Director John Landis (opens in a new tab)‘ horror classic An American Werewolf in London (opens in a new tab) was, unusually for the time, released simultaneously in North American and British cinemas. The film was shot in the UK with a largely local cast and crew thanks to the Eady Levy (opens in a new tab), which provided funding for British productions based on taxed box-office receipts. The levy attracted a number of foreign producers and directors including Stanley Kubrick (opens in a new tab), Sidney Lumet (opens in a new tab) and John Huston (opens in a new tab). The levy lasted for almost thirty years before being wound-up in 1985.

It was this incentive that saw Landis and his producing partners (including frequent collaborator George Folsey Jr. (opens in a new tab)) move over here for the duration of filming, and although the two lead actors (David Naughton (opens in a new tab) and Griffin Dunne (opens in a new tab)) are American, the majority of the rest of the cast are British, including the gorgeous Jenny Agutter (opens in a new tab). The film makes excellent use of several London locations, with a memorable sequence on the Underground, plus the climactic scenes shot in and around Piccadilly Circus. There is an excellent article (opens in a new tab) on the Guardian website that was written by Landis in 2009 in which he recalls his memories of shooting the film.

Although AWIL was released on the same day in each country, the American and British posters couldn’t be any more different. The USA one sheet (opens in a new tab) features an enigmatic shot of the two lead actors glancing over their shoulders with a look of concern whist a full moon shines above them. There’s not even a glimpse of the titular creature, whereas this UK quad has no qualms about featuring a large shot taken from the famous transformation scene. It also features the bizarre inclusion of a black and white image of a nude Naughton confronting an old lady after waking up in London Zoo.

Fans of the film would be wise to pick up the 2009 blu-ray release as it features a must-watch documentary on the film called Beware the Moon: Remembering ‘An American Werewolf in London’ (opens in a new tab)that was conceived and filmed by life-long AWIL devotee Paul Davis (opens in a new tab). It features the majority of the surviving cast and crew and has clearly been put together by someone who cares about the film deeply.