An American Werewolf in London
1981; written and directed by John Landis

John: Werewolves are my favorite horror monsters and this is my favorite horror movie of all time. The way John Landis is able to jump back and forth between comedy and horror is amazing. The werewolf transformation still holds up to this day and shows why makeup will beat CGI 9 times out of 10. A 15 years too late sequel ruined everything that made the original great with lame comedy and horrible CGI monsters.

Ed: Perfect blend of humor and horror. His dead victims talking to him in the porn theater is funny and disturbing all at the same time. Just doesn’t get better than this.

Brandi: I finally watched this film for the first time because it had been voted onto the list, and was very impressed. The level of character development is well above what is found in most horror films. The blending of horror and comedy is sort of jarring, but in an oddly perfect way, and one that works because John Landis was obviously determined to tell this story in the exact way that he wanted to. The famous transformation scene doesn’t come until an hour into a 97 minute film; I can imagine that a remake would get it in at minute 15. Plus, in a rare feat for a horror film, we’re treated to a sex scene that is actually sexy! Truly a little something for everyone here.

Team Rankings:
John – #1
Ed – #1
Ben – #13
Jeremy – #14