MovieChat Forums > An American Werewolf in London (1981) Discussion > Plot implausibilities

Plot implausibilities

posted 8 years ago by tuffysmom
26 replies | jump to latest

While I really enjoy this movie, I find the plot littered with implausibilities:

1) The guys decide to backpack through the moors, but without any prior planning of where they're going to stay the night, etc -- just blindly wandering.

2) As previously mentioned, Griffin Dunne's strange rate of corpse deterioration -- looking freshly-killed after 3 weeks, and then horribly decomposed just 2 days later.

3) After the initial horrific attack, no one from David Naughton's family comes to England to care for him? They must be rich enough to have a nice house, send him to NYU, and finance his trip, so they could afford a plane ticket.

4) Jenny Agutter lets David stay at her place when she finds he doesn't have any other place to stay in England. Why would he be staying anyway, rather than flying back home?

[–] jazzmox 8 years ago

I agree with 1). Never understood why they left the safety of the pub. Who wants to walk in the cold in the dark without a destination? They had no idea where to go and seemingly no camping gear. The locals seemed a bit odd but didn't seem to pose any physical threat.
I know they were looking for an inn but then just walk around the small town, no need to walk into the wilderness without purpose.

2) possible Jack was not in limbo before then

3) doesn't seem important.

4) I think he was still under observation until they told him he can go back to the USA

[–] jangoq 8 years ago

If it's not important then why bother even mentioning the family? They were referenced several times and he even called home and talked to his sister. Most people would have gone out there or at least called him at the hospital. If they were financially able that is.
The family was mentioned too much for them not to show up sooner or later.

Also, David was released from the hospital, he wasn't under observation.

[–] stpbag 8 years ago

Plus, dude turned into a wolf. I couldn't get past that nonsense

[–] lynnrnsd 8 years ago

Exactly. Kinda funny to have a thread about implausible things in a movie about werewolves.

[–] drbgoodblues-11682 8 years ago

C'mon, buddy! #4 has a very simple explanation... He stayed for the high quality poontang!

[–] TheAyatollah 8 years ago

That's just what I was about to say, the answer to 4 is obvious. If she asked me to stay at her place I'd call mom and dad and tell them I was going to stay in London awhile.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24MZcKtps1w

[–] re17 8 years ago

Haha, this!! She obviously wanted the C*!K, so she kept him under "observation".

[–] stones78 8 years ago

she's a skank.

[–] legnadibrom (6233) 5 years ago

she had slept with 7 men,
hardly a skank

[–] 8 years ago

[deleted]

[–] LibHater (99) 7 years ago

1) You never heard of backpackers ?

[–] Costumer (1822) 5 years ago

Old post, but ...
As to 1, kids do that sort of thing all the time. My two younger brothers went to Europe in their early twenties (that was around 35 years ago). They wondered from place to place. Found Hostels when they needed them and camped out when they didn't. They started in France and the only goal, to happen sometime on the trip, was to go to Lindini in Sicily where our family is from. So this didn't surprise me at all.

[–] Moonglum9 (11275) 5 years ago

Times sure have changed. Nowadays you just kept kidnapped at European hostels and tortured by rich thrill seekers.

[–] Ken12602 (498) 5 years ago

And yet turning into a werewolf is so plausible

[–] Costumer (1822) 5 years ago

One of the marks of good fiction, especially fantastic fiction such as SF, Fantasy, Horror, is that as much of the world as possible is normal. So, the "normal" aspects of the world should be as real as possible. In this one the only abnormal things are werewolves and victims in limbo. Given that David, Jack and Alex's actions should be normal and not surprising except where they are interacting with werewolves and limbo ghosts.

Now, as I mentioned above, I don't have a problem with the boys wandering over the moors. Jack's rate of decomposition is not easily explainable except for dramatic license.

David's family not coming could be for any number of reasons (other than for dramatic needs of the film). I would guess they are not rich. David is probably on a scholarship. He and Jack probably scraped together the funds and probably found a cheap flight. Which is why they are backpacking and looking for cheap lodging.

Alex taking David in is odd; she doesn't know him. But given the culture at the time a young man being asked to stay in the hospital with a beautiful woman and taking her up on that is quite believable.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

"One of the marks of good fiction, especially fantastic fiction such as SF, Fantasy, Horror, is that as much of the world as possible is normal. So, the "normal" aspects of the world should be as real as possible. In this one the only abnormal things are werewolves and victims in limbo. Given that David, Jack and Alex's actions should be normal and not surprising except where they are interacting with werewolves and limbo ghosts."

Exactly. A story involving the supernatural doesn't give a writer an excuse to ignore logic and consistency.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

1) yes, it's the middle of a cold unpleasant night and they leave a nice warm place because the people are rude and odd? I think I would have put up with them.

2) guess you don't decay at a steady rate in the afterlife?

3) David wasn't actually hurt too too seriously, though his friend was killed. Maybe his parents are career obsessed and decided it wasn't necessary.

4) Possibly he was only staying for a couple of days, while he finished recuperating, before taking the long flight home. I don't think they ever specify how long he planned on staying with the nurse. Also, they must have really hit it off for her to invite him to stay like that. She was another reason for him to stay in London a little longer.

[–] TroyB (164) 3 years ago

If a woman feels attracted and also desired by a man, after spending a few days talking to him, they make up their minds that they know him good enough to sleep with. This is quite a common practice even today.

[–] millsey72 (10283) 2 years ago

Yup. The nurse who took care of me in the hospital during Covid invited me back to her place to live as soon as I felt better and tested negative