31 Days of Horror Films for Halloween Day 18 – American Werewolf in London

"From the director of Animal House" probably wasn't the best way to introduce people to a horror movie, but I guess in 1981, that was his selling point. What people got, instead of a food fight, was one of the most creative werewolf (or horror) movies that's been made.

An American Werewolf in London (1981)

This movie successfully combines many different elements, including things like the "stranger in a strange land", "becoming a werewolf", "crazy nightmares within other nightmares", "black comedy", "romance"...this movie has it all. The movie starts off with an uneasy feeling as the two friends are backpacking through the moors and stop in a decidedly unfriendly pub for a drink. After the attack, the humor and dark scary elements weave around each other, and then the amazing transformation scene takes things to a whole new level.

Like "The Howling", this movie's on-screen transformation raised the bar for horror scenes, and even the soundtrack of all "moon" songs complements the tone of this fantastic movie. Remember, this was at least a decade or so before CGI transformations.