI werewolves this time out - how can it not be even more awesome than the first?

Heh. Luckily for me, I have actually seen that one many years ago, and thus cannot be baited into your trap. I don't remember much about it, except that it certainly wasn't anything special. You'd think I'd remember the bungee jump at least! Must have completely blocked it out of my memory.

Almost every scene is a distinctive and a beautiful thing, and the soundtrack is clever and a bit marvelous in that it transforms those familiar songs into something sinister.

Yeah, the soundtrack is especially worthy of a mention. Really fitting.

[radiator]

AWIL is aces - easily one of my favourite films of all time. Yeah the effects and clothes are a bit dated now, but it really stands up in all other respects.

[Dark Jimbo]

Watching in 2014 without rose-tinted glasses, it's amazing how little it has dated. Not a single thing lets the film down. I mean, yes, you can certainly see how they've done most of the effects, but I wouldn't say a single one of them were bad. Landis knows which of them might leave something to be desired (prolonged shots of the animatronic wolf, for instance) and wisely keeps their screen-time to a minimum.

[ThryllSeekyr]

Late to the party as ever, I watched An American Werewolf in London for the first time today. I really wish I'd been able (or alive) to see this when first released, but time has blunted its impact surprisingly little. It's not nearly as familiar as I thought it might be given that Hollywood's had 30+ years to reference/homage/steal from it (although the influence of Hammer hangs heavy). I love his gradually decaying ghost pal - being haunted by his own victims is a great touch. It's pretty funny too, which I didn't expect. Nice to see some familiar faces - Brian Glover is always great, and a young Rik Mayall is one of the pub patrons! And Jenny Agutter - golly gosh. She's lovely. The best bits, though, were the little cultural curios - the Channel 4 testcard! A taxi fare of £1.50! The (unintentionally) hilarious punks on the Tube! A porn cinema on Picadilly Circus! In fact the one bit I wasn't sure on was the fairly abrupt ending.

That's film is a favourite of mine, because I'm really into Werewolves and that film was always famous for it's special effects and if you know anything about the male lead David Naughton. He was always famous for the Dr Pepper commercials back in 80's. There is quite a few of those he has done, but I don't even like drinking the stuff. It does taste exactly like cough syrup. Yuk....

If you love Werewolf movies. You should see, The Wolf-Man and Werewolf: Beast Among Us Both have the most revolutionary of special effects showing a very realistic, dramatic Werewolf transformations and them doing what they do best.

If you recall, me talking about role-playing-game called Werewolf: The Apocalypse. Something, you may find on one of the gaming threads. Fat chance of that ever being made into any type of film after the likes of the Underworld trilogy where all the important players are wearing skin tight custom made leathers and all the important and elaborate concepts that came from the idea of Vampires verses Werewolves that this film might have shared with this game have been reduced to something that just looks way too neat and tidy for my liking. I saw the first film and have watched it many times afterwards on cable television. It's like the game in many ways, but looks too simple to match the complexity of the game. You see, the Vampires in the first film, most of the clan or group of clans all appear to living in one big house. I know in the second film they had a outcast living in a converted monastery, but in the game they are all living in different clans spread out across cities all over the world. Except one clan, that lives in or near the wilderness areas. While the Werewolves who all appear completely identical to each other in their hybrid man/wolf shapes live in the sewers. While the Werewolves from the game live in all these in or near wilderness locales or park all over
world (They are less common on the southern islands and continents...like mine.) While two of the tribes mainly occupy the cities. The Vampire elders who sleep in turns for several generations while one of them stays awake to rule all the other vampires. I'm not really sure what happens in the Vampire game.

Quoting Vampire: The Masquerade's entry in the Wikipedia Each Clan can trace its origins to one of 13 elder vampires known as an Antediluvian, for they survived God's biblical flood. Each Antediluvian is a "grandchilde" of Caine, who killed Abel and was cursed by God into becoming the first vampire. Through the back story of the game, Antediluvians started a war among themselves, called the Jyhad, and use their clansmen to fight this war for them.

That's the amazing thing about this Vampire game. Is how they interwove it's history with some of the sacred stuff from the Christian Bible.

There is also a elder clan or group called Methuselah....you should all know what that means.

Anyway, what I was getting at before, is that the Vampire elders in this game don't do much, except move around the younger generations, the Neonates like Pawns on a chess board.  They stay well hidden, safe and are very hard to destroy for mainly this reason. Unlike the silly elder Vampire from the film who got his head sliced in half by the young female lead. Unless he really is smart and allowed a duplicate of himself to be awoken like he was and take a fall for him as it was. Though, I doubt they even bother making him that well prepared....all the Vampire elders were silly in. The ones in the second movie from that trilogy........the Man/Bat who was the antagonist, his Vampire Brother who was also a Elder Werewolf and Iclaudius (Or is that Iclavdivs.) himself...the man who was that famous roman character who was the real Vampire elder of the young male protagonist and in charge of a Order of Knights who kept the super-naturals in check.

Only the younger idiots go outside and get their hands dirty.

You can read more about it here...

Yes, the Vampire Cain, the original Progenitor of all Vampires....who is also Biblical Cain, is supposed to still walk amongst the Vampires.....but in secret.

Although, White-Wolf-Studios the creators of the World of Darkness sued or tried to sue the people behind this film travesty, I mean trilogy. Because they just found it had so much in common with their game which they also found to be embarrassing, I guess.

Then there is the Twilight-Saga. I could never swallow the idea of Vampires that are so potent that they sparkle when exposed to sunlight. You know, most normal vampires and the ones from White-Wolf's game especially fear the sun and being exposed to it. Aside from catching fire and being turned into ash if they have no way of retreating back into darkness.  The Vampires from the game have trait in Courage that measures their ability to face the sun without fear providing they can soak the damage it does to them. I think only the very powerful Vampires, perhaps the Elder would dare try to spend as much time in the sun as the Twilights vampires that flaunt their Vampiric abilities more like superheros. Especially in the latest film, where they almost appeared to be trading abilities. Although, I guess the use and how they may obtain their Disciplines is much different. In some small ways the Twilight Vampires might otherwise have more in in common with White-Wolf's WOD. I still wasn't so taken in by it and their version of Werewolves who were just comprised of Canadian Indians and restricted to shape-changing into a giant wolf. Unlike WOD's who have five forms, Human, Near-Human, Human/Wolf Hybrid, Near-Wolf,(Just like they are in Twilight.) Wolf

Yes, the five shapes, that would be something to see up on the big or small screen.

Otherwise, I like some of special effects. Although the Vampiric fast-moving effects seem dumb and the big battle towards the end of the last film seemed way to clean. The whole Twilight Saga for all it's expense is Vampire : The Masquerade verses Werewolf : The Apocalypse with only the Wendigo Tribe who are confined to their Dire-Wolf shape. I never liked the idea that only Indians could be Werewolves, when wolves exist in most northern countries. Trendy Indians, who look like more like one of those current prefab boy bands or male strippers. In fact the entire cast of those films look like the all belong in a commercial or one of those old cigarette advertisments I'd use to find in Playboy and Penthouse magazines (I only use to read those for the articles;)).

Another thing that separated Twilight from Werewolf: TA and WOD in general was story was mainly young romance driven. Where the latter is driven by their battle against Vampires, amongst their tribes, the Mega-Rich Bio-Chemical Companies, the fallen Tribe and anything or any one who gets on their bad side. Vampires and Werewolves constantly fighting over territory and the mere humans who inhabit it for blood stock as opposed to Breeding stock.

Werewolves, need to breed with humans and wolves the same way all mammals to further their potent genetics for further generations. Unlike the Werewolves of well known lore and films of the past and present who need to bite other pass on their Lycanthropic germs. In the end, if the whole process
was made more difficult by needing to breed with others instead of just being bitten would stop them from out-populating everybody else so quickly. You would just have werewolves everywhere if that was the case and it's easier to believe than sparkly vampires.

Although I loved watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, they would never compare to the game lore and I never even bother with Only Human, Bloodlines an Vampire Diaries I
did watch Bloodlines for a bit and it most definitely doesn't compare.

The Walking Dead while that's very good, and easier to take seriously, it's got nothing in common.

Sorry to get away and keep writing like that. It's just easy for me to do when I sit here alone at night.

[JamesC]

I guess everyone knows that all the songs in AWIL have 'moon' in them?

[Satanist]

As a young un I found a video hidden in a cupboard, its title was "The Last American Virgin". Now I dont know what this was about as I never got to see it but I imagine it was some kind of Porkies rip off.

What was actually on the tape was AWiL which I watched and scared me shitless, but I couldnt tell my parents why because I shouldnt have seen in the first place.

God I love that film.

[Jim_Campbell]

So not at all as riveting as it could be but a heartily action-filled navy lark with some very brilliant physical effects.

Also, arguably one of the best/worst puns in movie history.

Will second the forum love for American Werewolf, but will put forward Carpenter's The Thing in any argument that claims the title of 'Best Horror Movie'. I had the genuine privilege of seeing The Thing on the big screen for the first time a couple of years ago and there is not one single frame of that movie that I would agree needs re-shooting.

Cheers

Jim

[Professor Bear]

For what it's worth, the makers of the prequel agreed with you.

[mogzilla]

So not at all as riveting as it could be but a heartily action-filled navy lark with some very brilliant physical effects.

will put forward Carpenter's The Thing in any argument that claims the title of 'Best Horror Movie'. I had the genuine privilege of seeing The Thing on the big screen for the first time a couple of years ago and there is not one single frame of that movie that I would agree needs re-shooting.

Cheers

Jim

  stop the presses!!! me 'n jim agree on something!

[Recrewt]

Yeah, definitely agree that The Thing is an outstanding movie. 

The effects are stunning and still look good today.  But Beyond that, this move is quite clever and doesn't dumb down for the audience.  So much happens off screen which helps to build the suspense as you really don't know who is infected.  This is probably the movie I have watched the most times.

All that's left to say is.....was Childs infected? 

[TordelBack]

Master and Commander: The Edge of the World

A nicely retro affair - all splintered wood and shouting crewmen. It's got a fun air of blustery silliness about it and all parts are played with endearing sincerity (this is because the ship is populated almost entirely by solid British character actors - if it went down it'd be an Equity nightmare). It suffers quite heavily from "long book series condensed and polished by Hollywood script-doctors" syndrome, so every 'throw-away' line is tediously and methodically called back later on in a robotic attempt to make it look clever and meaningful. So not at all as riveting as it could be but a heartily action-filled navy lark with some very brilliant physical effects.

Yeah, as a deeply-invested fan of the books, I should complain incessantly about each and every part of this film, but I can't because it's actually very good fun, catches much of the spirit and it looks simply gorgeous.  Why they chose to give it that title I have no idea: no part of the plot of either of those two books appears on screen, unless you count them being in the Pacific, which they are every other book for 20 volumes.

[Keef Monkey]

Yeah, definitely agree that The Thing is an outstanding movie. 

The effects are stunning and still look good today.  But Beyond that, this move is quite clever and doesn't dumb down for the audience.  So much happens off screen which helps to build the suspense as you really don't know who is infected.  This is probably the movie I have watched the most times.

All that's left to say is.....was Childs infected? 

One of the (many) reasons I don't like the prequel, is they (possibly unwittingly) answered this. Spoilers for The Thing, although I'm sure we've all seen it!

[spoiler]In the prequel it turns out that it can't duplicate inorganic matter, so people who had fillings don't have fillings for example. It's their way of basically ripping off the blood test scene, in the prequel they're shining torches in each others' mouths to check for fillings. Anyway, at the end of the original film when Childs reappears he has an earring, so if the prequel is to be taken as canon then he definitely wasn't infected.[/spoiler]

The prequel should not be taken as canon though in my mind, mainly because it is tripe. I remember during development a lot of chat about how they were going all out on physical effects and wouldn't be using CG for the creatures or transformations and I can only imagine at the 11th hour someone decided that didn't look good and they replaced it all with poor CG. My biggest gripe though is that it has none of the are they/aren't they tension of the original because anytime someone gets infected they pretty much expose themselves immediately in a 'hey, can I show you this thing in this cupboard but then attack you' sort of way.

I love The Thing dearly, which is probably why all this bothers me as much as it does!

[Colin Zeal]

As a young un I found a video hidden in a cupboard, its title was "The Last American Virgin". Now I dont know what this was about as I never got to see it but I imagine it was some kind of Porkies rip off.

What was actually on the tape was AWiL which I watched and scared me shitless, but I couldnt tell my parents why because I shouldnt have seen in the first place.

God I love that film.

Last American Virgin is not quite a Porkies rip off. It does have elements of the 80s American teen sex comedy that was prevalent then but it is a remake of an Israeli (I think) film so is a bit different, notably at the end of the film which isn't the normal boy meets girl happy ending. Basically[spoiler]boy fancies new girl at school but is too shy to say anything, she goes out with his mate who is much cooler. She gets pregnant and is ditched by the cool guy. Unrequited love bloke sells loads of his stuff to pay for her abortion, they get together and throw a party. At which she promptly fucks him off for the bloke who made her pregnant. The last shot of the film is a close up of the guy's face about to burst into tears so a bit of a downbeat ending. [/spoiler]