Some horror movies that faced practical limitations at the time of their release are still admired and revered for what they accomplished, despite those setbacks. By today’s standards, the camera movements and direction of early horror movies feel entirely rudimentary, with it not being until the invention of the Steadicam, which finally allowed smooth motion and fewer limitations for a movie’s crew, that the genre evolved. Additionally, while we might all remember the look of some of the earliest on-screen monsters, it’s hard to say that Boris Karloff’s Mummy or Lon Chaney Jr.’s Wolf Man are immediately unsettling based on appearance alone.
In the ’70s, though, there was a push from genre directors to take visceral terror to new heights. Movies like Dawn of the Dead, Suspiria, and Alien are standout examples of the artistry that could be accomplished in cinema, even if this work was largely overlooked due to the association with horror. In the ’80s, though, a few standout movies took special effects artistry so far that they changed the industry forever.
In 1981, An American Werewolf in London was released and changed Hollywood permanently. Namely, special effects artist Rick Baker crafted the makeup for the movie, including an iconic scene in which David Naughton’s character goes through an agonizing transformation into a wolf, one body part at a time. Baker’s talents couldn’t go unnoticed, and he won the first Oscar for Best Makeup. An American Werewolf in London is getting a new 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release, which hits shelves on Oct. 6.
In addition to the movie being notable for its special effects, it’s also a benchmark for horror comedies. While there are plenty of horror movies that are so absurd or poorly made that you can’t help but laugh at them, this movie came from director John Landis, who had scored big hits with National Lampoon’s Animal House and The Blues Brothers. An American Werewolf in London was a huge hit as soon as it was released, though it would be 16 years before earning the sequel An American Werewolf in Paris, which was a significant disappointment.
Special features on the upcoming 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release include:
- 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM
- DOLBY VISION/HDR PRESENTATION OF THE FILM
- DOLBY ATMOS AUDIO TRACK
- Audio Commentary by cast members David Naughton and Griffin Dune
- Beware the Moon
- I Walked with a Werewolf
- Making An American Werewolf in London
- An Interview with John Landis
- Makeup Artist Rick Baker on An American Werewolf in London
- Casting of the Hand
- Outtakes
- Storyboards
- Photograph Montage
- Monster by Moonlight Hosted by John Landis
In the movie, Naughton and Dunne play American backpackers roaming the countryside and, despite warnings, find themselves wandering desolate paths and are attacked. Dunne’s character dies, while Naughton’s learns he’s become a werewolf who is terrorizing the streets of London during the full moon.
The new release of An American Werewolf in London will be available both as a SteelBook release and as a standard 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray.
