11 Werewolf Movies That Broke All The Rules
1. An American Werewolf In London (1981)
An American Werewolf In London is the gold standard in terms of werewolf movies, and it often finds itself at the top of articles like this one. The movie was written and directed by John Landis, which isn't a name traditionally associated with horror movies.
Fortunately, An American Werewolf In London isn't all about scaring the audience, and there's plenty of dark humor spread throughout. Of course, you can't talk about An American Werewolf In London and not get into its brilliant practical special effects. The legendary Rick Baker made those effects possible, earning him the first Academy Award for Best Makeup.
The transformation scene is over four and a half minutes long and begins with the afflicted American screaming in pain. The primary focus of his transition from human into beast was painful, which was a relatively new element in the mythos, as most transformations were fairly quick and relatively painless.
The added scope of the dead returning to ask that he kill himself and horrific dreams of Nazi demons killing him and his family definitely broke many of the genre's typical rules. The various added elements mixed with some dark humor elevated the film to classic cult status, arguably making it the best film in the genre.
Watch Next
Quiz: How Well Do You Remember Teen Wolf?
