Transcript
Speaker: Yeah, he ended up oh orment ended up being... was What's going on in your face? What? Do you know what? I do feel a funny all of a sudden. I do feel bit funny all of a sudden. I find it hard to talk for some reason.
Speaker: You look like the cat out of Red Wolf. I look little bit sharper in the tooth department.
Speaker: Welcome to Half Hour of Horror with Love Horror. Who are Love Horror, you ask? Well, its creators and editors are myself, Alex, and Tom, who joins me from somewhere over there, that way. That way, say hello, Tom. over here.
Speaker: You're over there. I'm here, hello everyone, I'm Tom Atkinson. Welcome. And yes, Half Hour of Horror is our podcast where we take a deep dive into some classic horror movies that have somehow, somehow never appeared on our website, which has been loving horror since 2008.
Speaker: So we take 30 minutes on the clock. We take those 30 minutes. We try to give you a show packed with reviews, facts, opinions, insights, recommendations, and a lot of love for the horror genre in general.
Speaker: And this episode, what's this episode about? I hear you cry. Again, I'm hearing i'm hearing you cry so much. um So this episode features a film that not only sits on our top 10 werewolf films of all time, but pretty much every other werewolf movie list in existence, I would say. And that film is a 1981 horror comedy and American werewolf in London, written and directed by John Landis, starring David Kessler, Griffin Dunn, Jenny Agata, and a whole host of famous British faces. And my first question to you, Tom, is how the hell have we never reviewed this film?
Speaker: How has that happened? Can you even imagine why we haven't reviewed this film? doesn't make any sense. um I'm just going to blame it on the age of it. I'm just going to blame it on the age of it. It's very old. Yeah. So when Love Horror started back in 2008, I'm going to say, yeah um it was already a very old film then.
Speaker: And I think, guess, I suppose there have been multiple occasions where we could have taken advantage of anniversaries and things. Yeah, I guess. I remember there was a really big Arrow release, wasn't there? Yeah, see, I was about to say, is it not our fault? Is it because there hasn't really been a reissue or something? Is that what it was? I'll blame that. I'll blame that.
Speaker: Let's just blame that. Yeah, I'm up for blaming that. Yeah, let's just blame that. But yeah, so before we start, before we delve into the movie, we're going to give tribute to the movie. So what's your tribute, Tom? What do you give to the American world in London?
Speaker: Usually, I've got one or two good tributes for this, but yeah um i've been I've been a bit ill, been feeling a bit rough. Aww. Aww.
Speaker: and And I might cough a bit later as a result of that. So when i when I'm coughing, when I'm having coughing fits later on. It's not a werewolf disease. You've not been infected. I might start howling. I don't know. um So yeah, a bit limited on the tributes. But what I do have, although not specific to an American werewolf in London, sadly, um yeah another really good, well, arguably good werewolf movie. Yeah.
Speaker: oh i did wonder basketball t-shirt from a teen wolf teen wow i like that um which also has it's a another film that has a great uh werewolf transition in it whether or not you like michael j fox and that's very true it's basically a kid's film um it's got good werewolf transition that's good i like it i'm taking that good taking that should how about you what have you got Well, I've got my picture behind me here. You can see this picture here. and um yeah i i i Explain the picture. Where is that from? oh It's like just it's japanese a Japanese print. It's from AliExpress, but I like it. i've I've got a few people who've been keeping up with the podcast and watching on YouTube have seen some in the background here. I'm holding out for some maybe some love horror ah posters in the background, but who knows? But yeah, I haven't been feeling well. I i went out recently. I went to a wood and... um
Speaker: There was this quite, there's a big dog there. And I don't i don't know, I just feel like, I just feel a bit, ah
Speaker: don't know, just saying. This not really. These are my werewolf hands. These are my real tribute. Look at that. Look at these. Your nails are looking definitely longer than they used to. Look at these. The last podcast.
Speaker: They're very cool. do you know what? I was going to do something similar. like them. I might wait for the whole podcast. je what What, you've got some? Have you got some? Well, I was going to... Yeah, something like that as part of this costume. But don't know where they were. They were gone. Maybe you've gone. I think... Maybe I stole them. I think these are just from, like, Tiger or something. They were, ironically, Flying Tiger. But yeah, they're really good. They're proper, like... They're proper woolly beer. This is my tribute. so Should I keep them on for the whole...
Speaker: I could just do that every so often. Yeah, try it. Try it. I'm looking forward to seeing you pick up your drink and drink that with them. Oh, God. I might have to, like, take it off for that. No, you've got to keep them on. Go one-handed. Be part the challenge. I'm just trying My phone, which we're going rely on for the timer here, is messing me about a bit. Sorry, it's distracting me. So, yeah, so an American werewolf in London. Can you remember the first time you saw it, Al?
Speaker: ah A very long time ago. Definitely a very long time ago. Earliest memory of this? just ah Just how great I thought it was, how much I liked it. I'm sorry I'm spoiling it bit, but as people know who've listened to this podcast or watched it before, we're pretty much doing films that we like. I remember the transformation scene kind of blowing my mind at the time.
Speaker: um So yeah yeah, how about you? Yeah, I've got weird first memory of this film and it wasn't watching it. it was I was actually really young and on a tube train with my mum in London.
Speaker: And for some reason, we were just minding our own business. And this teenage boy came over and asked if he could sit with us on the train. Okay. I do not know where this story is Yeah. Basically, he was just freaking out. The long story short is he was freaking out because he'd seen American werewolf in London and he was scared. Oh, my God. So he really wanted to sit with us. Wow. But then he actually went into a bit of detail explaining the film and why it was so scary.
Speaker: so which is quite an approach. How old were you? My earliest, probably four, five years. Very young. And was talking about the film. And so the imprinted in my mind is someone else explaining the film and me thinking, oh, my God, who would want to watch that?
Speaker: Yeah, it's always have work, isn't it? It's kind of almost, i think, all every time either someone explains a film to you or you only watch maybe like 10 minutes of it by mistake or maybe even just a trailer. If you're a kid, I think that's like, that's like, that's the worst. You, you just make up a load of stuff in your head that isn't true or it's been exaggerated in a way that just isn't true. And you just make out to be this, like the worst thing ever. and and you watch it and you're like, Oh, that wasn't that bad. Um, but yeah. Oh, wow. what what What happens in your mind is a whole lot worse, isn't it? Than the yeah real thing quite often. Oh God, a hundred percent. Yeah.
Speaker: Oh, a hundred percent. It's not, yeah. It's never, that it's never that bad. Or you, or you can kind of watch it and you're like, Oh, like that doesn't look as good as I thought it would in my head. exactly wow that's a well that's a crazy recollection well done wonder where that kid is now maybe in a sanitarium somewhere he just went mental yeah yeah yeah yeah good for you for letting him sit with you and like yeah like well done that was yeah hope he's all right if you're out there listening god knows how old you'd be now but if you're out there listening you know thanks thanks you're probably part the reason we've put this off so long i have don't know
Speaker: um Okay, so we've got to get those 30 minutes on the clock, but we yeah we need something to know when we've when we've done the 30, don't we? So what's going to be the trigger?
Speaker: A bit like you. I was out the other night. When it was dark. Full moon, weirdly. Yeah. um Yeah, I just had my phone with and I was just recording sounds, owls and things. And when I was out there, yeah I recorded this sound. I thought it'd make a good sound for this podcast for the yeah when the time goes off. see what you think. Okay.
Speaker: Oh my God. Oh my God. That's so scary. I think that's as close to a werewolf as you can probably Nah, that's horrible. That's horrible. Hold on, my phone. I can't remember anything else. my phone's going. Sorry, someone's ringing my phone some reason.
Speaker: Sorry for that interruption. that's Where were we? It's all part the that was a very scary sound. Well done for recording it. I think we're going to, we'll definitely know when the time is Well, the next time you hear it, next time you hear that, either our time has run out or you're about to be bitten by a werewolf. so Oh, God. Well, i it's it's already happened. In either way, know, a second time.
Speaker: A second time. Well, maybe that'll turn me right.
Speaker: I was going to... So... was going to... Yeah... Yeah, go. Give us synopsis. Are you ready to start? I'm ready. I'm ready to start. Wait, you're going to have to remind me, do I start the timer before the synopsis? You start the timer and then do the synopsis. That's how it works. Right, good. Okay, good. I'm glad you remember. I'm paying attention.
Speaker: Are you ready? Are you steady? Yes, I am. Let's dig in. Okay.
Speaker: Oh, well. Even the timer has been bitten by a werewolf. It's acting off. Oh, my. 30 seconds. 30 minutes, sorry. In an American werewolf in London, two young American backpackers, David Kessler and Jack Goodman, are travelling across the Yorkshire moors when they ignore the warnings of suspicious locals and set out across the countryside after dark.
Speaker: Before long. They're attacked by a mysterious creature lurking in the night, leaving Jack dead and David badly injured. After waking in a London hospital weeks later, David struggles to come to terms with what happened, but things take an even stranger turn when Jack begins to appearing to him as a decaying apparition, warning that the creature which attacked them was a werewolf and that David is now cursed to become one himself.
Speaker: As the next moon approaches, David finds himself haunted by terrifying nightmares and increasingly disturbing changes to his body and mind. Unsure whether he's losing his sanity or becoming something far more dangerous, he races against time to understand the curse before innocent lives are put at risk.
Speaker: Oh, I love it. That's good. That's a good good synopsis. I love it. And I didn't spoil too much for that one. i follow No, I don't think so. No, because we are going to spoil things. So sorry, if if you're listening, could have never listened before, we are going spoil it. we're gonna go through the whole film. So if you've never seen this film, stop now. We're going to ruin it. We're going to ruin it completely. So yeah, go do that. um This film straight away it all begins, opening is amazing.
Speaker: Played the version of one of the many versions of Blue Moon playing. as You see images of the moors, which is great. um eat The soundtrack throughout, because you've loads of really, the soundtrack's quite good, but you've got loads of really good songs in it, haven't you? All kind of related to the moon and kind of stuff like that. You love the soundtrack on this.
Speaker: I do. I think it's brilliant. You love the soundtrack on this film, don't It's just a clever idea. It's well used. It's interesting. It's, is it's And it's kind of tongue in cheek as well, the songs they use, but it's it's it's kind of constantly reminding you what's going on, but by but still having music in it. I think it's great. but um So yeah on on the music then, I've got to ask you something. I don't know if this is going to in your facts later on, but why wasn't Werewolves of London the song in this film? I don't know. i think i think I read that the two cast members said to John Landis, why didn't you use it? And he was like, I don't know why i didn't use it. So I think he just didn't use it. I don't know why didn't use it. It's mad. It should be in the credits, shouldn't it? Fair enough. Werewolves London by Warren Zevon should be the credits of this film. Obviously should You'd almost just assume it was made because of this film.
Speaker: Yeah, i know. No, I didn't look out more than that. But yeah. Yeah, no. Crazy. um But yeah, so then you get this, you see this great truck full of sheep kind of going across the moors and that's our two leads. Jack and David are in the in the back. it's quite a funny image. I think it's kind of, yeah this film sets itself up straight away because that's,
Speaker: the comedy is straight away is already there. Like from the beginning, the comedy is there. But the the kind of mystery, the kind of the maleence malevolence, the kind of dread, that's also there, even from this these very early scenes, I think.
Speaker: um And like you say, they set up that they're backpacking and they're going around to Europe. And there's a lot those kind of reoccurring comments about how they're like, why are we in England? Like, why are we on the moors? This is crap. Why can't we be in Italy? Or, know, all these much better places and stuff, which is quite funny. um And then you get the...
Speaker: you know, straight in, we're we're barely minutes in, they head for the Slaughtered Lamb Pub, which is like, you know, legendary horror location. And you've got that great, well, the sign, number one, the sign's just brilliant. Yeah. Because it's a werewolf's head, isn't it? on the Yeah, it's like a werewolf's head on a pike.
Speaker: um And they're like, oh, where's, they say, don't they? They're like, oh, where's the lamb? Like that. when they look at it, which is kind of like, oh, but who, they're the lambs, aren't they? Come on. That's, that's the thing. That's what it is. Just got out of a truck. Exactly. Yeah. Um, and then they go in and it's the classic, like, you know, again, it's like, feels like such a classic scene. but You've got all the locals in there talking. as soon as they walk in, everyone goes quiet and like,
Speaker: deadly silence as they walk in. um So, yes, that's what did you know that that East Proctor, which is, is actually the tiny village of Crickledarn, which is in Bulleth Wells, Wales off the A470. And the pub isn't a pub. It's a um it's a cottage.
Speaker: um and that angel of death statue isn't there. They they put that in afterwards. And in fact, they all there's Welsh signs, but they covered them with a fake tree. So, yeah. So if you want to go and visit it, go to Wales.
Speaker: Yeah, yeah. People wouldn't have understood what the Welsh signs were. I would like to, but it's only the outside that's in Wales, isn't it? Yes, the and it's somewhere else, isn't it? The other bit's somewhere else. The interior of the pub's in Surrey.
Speaker: Oh, is it? So, I mean, that that that feels a bit like overkill. So if you were if you want to go to the place and pretend you're outside the slaughtered lamb, you've got to go all the way to Wales, get picture, get a selfie.
Speaker: If you want to look at what the pub looks like inside, go to Surrey after that. and then man But I think the pub looks very different inside now. Yeah, that would be mental. um But yes, then you've got this kind of, yeah, they get in and then you've got this straightaway, you've got this set up of the locals are there and, you know, they're kind of like, they're chatting, aren't they? And there's a pentagram on the wall and... Everyone's being really weird and rude to them. And it's very odd because you've got Brian Glover in there, who's like massively famous in a lot of films, Alien 3. Want a cup of tea, Ripley? That's my Brian Glover impression. He was a big TV personality, wasn't he, in England before this film? Yeah, huge. And then you've also got Rick Mayall in there. Did you see Rick Mayall was there?
Speaker: um And do you know the story of why Rick Mayall was there? did you did just do you know way's there So you see this well John Landis and Frank Oz and Jim Henson um all were in London. They all went to the comedy store and saw Ed Edmondson and Rick Mayall doing their kind of act, um which is described by John Landis as basically screaming at each other.
Speaker: um And they thought it was so hilarious that John Landis just offered them a part in his film straight away. And Ed Edmondson was just a bit like, I think this is rubbish. I'm not going to bother with that. But Rick Mayall turned up. And he then put him in the film. And because he was turned up, he just made a role for him to to be in it.
Speaker: Because it just feels so odd that he's there. for For a British audience, it feels so weird because he's so famous. But um but he's very good because he's quite serious, isn't he? doesn't He's not like joking or pulling funny faces. He looks quite like... No, no, he's dead straight in there. It's almost a bit of a weird waist.
Speaker: if If they found him at the comedy club and and thought, oh, let's have him in the film, and and it is yeah there are come comedic elements to the film. Yeah, no, I know. It's not an out-and-out comedy, but it's seen as a horror comedy. But it feels like they didn't really use him to his full potential. Yeah, no, no, man maybe. Yeah. But yes, there's a lot of chatting and and it's obvious, isn't it, that the the locals are hiding something. There's some big secret in this village that they don't want to talk about and they don't want the outsiders coming and all that. And they end up getting kind of like kind of thrown out when um when Jack basically asks too many questions.
Speaker: um and they end up leaving and they're just like walking across the moor making jokes and you keep cutting back to the... they So it's still quite funny, bit ominous, but quite funny because they're just walking across the moors like making all these jokes and stuff and like, you know, but then in the pub, you've got all the locals being like, oh no, what have we done? Like, you know, we can't leave them out there, the things out there and all this and it's horrible. And then basically this is where the film takes the kind of the, I guess the third element this film. Then they're attacked and And it is absolutely like brutal, isn't it? I mean, it is so yeah graphic. Like, you know, he just like gets, David gets kind of sliced, doesn't he? But then Jack just gets like absolutely ripped. His throat gets ripped open. There's just blood everywhere. Yeah. And then you can kind of, again, they do the clever thing of kind of showing flashes of the monster, but not, not very much.
Speaker: And then there's just all these, just shooting goes on, all these shots from the locals. Yeah. And there's this brilliant shot where just as David kind of falls, he looks and then there's just this random naked man next to him with bullet holes in him. And yeah I read that a lot of people were really, at the time, lot of people were very confused by that.
Speaker: um Now, obviously, massive spoilers, it's obvious yeah anyone who kind of knows any werewolf film, it's obviously that because they've killed him. That's the the human form of the werewolf. But why American Werewolf is so clever, American Werewolf in London is so clever, is because they use that to then completely explain away any supernatural. Because from that point on, the police, the doctors, everyone is just saying, oh, it was just this mad person. We found their body. This mad person was on the moors. They attacked you. It was a mad person. And it's really clever because i don't I don't know of any other werewolf film that kind of uses that device.
Speaker: the The fact is that the monster's not there anymore because ah it was a man. It was always a man. There isn't a monster. So it kind of... It takes the monster while. I think it's actually really, you know, and I didn't ever really think about that before, but i think it's a really clever thing it does. um And as you said, plot-wise, um then he ends up in London in bed and Ginny Agatha's his nurse.
Speaker: um You get some very weird comments about him being circumcised. Is it a private hospital? Or is that what hospitals used to be like? Because it's the most like i fancy hospital for an NHS hospital. Like the way that he gets treated, like one-to-one care and, you know. I know. I can't i can't remember the hospitals in the 80s. Unfortunately, I was not a bit young. to them I'm old. I'm not that old. this Maybe. i don't know. Maybe. It's all like matron, isn't it's all very it? does It looks like all the stuff you see on those kind of like, you know, like, um oh, God, what's the one? No, not porridge. What's the one that where they're all in hospital?
Speaker: this is it? Oh, it's not Porridge, it's the other one. Oh, a TV show? Yeah, it's a TV series. Like Carry On, like Carry On Nurse or something. no oh God, what's it called? It's the one that they made before Porridge. It's the same. It's got Ronnie Barker in it. Anyway, I can't i can't remember.
Speaker: I can't remember what it's called, but yeah, it looks a bit like that. Um... So yeah, so that's i that's, it's a great setup. And it, like I wrote down, that's, it's only 17 minutes in at this point. So much happens so quickly. Like it's just full on, isn't it? Like it just, in the pace of this is brilliant. Like the way it's edited is brilliant. The way it just gets into the story. You feel like you really know the characters. It's quite shocking that Jack dies that quickly or what you think at that point. Oh, that's it. He's just gone. Like it's really well done.
Speaker: I've got to ask you, though, that the bits when he first starts sort of having contact with the police and stuff, where the police come in and they start asking questions. Yeah. like yeah the The sort of comedy police thing, I'm not entirely sure. It didn't really land my that well with me this time. I found that quite funny.
Speaker: I don't know. I found that comedy policeman quite funny. It's the secondary guy. Yeah. just about I quite liked that this time. obvious. But it is weird. Well, I think, I don't know, I think it's it's one of those weird films where it's kind of every time you think you're kind of keeping up with it, it tries to off-balance you. So, yeah, you've got that whole scene with the kind of comedy policeman. You have a whole scene with Frank Oz, who is the voice of Yoda and a lot of other famous Muppets. He's a puppeteer.
Speaker: And he comes in, doesn't he, from the American consulate and he's just like trying to help them. And then in the end, he's like, Oh, is that who he is? Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's Yoda basically. Imagine all the lines backwards. It would make more sense. So yeah, but yeah, like it's kind of throwing you, this stuff's all kind of throwing you. And in amongst that, you've then got these very weird, like,
Speaker: hallucinations that David's having where he's running through the forest and he's kind of seeing himself with yellow eyes and he's there's like these weird like these weird moments that are happening that you're not sure you know you're not sure is it real is it not real and again i never kind of noticed it before but the film really tries to push you into like well did it happen is he just mental is this all in his head because he keeps having what did wonder Yeah, does that a lot more than I remembered.
Speaker: Is it like a collective memory, do you think? Is he, like, the first ones he has, is that, like, the memories from the guy who bit him? Like, is he sort seeing visions? Oh, interesting. I like that. You know, like how it yeah continues through, like a bloodline. that, When he's, like, sort out in the forest and he attacks the deer and stuff. Is that him? I like that. Sort of seeing what the guy saw before.
Speaker: Maybe. And then slowly it sort of merges into him and, like, becomes like... Yeah, yeah, i like that. I think that's a really nice way I never thought of that, but i think that's a really good one. I mean, the mental one is there's an insane one, which is that you see his whole family watching the Muppets and there's a knock on the door and then these... in so I mean, and I remember being really like scared of this thing. Yeah, this bit was mental. These insane like Nazi... They're Nazis, but they've got like these horrible faces like wolves, but there's also pigs and they've got these kind of mutated...
Speaker: mutant animal faces and they come in they just start shooting everything like killing everyone it's it's really it reminded me a lot of have you seen did you watch Nope in the end Yeah, yeah, yeah, I've seen Nope. Yeah, you know in you know in Nope, you know the whole monkey element of Nope. In my bit of that bit, this bit of American Werewolf reminds me of Nope because in Nope there's that whole segue of something that's absolutely horrible but it's not really anything to do with the film. And this is like a segue of something that's absolutely horrible but not really anything to do with the film.
Speaker: I mean, I've read that people say, oh, it's because he's because he's Jewish, he's kind of having these these images of Nazis and persecution and it's the animals. and But it doesn't really, like you say, it doesn't feel like the the images have been running in the forest and stuff like that, which, yeah, like you said, makes real sense. if It's some kind of blood, like an urge, an animal an animalistic urge This doesn't make any sense. There's nothing to do with it really, is it?
Speaker: I think the weirdest thing for me as well is obviously John Landis. This was still quite early on in his career, but really he was a comedy filmmaker through and through. He obviously did the odd bits here and there. And like the horror elements of this...
Speaker: they're like yeah proper full on like oh really pushing you know the boundaries of acceptability at the time particularly trying and get into a cinema there's like nudity really gory yeah oh yeah yeah it's full and gore is like next level so yeah it's a bit crazy really for someone who was kind of trying to make something that was a bit funny and a bit scary like the horror is like bang, right in face. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, definitely. And then I think it's clever as well because you have that really mental scene and then the next thing is that he wakes up and Jack's there as this kind of zombie character. And by this point, an audience member who'd never seen it would just be like, oh, he's just gone mad. This is, he's just mental. This isn't, you know, this isn't this isn't real anymore, surely. And I think Jack, again, is such a clever... Again, it's like I've never seen it. Such a clever character. The idea that you basically get this person who can tell him all the lore, they can tell him all the... they can give him all the background.
Speaker: It makes you wonder whether it's happening or not. But it also gives him the impetus of, like... His whole thing is that... as a victim of the werewolf, I can't be free until the werewolf's dead. And it's this very dark, depressing message, which is that he has to kill himself. there isn't From the beginning, it's set out that the only way out of this is that David kills himself. There isn't another way out. There's no other saving. There's no reversing it or passing it on. or you know They even talk about, oh, a silver bullet. from because they theyre kind of It's very meta, isn't it? They're constantly referencing Wolfman.
Speaker: Lon Chaney and like other werewolf films and stuff like that. So it's very much set in our world, in the real world. But yeah, but Jack is pretty much straight up, just kill yourself and then we'll all be done. We'll all be okay and you won't have hurt anyone. And ah is it's great because it's funny. he's a He's a hilarious character. It's a great performance, but it's also horrible. How he looks is horrible and the idea of your best friend coming back and...
Speaker: Well, when they talk about the special effects, the special effects guy. Oh, oh yeah. Rick Baker. Rick Baker, isn't it? like yeah Yeah, totally. And he's done so many amazing things. But obviously what what got him the ah Oscar in this film yes um was the transition mainly. Yeah. Like like from man to wolf. But yeah I mean, really, the the decaying friend and the other people. like that it's great watching recently like went for this podcast i was like that's in some ways more impressive than the transition oh yeah definitely no it looks amazing no it looks absolutely amazing yeah yeah definitely no no definitely um and then yeah kind of plot wise because the doctors are pretty much convinced he's fine they just release him but he's just this he's in the he doesn't have anywhere to live so he ends up living with jenny agata um so how do you feel about that part
Speaker: I don't mind it It's a bit odd. It's a bit weird, isn't it? she said She's very forward, isn't she? She's very forward. um And she pretty much admits that she thinks he's sad, but finds that attractive for some reason. That's shes that funny yeah as' the best the best line. I find you very attractive and a little bit sad. LAUGHTER but So that's why she says, come and live with me.
Speaker: no Yeah. Yeah. I mean, i I guess as well, the thing with this film is it's on a very brief timescale. It's maybe over what, like three days, four days. It's hardly any time at all. Well, yeah. The thing is he sleeps for ages. He sleeps for weeks yeah because it has to be full moon to full moon, obviously. So yes he gets attacked on one full moon. Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah. So he has to be unconscious for weeks. Otherwise you'd be waiting four weeks and you'd have to have all the the the filling for it to sort of link up. Yeah. um yeah ah jack Jack comes back again. So you see him again. So again, it's kind of clever because you don't really know because he's he's like, he's kind of stalking him. don't really know if it's real. And then you then also have the the doctor who's the kind of,
Speaker: the Van Helsing character, I guess. He decides to go back to the pub and go to the Moors, doesn't he? And confront them there and talk to them. And he he tries to get it out of, Brian Glover, but he won't tell him anything. But then there's the the weird dance player who's like, Oh, I don't want to be part of this anymore. And like all that, isn't it? And it's like, so yeah so then the doctor kind of comes clean.
Speaker: Yeah. the Well, the doctor kind of comes back, more worried because the doctor now thinks actually maybe there is more going on than I thought there was. um and But again, it's still quite funny. Still, there's some quite funny scenes. like ah That's when she goes to work, doesn't she? And then he gets locked out of his out of the house and um people are taking the me like the... The girls are laughing at him and the the animals will go all crazy.
Speaker: um yeah and then i mean again it's just one of the best i think it's one of the best horror movie scenes he goes in he's watching tv the to tv is really funny isn't it did you did you notice that the adverts on the tv it's like is it because um kermit the frog and miss piggy are credited in the film yeah are they on his tv is that no it's the clip when the nazi yeah Oh, they're on the TV doing the Nazi scene. Yeah, they're on the TV. that This one, it's like some weird darts thing.
Speaker: ah the The darts, the commentary says, Rab Smith, ah ra smith neat neat little character. There's a lot said about um about big gross darts players.
Speaker: but Rab, and then it just trails off. And then it's the news of the world thing about a woman who's like, oh you know, i was a beauty queen and did this. It's like kiss and tell type thing. Yeah, it's really funny. But yeah, and then he, so he's in the house and Bad Moon starts rising, ah Bad Moon Rising starts playing and you see this kind of montage of him bored and then basically, then it's Blue Moon starts playing again and the transformation starts and it's just, I mean, God, it's such a good scene. I mean, the effects still, I think the effects still look really good. Like, don't you think? I mean, they still stand they? Yeah, it's crazy, isn't it? You can see why, yeah, he ended up being... Hold on a minute.
Speaker: What's going on in your face? What? Do you know what? do feel bit funny all of a sudden. What? do feel a bit funny all of a sudden. I find it harder talk for some reason.
Speaker: You look like the cat out of Red Horse. little bit sharper and in the tooth taste department. I like it. set myself a bit a challenge to try and do the rest this. Oh God, are you going to do the rest? some sort um oh This might only be one stage of this transition that's about to happen.
Speaker: thought it was a good time to initiate it. I'm looking forward to I'm looking forward to it. Yeah, no, the scene is amazing. The scene is amazing. Much better than the special effects going on in the ah in the room right now. Right now, with me. it's just Yeah, with you. um It's just so well done. And I think it's it's so well done because that he Rick Baker kind of came at it from a...
Speaker: a real he came at it from a real perspective of like right if there was a human how could a human turn into an animal like that um he basically says he says the way i decided to approach transformation was through comparative anatomy He said, I didn't have a wolf skeleton my collection, but had a dog's and that was close enough. Comparing it to a human, you find that many of the bones are similar. It's just that the proportions different. I made a list of the differences, what the major changes were, whether they got shorter or they got longer, then figured out how to get a suit out of this. In the later stages, that made sense. So he literally took a human skeleton and a dog's dog and sized it up. And then... what bones you know the hand amazing but with his hand just goes like like it just goes so big and like stretches out and nails are horrible aren't they yeah and it's i think because it's because it keeps cutting and showing you different parts of the transformation you see you see so much it's only two minutes long it's mad to think it's that short mean it feels so much longer and then you know his whole torso like stretches out and
Speaker: You know, they were doing mad practical stuff. They would do it this makeup, isn't it? It's like mechanics. it's It's all sorts of tricks. They were throwing it. there's a bit when he's lying on the floor and you just see his body like stretch out like he's on a rack or something, doesn't he?
Speaker: It's so good. it took It took them six days to complete, 10 hours a day applying the makeup, five hours on set and three hours of makeup removal. They basically got, one they only got half an hour of footage basically in the entire week because it was just, there was so much there to do.
Speaker: It's so good. That's crazy. I love it. I mean, it's probably the best thing in the curse for Rick Baker though, wasn't it? Because off the back of this, he got every, yeah every werewolf gig. Every time there's a film like Thriller, the music video, Wolf later on. So many werewolf movies. They wanted him involved. he must have got bored.
Speaker: But then he obviously also got loads of other gigs out of it. So it was good in a way. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Do you want to be the wolf guy? I don't know. well I'd rather be the wolf guy than nothing, I guess. Yeah. Maybe that's it. Yeah. ah I don't know. Did he get any more Academy Awards for any of the other ones, though? Or was it just like... I don't know. ma I don't know.
Speaker: But but one day for I wonder if he did turn things down ever. I wonder if anyone ever said, can you do another werewolf? And he was just like, I just can't be bothered anymore. Or just send them the kit. Yeah, have have this stuff out of my chair. You can take this. Do it yourself. Exactly.
Speaker: That is amazing. But the the thing is, the film doesn't let up there because you have... you're kind of cutting between Alex and the ah Alex, which is, is, is Jenny Agata. That's just because it's my name. It's confusing. And the doctor coming back and trying to tell her, actually, there's more to this. But, but then you get like, you get these, there's some homeless people that are near Tower Bridge. That shot's amazing. We see Tower Bridge in the background. So like you see them attack. ah There's kind of flashes of the monster, but not really. And then the, the really good bit, which again is a bit that really stayed with me is the Tottenham Court Road tube station attack.
Speaker: that's just so well done so he the guy gets off the tube and he's walking and then you can he can kind of hear something and then he starts running and it's just there's just this amazing shot from down the escalators and he's like on his back's on the escalator and you just see the the wolf which is kind of on all fours isn't it kind of coming towards him and it's such a quick shot but it looks so good because it's huge it's so big And then he's kind of POV kind of attacked on the escalator. And that's, I mean, that always stuck with me. That scene always stuck on me. Weirdly, I had on the Spectrum, the American Werewolf in London game.
Speaker: And a lot of it was wandering around the tube stations. And I always used to get lost in the tubes or run over by trains. um And then, you know what Spectrum's like? you have to reload the whole game from the cassette. So, oh God.
Speaker: It was never much fun, I'd have to say, but ah yeah, i should I should look it up. I'm um i'm sure it was maybe it's more enjoyable now you can play it without all of that hassle. Yeah. was just thinking, actually, that scene with all the POV, I might have just taken his teeth out.
Speaker: It's definitely getting in the way of my talking far too much. um Yeah, it is, you know, it's still the early days of sort of POV being used sort of effectively in sort of horror cinema and stuff. Oh, yeah, yeah. Yeah, definitely. You obviously had bits of Halloween in 1978 and...
Speaker: things in Friday 13th films but I think that's the first time where it's like a proper like yeah it's just used to really good effect isn't it just at the right points yeah definitely no it's great And then he wakes up in the zoo, which is great. And then we're kind of straight back to comedy. So we've had this like really brutal, like really mucked up. Your head's kind of spinning.
Speaker: And then we're just literally back into comedy because he's naked. He's in with the wolves. He has to kind of climb out. He then asks this little boy to but buy some... balloons off a little boy. He says going to give him two quid and then steals them. And the little boy's like, a naked American man stole my balloons. And there's that weird old woman who I think the woman wasn't told that he'd be naked. She was just told, oh, he's going to come up to you.
Speaker: um And so that's quite funny. Yeah. um And also a reaction. Yeah. And also it says David Norton recalled the zoo scene. As far as as far for running naked around London Zoo in the scene where I'm in the wolf cage, the only reassurance I had was that the wolves had just been fed.
Speaker: But the handler still said that they there was to be no loud noises or fast movements. OK, I said, hopefully this will just be one take. So start rolling those cameras. We were supposed to be done by nine nine zero m but we overran. At one point I looked up and said, wow, why have you got all those extras over there?
Speaker: And the rest of the cast said, they're not extras. The zoo's open. So not only was he in there naked and he'd overrun, but then they opened the zoo. So he's still in there doing that. So some of that, I like got real people in the background probably, but, um, but yeah, that's such an 80s thing to happen. in yeah ah Like nowadays they'd lock off the whole zoo, just the it shut it all down. But it's such an nice thing to go, Oh, they're just filming a film over there. Carry on. Don't worry it. People still come in and have look around.
Speaker: But yes, so yeah but it' you're straight into this comedy, which is, it kind of feels like your head's kind of spinning. and And it's kind of good in a way because you, in a way, you're kind of following what's happening to David because when he gets home,
Speaker: then he meets back up with Jenny Agatha. He's all like, ah I feel so energetic. I feel so great, like my body. and And again, this is something that's in a lot of werewolf films that when you transform, when you come back from it you're more healthy and you're more like, it does make you, it makes human beings, it makes us better kind of thing. That's in a lot of werewolf things. remember it was in Being Human, which was really good. Yeah.
Speaker: had really good werewolf element to it with Russell Tovey. um is Is that when they then have the sex scene? that that it was that Is it after he's done the kill or is it before? Because there's a really prolonged sex scene, which was bit like... We missed that.
Speaker: It was when he comes back to a flat in the first place and they play moon dance. Oh, okay. Yes, there is a very So just gets straight Yeah, yeah. There's loads of nibbling in the shower. Like, I found that very distracting. i was just like, lots of like... Is it? Is it distracting? Nibbling for ages.
Speaker: Is it because he's a werewolf already? I think it's mainly her doing it. That's the weird thing. I'm just bit like, wow, you know, she's she's going to get what's come into her if she's yeah if she's maybe throughou doing that. I don't know.
Speaker: Maybe the original line was, I ah find you very attractive, very sad and very tasty. Maybe that was the original line. Yeah. And I want to nibble you. and Yeah, I just felt like a bit like some of the extreme violence. That sex scene was a bit like, although you don't see an awful lot, it's just a bit like, do we really need five solid minute minutes of them sort of rolling around in bed? It's just a little bit of a distraction. but Yeah, they don't do it this time. Yeah.
Speaker: the Maybe they don't do it this time, but then she's very much like, well, I need to get to get you to the doctor because he now thinks this is real. And they get in the cab. And did you see who was driving the cab?
Speaker: Which I was going to say as well, Nurse Alex is not phased at all by him basically saying he thinks he's a psychopath. but She's like, oh, I'm sure it's nothing.
Speaker: yeah I don't think she believes it at all. I don't even think she believes a doctor, not really. I think she just thinks he's maybe a bit unhinged, but not not really a werewolf. Did you know... Oh, man.
Speaker: Wow. I'm not going to, we've got a bit more to do. I'm not going to stop. minutes Yeah, we've got a bit more to do, don't we? Let's go for it. Let's go for it until the moon comes out. because okay Did you notice he was driving the cab?
Speaker: No, yeah, can't remember. Who is it? It's Alan Ford, the guy from, um he's in um Snatch. You know, you are an horrible, not going to say the word. Do you remember the guy with the glasses? He's gangster in Snatch. The guy with the thick glasses, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, him. Yeah, yeah, it's him. Yeah, yeah, it's him. um But yeah, so. Yeah.
Speaker: David is like, because he then realizes that people have been killed and he's like, oh God, that was me. He starts freaking out and he goes and finds a policeman. in And it's intrafact. Again, there's a lot of amazing locations in this. It goes to Charlottes Square and just starts yelling like all this mad stuff at the policeman trying to get, be arrested.
Speaker: And he says, Queen Elizabeth is a man. Prince Charles is a faggot. Winston Churchill was full of shit. His words, not mine. Now, did you know it says here that it said, because David calls King Charles III's sexuality into question in the film, a disclaimer was added in the credits, which read, Lycanthrope Films Limited wishes to extend its heartfelt congratulations to Lady Diana Spencer and His whole his his Royal Highness Prince of Wales on the occasion of their marriage, July 29th, 1981. So they put a thing in the credits to kind of like back off that.
Speaker: Just because he says it. But he's obviously saying it to get arrested. Like it's, it's like, it's obviously, yeah. Anyway. ah Yeah. So he can't get arrested and he freaks out and basically just runs. He says he loves her, doesn't he? But then he runs away. Yeah. And then she's kind of upset. And then we're kind of, yeah, we're kind barreling to the end. She's come back. I don't care if you're a werewolf or a psychopath, you know, it's fine. Even though I barely know you.
Speaker: ah Yeah. i I'm fine with it. Come and live with me. Yeah, she likes she likes the weirdos. um And he ends up in Piccadilly Circus. He makes this quite nice poignant phone call to his is um his family. And then he goes into a cinema. Who aren't interested? No, his little daughter doesn't care at all.
Speaker: He goes into the cinema and did you you I'm sure you know, but you they're playing a porno film called See You Next Wednesday. And that that is a reoccurring gag in John Landis' films that comes up in like,
Speaker: it comes up in tons of things. So it's in, um it's weirdly, it's from a line, it's from a line of dialogue in 2001, A Space Odyssey. But he puts it in trading places, coming to America,
Speaker: Blues Brothers, Kentucky Fried Movie. It's in Michael Jackson's Thriller. I think that's the film they're seeing in Thriller. the That is the film within the film. I think it's called See You Next. Yeah, i think so.
Speaker: So it's his kind of little thing. But it's a really funny like, but it's quite, the film's quite funny. Like the acting's really bad. And like, it's again, it's quite graphic. Yeah. sex but yeah if the acting's really like what are you doing here oh i don't know what are you doing like it's really is again quite funny um yeah but then the scene takes this mad turn because jack turns up and and it's full on he's just like a skeleton isn't he like he's he's really like they really gone downhill fast yeah It's a really good effect. And then there's all of his victims from that night are all there. And again, it's this like, it's really funny, but it's really horrible because they're all just like, oh, you should kill yourself. Oh, wow you should do that. Oh, you should shoot yourself. Oh, you if shoot yourself in the face. Oh no, go and jump off. And it's like, it's really dark. Like,
Speaker: It's kind of sadly like he it's good because the tone the tone of this film changes up so many times, but yeah I'd say it it always works. I agree with you a bit that that the sex scene is a bit it feels a bit much. That's the only element probably. But that the tone, every time it changes, I think it it works so well.
Speaker: um Yeah, I think they got very lucky with it, actually, because I think it's it is just right. And it could have so easily have been too much one way or the other or not enough. Like if it had been less funny, like it would have just been really out of character, kind of weird or funny bits and people have been like, what the hell is that all about? So, yeah, it's credit. But yeah, because he's trying to kill himself in the phone box, didn't he? tries to cut his wrist and he can't do it.
Speaker: But then anyway, it's too late. The moon's out. It changes again. And then you have this mental climax that's in um Piccadilly Circus. And it was he was the first person allowed to shoot in Piccadilly Circus in 15 years because they weren't they didn't normally allow people. He said he John Landis managed to accomplish this. by bringing the Greater London Metropolitan Police Service to a screening of the Blues Brothers, where he showed them the Blues Brothers and was like, look, I've managed to do this, but you can trust me. it was ah They were so impressed that they granted the production two night filming permits between 1 and 4 a.m. Traffic was stopped ah for ah three times for two-minute increments to film the automobile stunts. But that's kind of unprecedented. You don't normally see films filmed there, do you? Because it's such a huge tourist spot. It's insane to shut that down.
Speaker: Yeah, it's impressive. It was actually on location. You would have thought some of that would be like in a studio because nice look on it it's isn't it? Yeah, and there's all these cars and buses. It's indirectly caused by the werewolf, isn't it? It's like the werewolf cross walking across the road. People aren't getting killed by the werewolf. They're getting hit by cars. No, it's mental.
Speaker: It's meant it's a huge pile up, isn't it? And then, yeah, they basically, they they they chase him down and the police are there, but she, Jenny Agatha breaks through and she's all like, she says she loves him, doesn't she? No, does she say she loves him?
Speaker: I think she does say she loves him. think And then he's just, he kind of... police The police aren't good at keeping people away from it, are they? Not really, just gets through. Yeah, she gets through and he's going attack and she says that and he kind of stops and then everyone fires.
Speaker: And then he you see him again in his in his normal form, dead. And she cries and then you get another version of Blue Moon. And then it just ends. It's like a really brutal, just like cut off. It just ends. But again, I think that's perfect. Like, well, you don't need any more than that. Like, we don't need an aftermath. We don't need to know.
Speaker: anymore like you know we got the answer it was real no and it was always going to be to end that way like I love it. I think yeah it I was surprised how much. Yeah. I was surprised how good I still thought it was. I thought, I thought, oh, it's been ages since I've seen it. There'll be something where I'll be like, ah but i think in, you know, on every level, the soundtrack, the acting, the script, the editing, you know, all of it, the effects, it works. It's, it's ah almost a perfect, I think it's a pretty much a perfect film. There's very There are a couple of little holes in it though. couple of little plot holes. Mm. One being, and this is the most important one, I think, that I only really discovered. i put i' go know I'm going to transform. he did up about this yeah Go on then.
Speaker: Tell me, what are the plot holes? I've got more fur I should be putting on, but it's way too hot to be putting a wig on right now. It's going to distract distract us. We're already overrunning. You've got to put the wig on it before, just at the end. Just put it on at the end, just so people can say, come on. Yeah, if people are still listening to me by then, that'll be your reward.
Speaker: um Yeah, the first plot hole, which is the most important one probably, is that, of course, if it only if he only changes every full moon and you only get one full moon a month or thereabouts, he shouldn't transform two successive nights in a row, which he does. Oh, okay. Interesting. That's a big plot hole, that one right there.
Speaker: um Okay. Plot hole number two, but this is more for werewolf purists. So it depends how, sort of, how tightly you think John Landis and co would want to stick to the law. Yeah.
Speaker: yeah Do the police shoot him with a silver bullet? Well, no, they make a comment about Silver Bullets and they kind of rule that out. I think they're saying that that's not a thing. But I think that they're going for a more realistic, sort of realistic version of the werewolf. i i think that one's I'd let that one slide. I'm all right with your moon one. I don't mind your moon problem because that feels like, yeah, they didn't think of that. But it doesn't ruin the film for me.
Speaker: That's all I can say. I still think it's a great ruin it, but yeah. And another couple a couple of little things that thought were a bit funny. um Oh, yeah. Give me some. Have you well-spoken the Yorkshireman are? And if there anyone if there is anyone from Yorkshire listening to this, I don't want to offend you by saying this. Careful.
Speaker: but Some of the lines that they come out with, i was I was between like, is this how people from Yorkshire really did used to speak in the 80s? Or yeah is this a case of kind of whoever helped write the script for this? Like not really fully understanding yeah different parts of Britain and the way they might talk. Yeah, maybe.
Speaker: There's this one of bit. like They're all like, nor i They say it bit like old English. Yeah, it's the nor I bit. as I heard nothing. Nor i Nor I. it like It's nearly Shakespearean sort of way they talk to each other. It's just like, geez. Okay, yeah. There was another funny bit. I can't remember. Oh, oh i'll judge yeah. It goes back to the doctor, really. I just thought it was really good that this man of science, it's... um Dr. Hirsch, isn't it?
Speaker: Yeah. And he's such a he's such a rational doctor and he's so straight all the time. He's always like, right, I don't think you should be in here doing that, should you? is that so But he's the only one who thinks that, oh, I'm kind of liking this werewolf idea.
Speaker: Yeah, he's totally with it. Like you said, he's the Van Helsing. He's actually the hero of the whole thing because without him... Kind of. yeah All of London gets turned into werewolves.
Speaker: but Yeah, I think if he got on it earlier, he could have stopped it maybe, but it's too late, isn't it? The police are no help. So yeah. yeah Yeah. um have we got any Have you got your love horror links? What are other films would complement this?
Speaker: Like a hairball to a dog? I don't know. A bone? That's what I should say. there was one more thing i was going to say about the film about actually, no, I'll come back to that when we talk about what we, um, what, what we thought overall, um, love horror links. I would say,
Speaker: um There's too many, really, isn't there? i mean There's a lot. watch If we're just talking about werewolf films, you've got Teen Wolf, which I'm endorsing today. Michael J. Fox, I hope he's listening. um But ah I think also ah the first one that came to mind when I was thinking about films from that sort period and similar films would be Silver Bullet from 1985. Oh, yep, yep.
Speaker: And the reason I like that film is because I'm a big fan of The Lost Boys and it's got Corey Haim in it, obviously. um Yeah. Pre-Lost Boys and it's got Gary Busey in it. And we um again, just ah based on a Stephen King book. I mean, come on.
Speaker: of but A werewolf film based on a Stephen King book? That's that's always going to be worth watching. Yeah. So that's definitely one to watch. This next one I'm going to say, I'm betting you were you were going to say as well. So I'm going to beat you to it. Dog Soldiers.
Speaker: Yes. Yeah. Dog Soldiers is great. Definitely. So Neil Marshall's Dog Soldiers. um ah Yes. Which really, you know. It was very different at the time.
Speaker: you felt it felt yeah felt like It felt like a a different take on it. The fact that it was very action. was almost kind of like an an aliens to alien. It felt more action packed than werewolf films had been where they're normally kind of like a bit more like this paced out on like one thing whereas dog soldiers felt very like yeah like full on and kind of like exactly i think that's that's that's what's the that's the best thing about it is that it's not a conventional werewolf film where you've got quite often they do follow that same formula from like the wolfman and stuff like the early universal ones um This is obviously a routine military exercise turning into kind of basically going wrong when they run into ah werewolves in the Scottish wilderness. But are just that the action in it's really gritty and scary. And yeah and the wolves ah the wolves are even scarier than the ah werewolf in American werewolf in London. so Yeah, true. um And then um if you do want to see more of the – if you've had enough of werewolves – And do you want to see more of these special effects? but you
Speaker: Well, first of all, make sure you watch the full-length version of um Thriller before before you stop watching. I was going to say Thriller. Yeah. Interesting. ring Whatever do you think about Michael Jackson, yeah, see it yeah it that way. yeah yeah At the beginning, I did notice when I re-watched it, it says, by the way, I don't condone this kind of occult. Yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's really funny, that. Yeah, because, I mean, it costs so much money. That was one of the first... Because Michael Jackson is kind of like known for these massive high scale, high production value videos.
Speaker: That was one of the real first ones. And the fact that that cost, it cost 500,000, which is 10 times more than the average music video cost. So the fact that he brought and he brought in loads of people from,
Speaker: American Werewolf in London to work on it not just Rick Baker but other people as well and he looks great and I mean it's like an iconic dance his zombie makeup is amazing in that as well like his werewolf as well his werewolf makeup is really good yeah it's not bad having Vincent Price in it and stuff like that no it's like a little mini movie it's great do you feel sorry for the woman in obviously watch that well yeah she so she does a lot go up a lot happens to her in that like it's a lot of bad stuff she's not the opposite of Jenny Agata she doesn't deserve it Jenny Agata is a bit like she's she's really asking for it she's like what you're a bit crazy yeah come back and live with me
Speaker: you mean you keep thinking you're going to kill people? um But yeah, sorry. ah What was going to say was a non-Werewolf movie that Rick Baker was involved in, which I love, is Videotrome, David Cronenberg's film. Yeah, true. So I would definitely recommend people go and see that. and That's a very surreal, fantastic trip of a movie with very good practical effects.
Speaker: ah about you? ah My two, oh, I had Thriller. My other two were Werewolves Within, which I really, really like. It's a it' it's a comedy horror.
Speaker: It's loosely based on a video game the say of the same name. um I really like It's kind of like a whodunit as well. ah There's a full review on Love Horror. Go and check it out. but i I love that i think it's really funny, but it's also it's a good horror film as well. And Late Phases, which has also got a review on Love Horror, that's about an old grumpy blind...
Speaker: old blind grumpy war vet who moves into an old people's like community and there's a werewolf there. It's a bit of a different take on it. I think the effects are not very good in that because it wasn't high budget. I think that was one I saw at Fright Fest in fact. I was going to say that was a Fright Fest film wasn't it? Yeah the effects aren't great but the idea is good in it and the acting is good in it and it is different. It's a different idea. So if you can kind of park your opinions on the effects but try and see it for the story. So Yeah, they were my little, that was my contribution anyway. So we're way over, but this film deserves to be way over. But we're on our summary. So overall, how do you feel about American Wealth in London?
Speaker: Come on. Give me your opinions.
Speaker: I think the thing that makes it so strong for me, or like the best thing about it really is that it strikes that balance of being, as we talked about earlier, being scary, but having a comedic edge that prevents it being too much. So when things get really extreme and violent and dark, the comedic edge just pulls you back from that a bit. yeah And i think that is actually, if you think about it, particularly with classic horror, it's, That is the magic formula that many Greyhawk films use to create yeah an experience that's like not so traumatic that you don't want to return to it.
Speaker: Because that's the thing. Everyone can make a film that's horrendous and horrible and makes you feel like it's a living nightmare. But what you want is to have that thing that keeps people coming back afterwards.
Speaker: So as with ah Evil Dead 2, Return of the Living Dead, The Lost Boys, all those films, they've got some like extreme elements, but they keep it light and breezy with bit comedy. And so yeah ah for for me, that's what puts this in that ah five star perfect. card Oh, yeah yeah, definitely. Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah, definitely. No, no, I completely agree. It's a total, total five out of five. No, no doubt it's five out of five. I think it's just the pacing of it's so good. i don't think there are any really bad bits of it. Like say, there's some bits that, like you know, that might not be perfect, but I think it's just, it's so well done. It's so well balanced. It's funny. Yeah, like you say, it's funny. It's it's horrible. It's shocking.
Speaker: It's sad. Like it it just got everything and it and it does it all in an hour and 37 minutes, which that's not a long runtime at all. It doesn't, it's not flat. It's not flabby. It just, it just bangs through. You do really care about the characters, you know, like it it just, you everything it's in it, it uses it really well, whether it's the actors, the locations, the effects, it's just like, it's optimizing. Every element of it is optimized to the best it could be. And it just, you know, like there's a reason why it sits on the top of most werewolf movie,
Speaker: you know, list because it's it's a perfect werewolf movie. It's got all the elements you want, you know, like, and the fact that even references the werewolf movies, like the the universal ones, the the the the real tradition of werewolves. I think i even that element is great. So, yeah, no, I love it. And I i was i was happy that I liked it as much watching it you know like said it'd been a gap since i'd seen it i was really happy that ah i still really loved it because i was worried that you know there'd be something where i'd be like well but no not it hit hit perfect perfect five out of five for me i would say most definitely we should have it's five out of five and we should have reviewed it sooner i don't know why it didn't five hairy fingers out of five five hairy fingers out of five for sure one worth revisiting for anyone yeah
Speaker: So, uh, so, uh, what, well, first, well, two things we need to talk about what's next and we also need to see you transform fully. So do you want me to do the talking while you transform or what's the, why don't, why don't you talk for a second while I, well, I'll talk for a little bit. So if, uh, we're going to do a bit of a departure for our next podcast.
Speaker: This is very funny. For our next podcast, we're doing a little bit of a departure. ah We're going to do something a bit different. Fright Fest is coming. Fright Fest 2026. We're going to do a Fright Fest 2026 special. you'll be some There'll be some elements of the half hour of horror that you have come to love. Probably us not fitting it in half an hour. We might have a special guest. One of our reviewers may be featuring. We're going to talk about Fright Fest. We're going talk about the films that are coming up, what we're looking forward to. So, yes. So join us.
Speaker: Very soon, hopefully, for a Fright Fest 2026 special. And then after that, I'll be back to our normal ah program. And I can see the reveal. ah That is... Yeah, so for anyone who's just listening to this... Terrifying, isn't it?
Speaker: He looks more like a... You look more like Captain Caveman than... Well, you're very hairy. mean, I like it a lot. I like the look. It makes me I should dye my hair brown and grow it out. Yeah, and grow a really big beard. And if could grow a beard, if I could grow a beard this impressive, I would, just based that right now. That beautiful, it's a beautiful, beautiful thing. Thank you. I have no idea what you just said while I was transforming, by the way. I did the pitch for the Fright Fest 2026 special, which is what's next for us. Brilliant. Like I say, we'll be here soon.
Speaker: So yeah, so hopefully you can join us for that one. If you're not into that, you can skip that one and join us afterwards for, we'll be back to our regular presentation, back to taking on a absolute classic film. So thank you for loving horror as much as we do. And we'll just say goodbye. Maybe do a howl. Should we do a big howl? Let me get my hands on.
Speaker: I was going to it louder, but I'm scared that my... If my neighbours see me looking like this and making that noise, I'm going to get shot with a silver bullet. So I've got to be really careful. You just need a basketball and then you'll be set for the end of the big match. going to go shoot some hoops straight afterwards.
Speaker: It's so hot. It's so hot in the sun. don't recommend I don't recommend this to anyone at home. Don't do this. Don't werewolf Halloween. Thanks for joining us. I'm already looking forward to the next tribute for the next film. God knows what I'll be.
Speaker: Yeah. Bye. Bye.
