10 examples of police (and related issues) in horror/thriller movies
By Wade Wainio
9. An American Werewolf in London (1981)
Another odd candidate for this list, John Landis’ werewolf-heavy An American Werewolf in London won’t strike most people as a police investigation movie, as police Inspector Villiers (Don McKillop) seems like a relatively minor character. Still, if you take a step back and think about it, the police investigation angle is interesting, even if somewhat unexplored here. Imagine if you were a Detective-type in a case like this. Do you think you could fit all the pieces together and finally conclude, “Oh my gosh, it’s a werewolf!” It seems like an outside chance, at best.
To make this story even more puzzling (from an investigatory perspective), there’s hardly a shadowy figure who looks suspicious and leaves behind tons of human evidence. All you’d have are signs of truly beastly animal attacks, with maybe light hints of human touch. It’s not like the genuine suspect, David Kessler (David Naughton) is in complete control of his lycanthropic crimes, either. He’s by no means a natural criminal. In fact, he’s basically an unassuming nice guy, and not to put up some Ted Bundy-esque mask.
What we have here is a classic Jekyll & Hyde scenario, where he doesn’t quite remember his actions the next morning. His life soon becomes wreckage when he realizes he’s no better than a notorious serial killer, after Jack (Griffin Dunne), his werewolf-slain pal and paranormal tour guide, tell him all about his curse. So, folks, exercise caution if you ever decide to check out the
prehistoric landmarks of the North York Moors. You might end up as “a walking meatloaf,” or a werewolf, or maybe something else “not of this world.” Maybe go to a carnival instead (though be on the lookout for zombie carnival workers and murderous Ferris wheels).