Similar to other films on this list, this film does actually contain several literal 'nightmares' but also plays on those fears of being in an alien environment. John Landis' film plays on the fears of every tourist and backpacker as we initially follow David and Jack, two American's, as they trek across the Yorkshire Moors. After being rejected from the pub , The Slaughtered Lamb, they are attacked by a wolf after they wander onto the moor. Before David falls into a coma, however, he sees the bloody corpse of Jack and a bullet ridden naked man. From here, David is plagued by nightmares which include running naked through forests, tearing deers apart with his teeth and those infamous Nazi werewolves (in one of the best 'double shocks' in cinema). The film is laced with both black comedy (Jack's retort 'have you ever talked to a corpse? It's boring!') to broader laughs with Landis' recurring gag in the porn film 'See You Next Wednesday'. It is the nightmare elements which permeate however. David, after falling for Jenny Agutter's nurse, desperately doesn't want to hurt her but knows he will, when the moon rises... This is a brilliantly made film with great British locales but it is the sadness in the film which is most striking. Jack is desperate to 'die' properly and David simply wants to say 'I love you' one more time to his family. Yes, there is a lot of comedy in the film, but it is the nightmares, both real and imagined, which make this a lasting classic.
