I thought the same thing, I watched this the week before Halloween, and I don't think he finished it, but he might of a DUI on his record, I don't know.
A odd fact David Naughton appeared in a film called Midnight Madness his brother was played by Michael J Fox ( so early he hadn't added the J yet) and both went on to play Werewolfs a couple of years later
Or the fact that David is attacked in Yorkshire (in the north of England) but is transferred to a hospital in London. Yes, even in the 1980s England had more than one hospital.
That’s what l didn’t understand about the film. Did the people in the “village” drive him to London to disassociate the attack from Yorkshire? Then that brings up another question: Why drive past so many hospitals en route? It wasn’t as though David was being looked after by a lycanthrope specialist
@@bonesf200 That would've been my guess. As he's a foreign national, it would be more convenient for dealing with the embassy and allow for relatives to visit (you'd think they would have).
For question #5. I was watching the movie and asked myself why does he change 2 nights in a row? The clue was in the soundtrack. The song Blue Moon. Then I asked myself what’s a blue moon. Turns out it’s when the moon is full 2 nights in a row. Now maybe strictly and technically speaking it’s not exactly a full moon but it’s enough to activate his transformation.
American Werewolf in London is one of my favourite films of all time, but one thing has always bugged me. David is cornered (in wolf form) at a dead end alleyway. Alex is stood in front of him, with the police quite a way back at the entrance of the alley. When the wolf lurches forwards, the bullets go around Alex and hit the wolf in the side. How does that work? Great video 😊👍👍👍
One of my favourite films of all time too, classic! Must've seen it 20+ times and I've never noticed that! Yeah, it's ballistically impossible, guess it's a movie goof?
What I love most about first time viewers of this movie is their faces when the end credits just roll after David is shot, they're like "What?!! That's it?!! It just ends like that?!". I'll get a big laugh from that reaction. 😂
these posts have me in XTC. but wait, there's more. i read, and reacted to, the above posts, then checked the movie's cast in an attempt to find out which actor played Nigel, _then_ continued watching the video. oh. Nigel isn't a character in _AAWiL, that name was just used because...well, because Nigel.
There's only one question that needs answering about this film, and you didn't ask it. And that's, why is it, after David was attacked on the Yorkshire moors, that he was taken on a four and a half hour trip to a London hospital? He would have passed by over 200 hospitals before reaching the one he ended up in.
It could be, that as David is a US citizen, they wanted him to be close to the US embassy. Also, whilst I think a movie titled 'An American Werewolf in Yorkshire' would be great, it may not appeal to a global market, so, they had to get David to London.
@@tomdid1 I am very good at taking my anti-psychotic medication if you don't mind (that is not a joke - I have been sectioned and spent quite a bit of time in a psychiatric hospital).
For the full moon question, there's often referred to as the 'three nights of the full moon", when the moon is full enough to the naked eye as to appear to be full, though it's only truly full on obviously the middle night. This is referenced in other media (Jim Butcher's Dresden Files Book "Full Moon" comes to mind), and allows the curse/magic/science to activate when there's /enough/ moonlight as opposed to a specific astrological event.
can't recall the book's title, and don't want to go home to get my copy of it, but said tome also mentions the three nights of the "full" moon. [minutes later] i looked it up: _The Werewolf's Guide to Life: A Manual for the Newly Bitten_ by Ritch Duncan and Bob Powers. very informative and entertaining. one illustration made me a little sad, namely, the 'wolf sitting on the porch seemingly wishing (to me) his transformation were over.
Another top vid. The lore for a werewolf only being able to be killed by someone they love I think comes from the Wolfman so David was referencing that, a very John Landis thing to do!
Their is a BBC radio play of AAWIL on yt that had a lot of the original cast return to reprise their roles, it is based on the original script and expands the story. It is worth a listen to and has some extra scenes including at the start the werewolf escaping from the asylum, Jack going to limbo and the older victims are just dust so no longer have a form and one of the villagers going to London to help stop David.
Glad u liked it I only discovered it last year and found it a good edition to the lore their are also prequel books but I haven't read them but heard they are good about the origins of the werewolves.
My question is David waking up in the zoo? 1.Why would a supernatural nocturnal creature who only gets to feed a few nights a month fall asleep before sunrise? 2. If the werewolf wasnt found while it was sleeping, did ( police/ animal control)have to tranquilize it? 3.The average zoo knows how many animals they have of every type.First thing they would have done when " whoever" showed up with some strange creature is take a count of their wolves, and that new animal even if taken would be separated from the others. 4. How did trained zoologist not notice the werewolf wasnt a regular wolf?The wolfs in the pen and the werewolf looked vastly different, the werewolf was huge. 4. Also did the police/ animal control and the zoologist not notice the creature was covered by the blood and gore of the 6 people it had killed that night.Sub- question: How was David not covered in blood when he woke up?If they washed werewolf that means they noticed the blood, and in that case they definitely wouldn't have put him with the other wolfs, and they would have alerted the police especially once the news reported on all the people found half eaten that morning. Also something to think about: From the time David woke up in the zoo until the end of the movie....David was walking around with a stomach full of human remains😊
The people of the village, in your theories, love their fellow villager enough to keep his werewolf secret and risk lives every month... So, why would you then assume none of them loved him enough to kill him?
Love this movie. Having watched it recently, I have a theory. It seems that the Curse itself has a sentience and a will of its own. Aside from the obvious points (turning its host into a bloodthirsty monster on the full moon, and dooming the monsters victims to eternal undead limbo), it has the ability to manipulate the people around it in order to spread and maximize the death and chaos it can cause. Example 1: When the villagers came to save David by killing the original werewolf, why didn't they just shoot David on the spot, since they knew what he would become later? Why let him go? It seems that the Curse may have some ability to instill a sense of sympathy in those who are aware of it, so that it may continue to spread. Example 2: The day before his 1st transformation, David has no appetite (actually, David hasn't really had much appetite since he woke from his coma). He also leaves the main apartment entrance open as well as the door to the flat open as well. The Curse wants David to not eat anything, so that the Wolf will be ravenous and devour more people. It also made David forget to close the doors to the flat, so that the Wolf would be able to leave without drawing attention to itself. Example 3: David tries to get himself arrested and thrown in jail when he realized that he killed six people as the Wolf. Under normal circumstances, the officer probably would have arrested him, but the Curse changed the officer's mind, knowing that being locked up would lead to David being killed when transformed. Example 4: During the Piccadilly Circus Massacre, it seems like either everyone's car brakes stopped working or people forgot how to use their brakes. Was it simply mass hysteria in effect or was it the Curse manipulating people's minds, so that it could inflict more death and chaos? I think that this aspect of the Curse only applies to living people, which is why Jack was able to 'lure' David into the theatre and keep him there until the moon rose, knowing that he would transform into the Wolf and draw the attention of the local authorities.
I like to play the howl from a bluetooth speaker around Halloween when people are nearby, it's a haunting sound and I like to imagine that the older people who hear it immediately run to the pub, although given where I live they were probably heading there anyway.
Also why didn't Jack's family ever go to London to be with their seriously injured son? Any other parent would fly around the world to get to their child who was badly injured if it was possible!!
You mean David's family? Aside from the name confusion you're quite correct. In a month, nobody from his family has come to be with him? Nor, has there been any effort to have him transported back to the United States? You would think that, as his actual physical injuries only seemed to be flesh wounds and shock (nobody seemed too perplexed or concerned that he was in coma for three weeks), why wasn't he put on a plane back to New York?
QUESTION 11! ☝🏽 I’m a born ‘n bred Londoner. When watching AWIL, I always wanted to know - How does a giant hulking hell beast manage to get from Earl’s Court, to Tottenham Court Road, to Tower Bridge, to Regents Park without being seen? 😆 And what about the climax? Piccadilly Circus to Clink street in less than a minute?! I know that alley! Used to work the Starbucks their back in Uni’
I've seen London loads of undersireables I might have even seen a wearwolf though obviously I'm still alive to tell the tale ..or maybe I'm not alive maybe I'm one of the undead with Jack David Alf Ted and Joseph ..🐺🌕
One other possible link to the lycanfacists in the dream sequence is a historical event. In the last days of the European Front of WW2 there was a combat division of the SS that was sent out to both stem the tide of Soviet troops approaching Berlin and, more significant for this, hunt down any remaining Jews, Roma etc. The division was named the Werewolves. On a semi related note, is it just me or does it strike anyone else as ironic that the werewolves in that dream sequence are seen using Uzi SMGs, a weapon of Israeli manufacture?
Yeah, I was just commenting on the same scene about the Muppets watching 'punch and judy' American puppets watching an iconic British puppet show.. So much going on in one scene ,nothing is by accident👍
Apparently has nothing to do with hunting down Jews. Although I would like to see evidence of the plan if it exists. Also interesting how the Nazis adopted a number of werewolf type themes. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werwolf
As with every great lore, the back story drives you to want to know more, and so it is with AAWIL. We are never told where the original werewolf comes from, or how long it's been since it settled in East Proctor, but the east with which the town folks hunker down to spend the night in the relative safety of the Slaughtered Lamb, and the amount of soot on the wall, tells of a very long tradition. I didn't know about the DVD-only back story that Claude mentioned because the movie wasn't worth my money tbh, but this hints that the original werewolf came from elsewhere than England. I know there were migrations into England over centuries, so that could account for it, and if one wants to stretch the idea a little bit, you could always tie La Bete du Gevaudan, to werewolves and have that event mark the last of the werewolves in France, though I am not sure if Claude mentions that the original came from France, just that they moved to England. The way you tell it, it sounds like it may have been a fairly recent affair, but I can't imagine it would have happened any time after the Second World War, in fact, I can't imagine it happening any time after the 17 or 18th century. This is where I find the whole lore fascinatingl understanding where it may have come from and what the nature of this curse is exactly; on the one hand you could take David's conversations with the (un)-dead at face value and treat them as if they really are happening, or you could take them as hallucinations born of his trauma. In the first case, that would mean the curse is supernatural, which then might tie it to the notion of god and the devil... OR in the second proposition, the curse is a freak of nature, crazy and wild, but still very-much earth-bound. Werewolves have always been tied to the supernatural however, which means Jack and the other undead know what lies beyond death as Jack has said.
One question that always bothered is why David didn't just punch the police officer when he was trying to get arrested after his first transformation? He made insults about the Queen, but if he truly wanted to get locked up all he had to do was throw a punch or push the officer. I would like to think that'd warrant a night in a holding cell. And imagine the cool twist the story would have taken if David was seen transforming by an entire police precinct while locked up in a cell with other people?
lol These Americans. In the UK a jail cell is situated in the basement and is one small room. People do not share cells. But officers do check on people every now and again.
When David changes in the cinema the guy in the anorak looking at him is the first werewolf that bit David on the moor's.....I absolutely love this movie 👍
I live in the Uk and not too far from me are places called exmoor and dartmoor. There is also the legend of the Exmoor beast. People live there but F that, I'm staying in town - the threat is real!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 😞. Love this film, one of my favourites.
Another reason to not hunt the wolf before, speed it has. If it is not distracted with eating, it could sneak up on the men and kill or definitely injure several before it is shot
The first lesson learned from the many creature features set in Europe/UK: if you end up in that isolated local pub that has a pentagram/green man imagery/mysterious symbols, don't question it. Pretend you didn't see it, order an ale, and play dumb.
@2:50, your comment about how the first werewolf was most likely a local resident who everyone knew. (FYI, I always wondered myself why the pub-goers were so frightened when, after they actually went out to help, killing the werewolf wasn't that hard.) If that was the case, why didn't they, as a group, confront him and essentially throw him into the local jail or some other type of confinement on nights of the full moon? If he'd been a werewolf for any length of time, he would almost certainly have figured out his condition and would most likely have gladly agreed so he wouldn't hurt anyone. Here's another question that ties into that scene. How were the locals able to get to David and Jack so quickly? Not only did they cover the distance Jack and David travelled after leaving the pub, but they seemed to find them quite easily. Yes, they could've come in vehicles and yes, they were locals who knew the area and probably had an idea where the werewolf prowled. But still, it seemed they were able to get organized, get their shotguns and get out to the place in a matter of a few minutes.
Maybe they didn't know who the 1st werewolf was and that's why they were so cold to strangers. If someone came in on a full moon they would have to be suspicious since they know it's not someone in their pub or someone who lives in their hamlet. Maybe the werewolf was someone from another far away city. An American werewolf in Paris is an awful sequel but I like how it explains the first movie in a way. It would certainly explain why they don't know who the werewolf is.
Feel the townspeople didn’t kill the original werewolf (Nigel) because it was the physical manifestation of a curse on their village. Like if they had killed it, somehow that would’ve just made things worse for them. Sticking to the road would provide absolutely no protection. But, it would provide a clear path to safe harbor. If David and Jack had kept to the road, they could’ve conceivably run back down that road to the Slaughtered Lamb, when they first heard the creature howling. It’s not a lock, but it would’ve given them better odds than getting lost on the moors. David could see the dead because his perceptions were altered, as a direct result of his lycanthropy. Even in his human form, that curse was still in full effect. It’s the same reason why, before the transformation, he was aggressively not hungry and the morning after the transformation he was so amped up.
The moment that David was turned, he had no appetite for regular food. He's dreaming of hunting, killing and eating flesh. I also believe that it was a physical manifestation of his guilt that allowed David to see Jack (who he blamed himself about his death too.....) and the people that he killed. I don't think there's ever been a werewolf movie that depicted lycanthropes to be able to see into the spirit realm simply because they're supernatural creatures.
My 2 favorite scenes in this movie are the moor and London Underground attack since the werewolf doesn’t show up until the victims are scared and distracted
I don't know about in mythology, but I think in Werewolf: the Apocalypse roleplaying game there's a link between the five forms and the moon phases. Whether you're born a wolf, human or metis (half and half) depends on your parentage. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werewolf:_The_Apocalypse
I think the better question for the first one should have been, 'Why did the townspeople send Jack and David out of the tavern in the first place?' It makes no sense that they would send them out and then go save them. They could have swallowed their pride and fear and just ignored them for Jack's pentagram inquiry or put up somewhere for the night.
Great video. I've subbed and began binge watching othere. As for question 1: I always assumed they have killed the wolf many times, but like David, he bites someone and there's a new one always to take its place. And then for question 2: Clearly the locals know something we don't. If they say stay on the road then chances are they already figured out that the wolf doesn't attack travelers on the road.
It's not suprising that they used a clip from the Muppet show since the voice and performer of Miss Piggy (Frank Oz) played the man from the US embassy.
Just my thoughts but .... 1: Maybe they had to wait until the beast is eating and/or occupied to get a shot? It's not like they want to sacrifice themselves and it IS on open ground (unlike the ending when it's trapped in an alley)! 2: Maybe they were told to stick to the moors because it would be easier to find them when they're attacked? Better than trying to find them on open land? I think the villagers had decided to use the Americans as bait at this time. 3: Creature attacking a human victim? The Muppet Show being American and Punch and Judy (which is what's going on in the background) being British? As it's his dream (same as the werewolf Nazis) then it could be both of them combined. 4: What you said 5: I think this one is just an oversight and a way to get the movie moving along. Or, again, what you said 6: Maybe because there's a link with the killings the werewolf does no matter who the wolf is ? All the victims he can see because he killed them and Jack because he was close to him? What if the previous man to become the wolf and had killed David's mother? Maybe David would see her not because he killed her but because a wolf in his past line had? Could be due to the wolf blood being in them upon death? Or .... what you said lol 7: Maybe it's a belief that's past down through the bloodline like word of mouth usually does that, like most other beliefs, are usually wrong and/or get exaggerated? Also, that would make it a lot easier to take down David, and potentially werewolves before him, if they have that belief in the blood as the wolf itself would think it and drop its guard. Either way, your theory still fits 8: Not sure what the question is 9: That's a question for a different, and inferior, film 10: 10 is 9? And again ....... Different and inferior film
The generally accepted belief is that the nights AROUND the full moon will also cause the transformation to occur. On the other days if you look up in the night sky it would be hard to tell that it wasn't a full moon.
You're missing the big reason that particular part of the Muppet show is in his dream, it's what is happening in the background, the fight with the monster.
It wouldn't surprise me if David woke up and the TV was on with the Muppets. Agree with the ending. The way Landis shot it, it looks as if he lunges to the side of her. That's the only way he was open to being shot without shooting her too.
The voices of Miss Piggy and Kermit....as well as Yoda.....are performed by Frank OZ....who has a cameo in this film as the Doctor with the dark hair and odd voice.
the muppet scene during the dream sequence could be that David saw the clip at some point before the movie began. And incorporated it with his home life because his little bother sister were watching it. The whole dream within a dream concept was very cool. Landis's fake movie See You Next Wednesdsay makes an appearance only this time as a porn movie movie.
Regarding the scene in the Kesslers House and the muppet show on TV only being shown in the UK... This was filmed in the UK with mostly UK actors and both David's parents were British actors, Gordon Stern (who was also the doctor in Highlander) and Paula Jacobs.
The werewolf Nazi dreams could have also been referencing the Nazi holdouts who pestered the Allies for some time after World War II ended in Europe, the Werewolf Brigade.
I think they told them to stick to the road so for jack and David's best chance of leaving the immediate area in the best time and they would not be technically lost and wondering around in unintentional circles
In folklore, the moon was not mentioned. It was not until Frankenstein V Wolfman that the moon is involved. Silver bullets was also a hollywood invention.
Question 2 - Why stick to rhe road and not The Moors? My suggestion is that if they stuck to the road, the locals would be able to easily locate the corpses of the americans if they were unfortunate enough to get attacked. Follow the road to confirm their safety...if they arent on the road, rhey made it. If they wander the field, they could be rotting and missing in the middle of nowhere.
Alfred Hitchcock had a famous excuse for situations in his films that didn't make sense (and there are more than a few,) a MacGuffin. The writer Raymond Chandler is also notorious for this :))
For the question of David's transformation, when he wakes up Dr. Hirsch tells David he's been in the hospital for 3 weeks, so the once a month full moon stands.
Since this movie was released, I've been asking Question One this whole time. Or... why didn't they blast David after he was bitten? No one knew they were out there. It would have been easier to cover up than the fact a werewolf had been prowling around for years...
I've never understood the mentality of the townsfolk sending them off to potentially being killed by the initial wolf. Like if your little village has this horrible wolf secret, wouldn't you keep any random stragglers from going out on a full moon? Asking about the pentagram shouldn't have resulted in expulsion from the tavern!
Yes. I just asked that question. And the other question is why didn't they kill David when they realized he was bitten but alive? I'm sure these villagers could have put two and two together that nobody, not even their families back in the US, knew where they were. They could have stopped the bloodline and buried the evidence. Still...one of my favorite movies and always will be!
Don't try to explain the dream sequence. If you have ever been on heavy medications, you know that the dreams and thoughts you have might not have any basis in reality or relevancy to your life.
What I think happened I think David sees Jack because they were there when they both know Jack died in front of his friends, so maybe that’s why I seen it😮
Maybe they did that once before and it didn't work so well. Or it's possible they did lock him up but all the dead people from the curse drove Nigel crazy and that explains why he was crazy and in the asylum in the first place.
Dr Hearsh driving the 5 hour journey from London to Yorkshire - then just having a sip of Guinness before driving back always gets me.
I'd say it's worth it. I mean it's Guinness.
@@stephenmartin1982 😂 True
i've just said the same.
I thought the same thing, I watched this the week before Halloween, and I don't think he finished it, but he might of a DUI on his record, I don't know.
The drink is just a pretence to get information from the locals. Still, a criminal waste of Guinness!
The “Howl” in that movie, one of the best. I saw this and “The Thing” double feature for 75¢ in 1982 in Brooklyn, NY.
A odd fact David Naughton appeared in a film called Midnight Madness his brother was played by Michael J Fox ( so early he hadn't added the J yet) and both went on to play Werewolfs a couple of years later
I saw that movie, it had Stephen Furst, from "Animal House".
Or the fact that David is attacked in Yorkshire (in the north of England) but is transferred to a hospital in London. Yes, even in the 1980s England had more than one hospital.
That’s what l didn’t understand about the film. Did the people in the “village” drive him to London to disassociate the attack from Yorkshire? Then that brings up another question: Why drive past so many hospitals en route? It wasn’t as though David was being looked after by a lycanthrope specialist
hahaha
I always thought that but cos I love the film l tell myself that it's so he's nearer the Yank Embassy
@@bonesf200 That would've been my guess. As he's a foreign national, it would be more convenient for dealing with the embassy and allow for relatives to visit (you'd think they would have).
For question #5. I was watching the movie and asked myself why does he change 2 nights in a row? The clue was in the soundtrack. The song Blue Moon. Then I asked myself what’s a blue moon. Turns out it’s when the moon is full 2 nights in a row. Now maybe strictly and technically speaking it’s not exactly a full moon but it’s enough to activate his transformation.
I thought a blue moon is two full moons in the same month.
A blue moon is a second full moon in a month.
Full moons last 2.5 earth rotations
My question for the sequel: HOW do you bungee jump off a building that is much narrower at the top than the bottom?
The second one was pretty lame, and good point. How do you bungy off a setback building (as opposed of a plumb rise).
American Werewolf in London is one of my favourite films of all time, but one thing has always bugged me. David is cornered (in wolf form) at a dead end alleyway. Alex is stood in front of him, with the police quite a way back at the entrance of the alley. When the wolf lurches forwards, the bullets go around Alex and hit the wolf in the side. How does that work? Great video 😊👍👍👍
Magic bullet theory?
Have you not seen Wanted with Angelina Jolie? 😂. Nah ur right mate. I always laugh about this when I rewatch it
Cops set up on either side up a cross fire.
@@donkink3114 down a narrow alley like that? 🤔
One of my favourite films of all time too, classic! Must've seen it 20+ times and I've never noticed that! Yeah, it's ballistically impossible, guess it's a movie goof?
Another possibility for the locals telling them to stick to the roads, is so their mutilated bodies are easy to find for them to clear up and hide?
Good point I've never thought of it like that but you're right 👍
What I love most about first time viewers of this movie is their faces when the end credits just roll after David is shot, they're like "What?!! That's it?!! It just ends like that?!". I'll get a big laugh from that reaction. 😂
You MUST read the prequel books and listen to the radio play, it really expands upon the history to the movie.
That is a must. I thought i was the only one that knew about the radio play lol
What's the prequel book please?
@_ferret4915 The Yorkshire Werewolf.
The villagers were only making plans for Nigel.
They only want what's best for him.
He had his future in a wooden box
He has a future in British steel , steel , steel
these posts have me in XTC.
but wait, there's more.
i read, and reacted to, the above posts, then checked the movie's cast in an attempt to find out which actor played Nigel, _then_ continued watching the video.
oh. Nigel isn't a character in _AAWiL, that name was just used because...well, because Nigel.
Moops! The villagers urged them to stay off the MOOPS.
Now that is a deep cut reference, Bubble-Boy.
I believe David did understand Alex at the end and the lunge forward was to sacrifice himself as he knew he would eventually harm her
There's only one question that needs answering about this film, and you didn't ask it. And that's, why is it, after David was attacked on the Yorkshire moors, that he was taken on a four and a half hour trip to a London hospital? He would have passed by over 200 hospitals before reaching the one he ended up in.
It could be, that as David is a US citizen, they wanted him to be close to the US embassy. Also, whilst I think a movie titled 'An American Werewolf in Yorkshire' would be great, it may not appeal to a global market, so, they had to get David to London.
@@jeffwalker7185 Keep taking the meds, Jeff.
@@tomdid1 I am very good at taking my anti-psychotic medication if you don't mind (that is not a joke - I have been sectioned and spent quite a bit of time in a psychiatric hospital).
@@jeffwalker7185 did you turn in to a wearwolf 🐺🌕
I have an unanswered question about the sequel
Why?
For the full moon question, there's often referred to as the 'three nights of the full moon", when the moon is full enough to the naked eye as to appear to be full, though it's only truly full on obviously the middle night. This is referenced in other media (Jim Butcher's Dresden Files Book "Full Moon" comes to mind), and allows the curse/magic/science to activate when there's /enough/ moonlight as opposed to a specific astrological event.
In folklore a person doesn’t even change into a werewolf during a full moon 🌕
They did that on Buffy. Oz would change for three nights a month.
can't recall the book's title, and don't want to go home to get my copy of it, but said tome also mentions the three nights of the "full" moon.
[minutes later] i looked it up: _The Werewolf's Guide to Life: A Manual for the Newly Bitten_ by Ritch Duncan and Bob Powers.
very informative and entertaining. one illustration made me a little sad, namely, the 'wolf sitting on the porch seemingly wishing (to me) his transformation were over.
In the BBC audio drama 'Nigel' (the first werewolf) is the brother of the chess player/joke teller (now named George Hackett).
👍✌️
Another top vid. The lore for a werewolf only being able to be killed by someone they love I think comes from the Wolfman so David was referencing that, a very John Landis thing to do!
Their is a BBC radio play of AAWIL on yt that had a lot of the original cast return to reprise their roles, it is based on the original script and expands the story. It is worth a listen to and has some extra scenes including at the start the werewolf escaping from the asylum, Jack going to limbo and the older victims are just dust so no longer have a form and one of the villagers going to London to help stop David.
ua-cam.com/video/XQapRY8Uzvg/v-deo.htmlsi=NRX0sjemQpbB2hcF
OMG how have I never heard of this?. Going to listen now!
True. It’s very informative.
Glad u liked it I only discovered it last year and found it a good edition to the lore their are also prequel books but I haven't read them but heard they are good about the origins of the werewolves.
If this is true then you Sir are the definition of the word "hero."
My question is David waking up in the zoo?
1.Why would a supernatural nocturnal creature who only gets to feed a few nights a month fall asleep before sunrise?
2. If the werewolf wasnt found while it was sleeping, did ( police/ animal control)have to tranquilize it?
3.The average zoo knows how many animals they have of every type.First thing they would have done when " whoever" showed up with some strange creature is take a count of their wolves, and that new animal even if taken would be separated from the others.
4. How did trained zoologist not notice the werewolf wasnt a regular wolf?The wolfs in the pen and the werewolf looked vastly different, the werewolf was huge.
4. Also did the police/ animal control and the zoologist not notice the creature was covered by the blood and gore of the 6 people it had killed that night.Sub- question: How was David not covered in blood when he woke up?If they washed werewolf that means they noticed the blood, and in that case they definitely wouldn't have put him with the other wolfs, and they would have alerted the police especially once the news reported on all the people found half eaten that morning.
Also something to think about: From the time David woke up in the zoo until the end of the movie....David was walking around with a stomach full of human remains😊
The people of the village, in your theories, love their fellow villager enough to keep his werewolf secret and risk lives every month... So, why would you then assume none of them loved him enough to kill him?
I'm glad you mentioned the UK spot from "The Muppet Show"!
Love this movie. Having watched it recently, I have a theory. It seems that the Curse itself has a sentience and a will of its own. Aside from the obvious points (turning its host into a bloodthirsty monster on the full moon, and dooming the monsters victims to eternal undead limbo), it has the ability to manipulate the people around it in order to spread and maximize the death and chaos it can cause.
Example 1: When the villagers came to save David by killing the original werewolf, why didn't they just shoot David on the spot, since they knew what he would become later? Why let him go? It seems that the Curse may have some ability to instill a sense of sympathy in those who are aware of it, so that it may continue to spread.
Example 2: The day before his 1st transformation, David has no appetite (actually, David hasn't really had much appetite since he woke from his coma). He also leaves the main apartment entrance open as well as the door to the flat open as well. The Curse wants David to not eat anything, so that the Wolf will be ravenous and devour more people. It also made David forget to close the doors to the flat, so that the Wolf would be able to leave without drawing attention to itself.
Example 3: David tries to get himself arrested and thrown in jail when he realized that he killed six people as the Wolf. Under normal circumstances, the officer probably would have arrested him, but the Curse changed the officer's mind, knowing that being locked up would lead to David being killed when transformed.
Example 4: During the Piccadilly Circus Massacre, it seems like either everyone's car brakes stopped working or people forgot how to use their brakes. Was it simply mass hysteria in effect or was it the Curse manipulating people's minds, so that it could inflict more death and chaos?
I think that this aspect of the Curse only applies to living people, which is why Jack was able to 'lure' David into the theatre and keep him there until the moon rose, knowing that he would transform into the Wolf and draw the attention of the local authorities.
I love watching all the werewolf movies that I have seen
I love this movie...thanks for the background info!!!
I like to play the howl from a bluetooth speaker around Halloween when people are nearby, it's a haunting sound and I like to imagine that the older people who hear it immediately run to the pub, although given where I live they were probably heading there anyway.
I think it would make a great doorbell
"Corgis." "Who's going to look after his corgis now?"
I love how many times we see Rik Mayall in question #1. LOL The People's Poet!
Also why didn't Jack's family ever go to London to be with their seriously injured son? Any other parent would fly around the world to get to their child who was badly injured if it was possible!!
You mean David's family?
Aside from the name confusion you're quite correct. In a month, nobody from his family has come to be with him? Nor, has there been any effort to have him transported back to the United States? You would think that, as his actual physical injuries only seemed to be flesh wounds and shock (nobody seemed too perplexed or concerned that he was in coma for three weeks), why wasn't he put on a plane back to New York?
This is FREAKIN' AWESOME!!!!! I love this movie and these points are spot on. Much respect!
Were-wooof!
I love how you pronounce werewolf. Never stop doing that.
QUESTION 11! ☝🏽 I’m a born ‘n bred Londoner. When watching AWIL, I always wanted to know - How does a giant hulking hell beast manage to get from Earl’s Court, to Tottenham Court Road, to Tower Bridge, to Regents Park without being seen? 😆
And what about the climax? Piccadilly Circus to Clink street in less than a minute?!
I know that alley! Used to work the Starbucks their back in Uni’
Movie magic!
I've seen London loads of undersireables I might have even seen a wearwolf though obviously I'm still alive to tell the tale ..or maybe I'm not alive maybe I'm one of the undead with Jack David Alf Ted and Joseph ..🐺🌕
One other possible link to the lycanfacists in the dream sequence is a historical event. In the last days of the European Front of WW2 there was a combat division of the SS that was sent out to both stem the tide of Soviet troops approaching Berlin and, more significant for this, hunt down any remaining Jews, Roma etc. The division was named the Werewolves.
On a semi related note, is it just me or does it strike anyone else as ironic that the werewolves in that dream sequence are seen using Uzi SMGs, a weapon of Israeli manufacture?
Most interesting comment of the thread right here.
Nothing like that scene is accidental, it's deliberate, and trying to tell you something.
Yeah, I was just commenting on the same scene about the Muppets watching 'punch and judy' American puppets watching an iconic British puppet show.. So much going on in one scene ,nothing is by accident👍
Apparently has nothing to do with hunting down Jews. Although I would like to see evidence of the plan if it exists. Also interesting how the Nazis adopted a number of werewolf type themes.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werwolf
It was mentioned by Julie Delpy and Tom Everett Scott when they were doing the press tour that Seriphine was David and Alex's daughter.
The ghost were now just being ignored to the point they just gave up! omg your hysterical 🤣
The werewolf was in the pub, he hadn’t changed yet. The boys entered there before dark.
And the wearwolf climbed out of the toilet window before changing
As with every great lore, the back story drives you to want to know more, and so it is with AAWIL. We are never told where the original werewolf comes from, or how long it's been since it settled in East Proctor, but the east with which the town folks hunker down to spend the night in the relative safety of the Slaughtered Lamb, and the amount of soot on the wall, tells of a very long tradition. I didn't know about the DVD-only back story that Claude mentioned because the movie wasn't worth my money tbh, but this hints that the original werewolf came from elsewhere than England. I know there were migrations into England over centuries, so that could account for it, and if one wants to stretch the idea a little bit, you could always tie La Bete du Gevaudan, to werewolves and have that event mark the last of the werewolves in France, though I am not sure if Claude mentions that the original came from France, just that they moved to England. The way you tell it, it sounds like it may have been a fairly recent affair, but I can't imagine it would have happened any time after the Second World War, in fact, I can't imagine it happening any time after the 17 or 18th century. This is where I find the whole lore fascinatingl understanding where it may have come from and what the nature of this curse is exactly; on the one hand you could take David's conversations with the (un)-dead at face value and treat them as if they really are happening, or you could take them as hallucinations born of his trauma. In the first case, that would mean the curse is supernatural, which then might tie it to the notion of god and the devil... OR in the second proposition, the curse is a freak of nature, crazy and wild, but still very-much earth-bound. Werewolves have always been tied to the supernatural however, which means Jack and the other undead know what lies beyond death as Jack has said.
One question that always bothered is why David didn't just punch the police officer when he was trying to get arrested after his first transformation? He made insults about the Queen, but if he truly wanted to get locked up all he had to do was throw a punch or push the officer. I would like to think that'd warrant a night in a holding cell. And imagine the cool twist the story would have taken if David was seen transforming by an entire police precinct while locked up in a cell with other people?
lol
These Americans.
In the UK a jail cell is situated in the basement and is one small room. People do not share cells. But officers do check on people every now and again.
When David changes in the cinema the guy in the anorak looking at him is the first werewolf that bit David on the moor's.....I absolutely love this movie 👍
Yikes, American Werewolf in Paris looks way worse than I remember it.
3:47 that guy was great in Alien3 too. “That’s Enoof !”
Greatest movie ever!
I live in the Uk and not too far from me are places called exmoor and dartmoor. There is also the legend of the Exmoor beast. People live there but F that, I'm staying in town - the threat is real!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 😞. Love this film, one of my favourites.
You missed an opportunity to mention that Drop Dead Fred was in the pub at the beginning
RIP Rik Mayall
They tell you why they didn't shoot the wolf earlier.... Because the human version of the wolf was a family member of one of the pub townfolk....
Why was David not taken to Hospital somewhere in Yorkshire, like Leeds or York. Even Manchester or Newcastle would be closer than London.
Yeah thats the question i always wondered 🤔
@System-Retro- Plays London is bigger title gives it away and I think London is more known in America than Yorkshire.
Jack: „ I was sent here…“
Wolf there's a "L" in there 😂
Another reason to not hunt the wolf before, speed it has. If it is not distracted with eating, it could sneak up on the men and kill or definitely injure several before it is shot
Hooray for Unanswered Questions
Great video, Josh! Loved the Señor Wences reference
The first lesson learned from the many creature features set in Europe/UK: if you end up in that isolated local pub that has a pentagram/green man imagery/mysterious symbols, don't question it. Pretend you didn't see it, order an ale, and play dumb.
What does the pentagram mean that was on the wall?
Josh, I can tell you why the village people didn't take out the werewolf sooner... if they did, there wouldn't be a movie. 🙂
?The Village People were in the movie?
@2:50, your comment about how the first werewolf was most likely a local resident who everyone knew. (FYI, I always wondered myself why the pub-goers were so frightened when, after they actually went out to help, killing the werewolf wasn't that hard.) If that was the case, why didn't they, as a group, confront him and essentially throw him into the local jail or some other type of confinement on nights of the full moon? If he'd been a werewolf for any length of time, he would almost certainly have figured out his condition and would most likely have gladly agreed so he wouldn't hurt anyone.
Here's another question that ties into that scene. How were the locals able to get to David and Jack so quickly? Not only did they cover the distance Jack and David travelled after leaving the pub, but they seemed to find them quite easily. Yes, they could've come in vehicles and yes, they were locals who knew the area and probably had an idea where the werewolf prowled. But still, it seemed they were able to get organized, get their shotguns and get out to the place in a matter of a few minutes.
Maybe they didn't know who the 1st werewolf was and that's why they were so cold to strangers. If someone came in on a full moon they would have to be suspicious since they know it's not someone in their pub or someone who lives in their hamlet. Maybe the werewolf was someone from another far away city. An American werewolf in Paris is an awful sequel but I like how it explains the first movie in a way. It would certainly explain why they don't know who the werewolf is.
I haven’t seen this in a decade or two lol awesome movie gotta rewatch it soon
Feel the townspeople didn’t kill the original werewolf (Nigel) because it was the physical manifestation of a curse on their village. Like if they had killed it, somehow that would’ve just made things worse for them.
Sticking to the road would provide absolutely no protection. But, it would provide a clear path to safe harbor. If David and Jack had kept to the road, they could’ve conceivably run back down that road to the Slaughtered Lamb, when they first heard the creature howling. It’s not a lock, but it would’ve given them better odds than getting lost on the moors.
David could see the dead because his perceptions were altered, as a direct result of his lycanthropy. Even in his human form, that curse was still in full effect. It’s the same reason why, before the transformation, he was aggressively not hungry and the morning after the transformation he was so amped up.
The moment that David was turned, he had no appetite for regular food. He's dreaming of hunting, killing and eating flesh. I also believe that it was a physical manifestation of his guilt that allowed David to see Jack (who he blamed himself about his death too.....) and the people that he killed. I don't think there's ever been a werewolf movie that depicted lycanthropes to be able to see into the spirit realm simply because they're supernatural creatures.
My 2 favorite scenes in this movie are the moor and London Underground attack since the werewolf doesn’t show up until the victims are scared and distracted
Thank you for answering the question about the disintegration rate. That one was something that came up recently in my head. :-)
‘Big wide open kill floor’ - 😅😅😅. Perfect description!
The moors in England are the equivalent of the swamps in Louisiana. They can be like quicksand. I remember that episode of the muppet show.
I always thought that the wolf transformation was based on the phase of the Moon, Half Moon Half Werewolf, Full Moon Full Werewolf?
I don't know about in mythology, but I think in Werewolf: the Apocalypse roleplaying game there's a link between the five forms and the moon phases. Whether you're born a wolf, human or metis (half and half) depends on your parentage. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werewolf:_The_Apocalypse
@nerdygoth6905 correct - Ahrouns are the angry, full moon born ones. Metis are the deformed ones born to werewolf/werewolf parents
_MAD_ dealt with this: during a lunar eclipse, a man transformed into a wolf only halfway.
@@deboralee1623 Cool
I think the better question for the first one should have been, 'Why did the townspeople send Jack and David out of the tavern in the first place?' It makes no sense that they would send them out and then go save them. They could have swallowed their pride and fear and just ignored them for Jack's pentagram inquiry or put up somewhere for the night.
Surely the biggest question has to be why did you include two questions about the god awful "in Paris"? Great video despite that.
Great video. I've subbed and began binge watching othere. As for question 1: I always assumed they have killed the wolf many times, but like David, he bites someone and there's a new one always to take its place.
And then for question 2: Clearly the locals know something we don't. If they say stay on the road then chances are they already figured out that the wolf doesn't attack travelers on the road.
It's not suprising that they used a clip from the Muppet show since the voice and performer of Miss Piggy (Frank Oz) played the man from the US embassy.
Those cops DID have silver bullets.. except they weren't cops... they were Torchwood agents ;)
The original Werewolf was Brian Glovers brother- The bald bloke. And and already stated below,,he escaped from the Asylum.
Just my thoughts but ....
1: Maybe they had to wait until the beast is eating and/or occupied to get a shot? It's not like they want to sacrifice themselves and it IS on open ground (unlike the ending when it's trapped in an alley)!
2: Maybe they were told to stick to the moors because it would be easier to find them when they're attacked? Better than trying to find them on open land? I think the villagers had decided to use the Americans as bait at this time.
3: Creature attacking a human victim? The Muppet Show being American and Punch and Judy (which is what's going on in the background) being British? As it's his dream (same as the werewolf Nazis) then it could be both of them combined.
4: What you said
5: I think this one is just an oversight and a way to get the movie moving along. Or, again, what you said
6: Maybe because there's a link with the killings the werewolf does no matter who the wolf is ? All the victims he can see because he killed them and Jack because he was close to him? What if the previous man to become the wolf and had killed David's mother? Maybe David would see her not because he killed her but because a wolf in his past line had? Could be due to the wolf blood being in them upon death? Or .... what you said lol
7: Maybe it's a belief that's past down through the bloodline like word of mouth usually does that, like most other beliefs, are usually wrong and/or get exaggerated? Also, that would make it a lot easier to take down David, and potentially werewolves before him, if they have that belief in the blood as the wolf itself would think it and drop its guard. Either way, your theory still fits
8: Not sure what the question is
9: That's a question for a different, and inferior, film
10: 10 is 9? And again ....... Different and inferior film
The generally accepted belief is that the nights AROUND the full moon will also cause the transformation to occur. On the other days if you look up in the night sky it would be hard to tell that it wasn't a full moon.
Stay on the road = not get lost.
You're missing the big reason that particular part of the Muppet show is in his dream, it's what is happening in the background, the fight with the monster.
Exellent analysis video!
It wouldn't surprise me if David woke up and the TV was on with the Muppets.
Agree with the ending. The way Landis shot it, it looks as if he lunges to the side of her. That's the only way he was open to being shot without shooting her too.
"... every once in a blue moon."
Bah-dum-dum-tsss!
(0:40-0:41)
The biggest question is, how on Earth are you pronouncing Jennie Agutter’s name so wrong? 🤣🤣
The voices of Miss Piggy and Kermit....as well as Yoda.....are performed by Frank OZ....who has a cameo in this film as the Doctor with the dark hair and odd voice.
I can’t believe you didn’t say spoiler alert…..I just rented this VHS from Blockbuster
lol. be kind…rewind!
the muppet scene during the dream sequence could be that David saw the clip at some point before the movie began. And incorporated it with his home life because his little bother sister were watching it. The whole dream within a dream concept was very cool.
Landis's fake movie See You Next Wednesdsay makes an appearance only this time as a porn movie movie.
Love the Gwar shirt. Seen them about 6 times over the years. \m/
"Encyclopedia of Britannica" Josh? Did you bust out your CD ROM to search for that fact 🤣 Great vid, loved the answers!
Regarding the scene in the Kesslers House and the muppet show on TV only being shown in the UK... This was filmed in the UK with mostly UK actors and both David's parents were British actors, Gordon Stern (who was also the doctor in Highlander) and Paula Jacobs.
The werewolf Nazi dreams could have also been referencing the Nazi holdouts who pestered the Allies for some time after World War II ended in Europe, the Werewolf Brigade.
I think they told them to stick to the road so for jack and David's best chance of leaving the immediate area in the best time and they would not be technically lost and wondering around in unintentional circles
In folklore, the moon was not mentioned. It was not until Frankenstein V Wolfman that the moon is involved. Silver bullets was also a hollywood invention.
Question 2 - Why stick to rhe road and not The Moors? My suggestion is that if they stuck to the road, the locals would be able to easily locate the corpses of the americans if they were unfortunate enough to get attacked. Follow the road to confirm their safety...if they arent on the road, rhey made it. If they wander the field, they could be rotting and missing in the middle of nowhere.
Alfred Hitchcock had a famous excuse for situations in his films that didn't make sense (and there are more than a few,) a MacGuffin. The writer Raymond Chandler is also notorious for this :))
For the question of David's transformation, when he wakes up Dr. Hirsch tells David he's been in the hospital for 3 weeks, so the once a month full moon stands.
The question was in reference to David's two back to back transformations (one in Nurse Prices home, the other in the movie theatre)
@@ErmacFellwalker ah, gotcha, I missed that.
Since this movie was released, I've been asking Question One this whole time. Or... why didn't they blast David after he was bitten? No one knew they were out there. It would have been easier to cover up than the fact a werewolf had been prowling around for years...
I have such a soft spot for Griffin Dunne ❤
Condolences to his family for the murder of his sister, Dominique.
They didn’t kill the werewolf until they had potential bait. They tracked the Americans and were able to finally catch the beast. That’s my answer 😀
That's an interesting theory.
I've never understood the mentality of the townsfolk sending them off to potentially being killed by the initial wolf. Like if your little village has this horrible wolf secret, wouldn't you keep any random stragglers from going out on a full moon? Asking about the pentagram shouldn't have resulted in expulsion from the tavern!
Yes. I just asked that question. And the other question is why didn't they kill David when they realized he was bitten but alive? I'm sure these villagers could have put two and two together that nobody, not even their families back in the US, knew where they were. They could have stopped the bloodline and buried the evidence. Still...one of my favorite movies and always will be!
Terrific film breakdown. LOVE this movie!!!
I don’t count part 2 as part of the original film’s continuity. It’s not a good movie.
Don't try to explain the dream sequence. If you have ever been on heavy medications, you know that the dreams and thoughts you have might not have any basis in reality or relevancy to your life.
We also know from the phone booth scene, that David believes he needs to take his own life, but can't do it himself.
What I think happened I think David sees Jack because they were there when they both know Jack died in front of his friends, so maybe that’s why I seen it😮
16:49 they decay some maybe they stop being visible idk
Extra points for the Oderus Urungus shirt!!! R.I.P. Dave!!
#1 doesn’t hold up. Why not just lock “Nigel” up during full moons if they knew ?
Maybe they did that once before and it didn't work so well. Or it's possible they did lock him up but all the dead people from the curse drove Nigel crazy and that explains why he was crazy and in the asylum in the first place.
I can answer the first. It’s likely the only way to corner the beast is during an attack.
The werewolf scene could be a reference to Himmler’s Operation Werwolf to attack Allied Forces.