Last movie watched...

[Frank]

Alpha Papa is excellent. I watched 'The Other Guys' last night. For a buddy-buddy cop movie I thought it Absolutely hilarious. I was laughing hard pretty much all the way through!

Yes to both. I expected The Other Guys to be unmitigated shite, but I ended up enjoying it a lot - not as much as Alan Partidge commandeering a car in Alpha Papa, though.

[Dark Jimbo]

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.

[JamesC]

Alpha Papa is excellent. I watched 'The Other Guys' last night. For a buddy-buddy cop movie I thought it Absolutely hilarious. I was laughing hard pretty much all the way through!

Yes to both. I expected The Other Guys to be unmitigated shite, but I ended up enjoying it a lot - not as much as Alan Partidge commandeering a car in Alpha Papa, though.

I got about 30 mins into The Other Guys before turning it off. I couldn't stand it - just noisy rubbish!

[Frank]

I got about 30 mins into The Other Guys before turning it off. I couldn't stand it - just noisy rubbish!

The first 20 minutes are pish.

[von Boom]

- not as much as Alan Partidge commandeering a car in Alpha Papa, though.

That was one of the greatest moments in the film. Pure brilliance.

[GrinningChimera]

- not as much as Alan Partidge commandeering a car in Alpha Papa, though.

That was one of the greatest moments in the film. Pure brilliance.

The [spoiler]mangina[/spoiler] bit had me crying in the cinema. Hilarious stuff.

[Frank]

I watched An American Werewolf in London ... 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 one bit I wasn't sure on was the fairly abrupt ending.

At the time I saw American Werewolf on VHS video, The Railway Children was my favourite film - that was an eye opener. I suppose Jenny Agutter takes her knickers off in that film too, but that's only to stop a train. Which it does. 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.

My other favourite bits are the scene where all the other decaying spectres try to talk David into topping himself, especially the excited way the posh couple helpfully rhyme off all the different suicide options. I thought the idea of being followed around by your victims was an interesting addition to werewolf lore, and explained why Lon Chaney Jr always had that pained look on his face.

American Werewolf ruined me for other films for ages; I expected all comedies to be as gleefully black, and I thought all horror films should be as hilariously irreverent. It took me ages to realise that it took the same skill, wit, and intelligence to balance horror and comedy as it took Landis to manage the competing demands of the bringing out the comedy and advancing the plot mechanics of Trading Places.

I wish filmmakers as talented as Landis used to be were still interested in making intelligent horror films, I wish film makers weren't so obsessed with evening out tone and telegraphing emotion, and I wish continuing generations discover the film in the way you have (and the way Landis and I discovered old horror films like Abbot and Costello Meet The Wolfman/Frankenstein etc) and discover that all films can do and be about more than one thing.

[TordelBack]

Not much I can add to that, but I agree completely.  AWIL was and is my favourite horror movie, and yet somehow manages to render that categorisation meaningless.  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.  And I love the ending, both spectacular and understated. 

As is Jenny Agutter.

[Colin YNWA]

New rule for a slightly work frazzled librarian.

"Rule 82492b: You must remember that you can't just 'Watch a bit of' Glengarry Glen Ross on a work night if it goes on after bedtime. You must not start watching it and must get your sorry ass to bed on time."

Always been a bit of a favourite of mine this one. Each time I watch it I'm somehow still surprised by how utterly compelling it is. That David Mamet ain't half good!

[Keef Monkey]

Only watched Glengarry once (it was a free dvd with a newspaper if I remember rightly), had no idea it had such a great reputation and was completely blown away. The performances are just perfect and absolutely mesmerising. Keep meaning to watch it again sometime, and I know that if I ever stumble on it while surfing then, like yourself, I'll get sucked right in.

[shaolin_monkey]

Yep, another vote for American Werewolf in London!  I saw that as a kid growing up, and it blew my mind - the effects, the humour, the music etc etc.  I don't know how many times I've seen it since.  It's my second favourite Landis film after Ghostbusters, with The Blues Brothers a solid third.  I do like Trading Places too, but I really felt it lost something towards the end [spoiler]in that ridiculous suitcase swapping scene on the train, blacked-up Ackroyd, gorilla and all[/spoiler].

[mogzilla]

just caught "monsters" and was left a little underwhelmed, don't know quite what I was expecting ,maybe a tense road movie .the creatures looked too much like an octopus to impress me...why this got a sequel and Dredd didn't ?

[Hawkmumbler]

just caught "monsters" and was left a little underwhelmed, don't know quite what I was expecting ,maybe a tense road movie .the creatures looked too much like an octopus to impress me...why this got a sequel and Dredd didn't ?

It's a sequel in name only and it looks really rather good.
I enjoyed Monsters though so maybe im biassed.

Another lover of AWiL. The scene where he wakes up in a lion cage in a great twist on the re-transformation aspect of the mythology.

[Professor Bear]

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?

[Frank]

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/