An American Werewolf in London Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

An American Werewolf in London Blu-ray Movie Review

If an American is bit by a Brit werewolf, does that still make him an American werewolf, or is there some kind of dual citizenship thing going on?

Universal has re-released the cult favorite film 'An American Werewolf in London' to Blu-ray, replacing the 2009 disc with a 'newly restored' 1080p presentation. This release carries over an identical list of bonus features and contains (seemingly) the same DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack; this is a picture-upgrade release only. Read on for more detail.

Changes!

An American Werewolf in London Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

An American Werewolf in London's original Blu-ray release was encoded in VC-1, and Universal has transitioned this re-release to the more modern-standard MPEG-4. The disc is touted as being "newly restored," but what that means beyond the obvious isn't immediately clear; Universal did not see fit to provide a screener or press materials, and the press announcement offers up no more clues. But beyond the under-the-hood stuff is a transfer that more than holds its own and, while perhaps not the prettiest movie on the market, serves the movie well and offers a rather substantial upgrade over the 2009 release. Beyond the rather processed, smudgy opening title sequence where terrain is distinctly absent sharpness, the image tightens up with a nicely revealing level of detail and textural comfort as it wades through a number of places -- a warm, wood-heavy bar; foggy and bleak nighttime exteriors; a relatively bright hospital setting; some dreary daytime city exteriors -- that all present with honest detailing and definition. Image clarity and stability are very good throughout, with clothes, and particularly the guys' down jackets, featuring tangible textures and robust attention to detail. Rick Baker's makeup work is extraordinarily presented as gory sinew, chomped and scratched flesh left dangling on a mauled body, and later green, decaying skin are playgrounds for the format to present it all in its tangible, practical gory glory. Colors are rich and pleasing. Those brightly colored down jackets from the first act are amongst the most prominent, but so too is the nicely established and richly yet neutrally presented shades from later in the film including, again, plenty of bloody gore and green decayed flesh. Black levels hold up well. Various scenes retain a somewhat processed and even noisy appearance, which increases in density when viewing the screen up-close, but at normal viewing distances such rarely amount to anything more than a temporary distraction. Grain is light but generally pleasing and much more balanced and true than the previous 2009 transfer. Overall, this is a quality upgrade from Universal, though certainly not the peak of picture quality. It's too bad a UHD wasn't released alongside.

An American Werewolf in London Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Universal's re-release of An American Werewolf in London carries over the same DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack from the previous 2009 issue, or at least one that's very, very similar to it. The bitrate isn't identical, but it sounds more or less the same when comparing in several key moments. Overall, the track is effective, if not a bit dated and muddled. Dialogue can sometimes sound rather shallow and detached, but it's effectively placed in the center channel and neither prioritization nor intelligibility are ever serious issues. The track makes some fair use of the occasional burst of surround detail or imaged sound placement. Crackling thunder when the boys leave The Slaughtered Lamb rolls around nicely enough. Werewolf growls preceding their encounter shortly thereafter are effectively scattered around the stage. A few public address announcements over a hospital loudspeaker float about off to the side with realistic presence. Heavier rain and thunder later on saturate the stage nicely enough. Musical clarity is fair, whether score or popular tunes, playing with a slight hard edge but well positioned spacing. The track is certainly not a revelation, but it offers a good foundational listen with a few nifty tricks up its sleeve. Note that, for this release, the studio has removed several audio and subtitle options that were available on the old disc.

An American Werewolf in London Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

An American Werewolf in London carries over all of the supplements from the previous release and adds nothing new, easily the most disappointing aspect of this new release. Below is a list of what's included. Please click here for more information. Also note that this set does not included a DVD copy of the film or (inexplicably) a digital copy code.

• 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
• Audio Commentary with Cast Members David Naughton and Griffin Dunne

An American Werewolf in London Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Universal's re-issue of An American Werewolf in London may not contain anything new outside of the video transfer and reworked cover art. The 1080p presentation is quite good, not perfect but a solid upgrade from the older release and certainly a near-revelation that should please longtime fans and newcomers alike. It'll likely prove a bit more divisive than some of the other recent definitive remasters/restorations from Universal and other studios, particularly with not wholly unfounded claims of the appearance of gentle to sometimes moderate noise reduction, but most will agree it is, at bare minimum, a good presentation and easily the best the film has ever looked for home viewing. Recommended.