Touchstone and Beyond: "An American Werewolf in Paris"
Marquee Attraction: An American Werewolf in Paris
Release Date: December 25, 1997
Budget: $25 million
Domestic Box Office Gross: $26,570,463
Plot Synopsis
Andy is on vacation in Europe with his friends Brad and Chris. In Paris, the trio attempt to bungee jump off the Eiffel Tower late at night, when Andy meets Serafine who is about to leap to her death from the famed French landmark. Thinking quickly, Andy leaps, and saves Seraphine, only to see her disappear.
As a young man who is smitten by his French rescue, Andy forces his friends to search for the woman, only to find her and be rebuffed in his advances. The three friends then meet Claude, a friend of Serafine’s, and they are invited to a party.
Excited to be at a party, and hopeful of meeting Serafine again, the joy of the celebration soon ends as Claude and his friends reveal this is not a regular party. Claude and his friends are werewolves, and Andy is attacked and bitten. The American tourist has no idea what he has got himself into.
Infected with the werewolf plague, and with Serafine’s help, Andy realizes that he needs to kill the werewolf that infected him, but he believes it was Serafine, and Andy doesn’t have the heart to kill her.
As the police close in on Andy, who is also wanted for murder, the young American must make a choice, will he sacrifice himself to stop Claude spreading the werewolf virus? Could he kill Serafine to give himself a normal life again?
Standing Ovation
Tom Everett Scott is incredible. I loved him in That Thing You Do! and I will always support this guy in any film. He is one of the best parts of this movie.
Time for the Hook
Movies that need multiple writers to create a script are bound for trouble, and the continuity of this story is out of control. There are many moments where the plot does not make sense, and makes you wonder if this is a D- level movie that was made on someone’s camcorder instead of a major film from Disney.
The film suffers from trying to be funny, while also having the werewolf element. It’s not that funny, and it doesn’t do enough gore to land it in the horror genre.
Bit Part Player
After Andy is bit by a werewolf, he meets an American in Paris named Amy. Julie Bowen joins the movie, and while she doesn’t get to do much in the part, Bowen is always memorable, even in a small role like this.
Did You Know?
- The movie earned over 7.5 million its opening weekend.
- Anthony Waller won three Gerardmer Film Festival awards for his work on the film.
- The film’s song, and Pierre Cosso and Tom Everett Scott were nominated for MTV Movie Awards for their work in the film.
- Julie Delpy has reportedly admitted that the only reason she took the role of Serafine was to help pay her rent. Delpy is proud of her performance but disliked her experience working on the film.
- Tom Everett Scott talked about the fun he had making the film. He mentioned in an interview that he had never been to Europe before, and the fact that he got to do so many amazing things, like being on the Eiffel Tower and having the historic site closed for them, was thrilling. He also did many of his own stunts.
- The movie was reportedly in development for six years.
- Supposedly, the film is connected to An American Werewolf in London via Serafine being that her father is really David from the original film.
- The film is set in Paris, but much of it was shot in Luxembourg.
- Tim Burns and Tom Stern had an initial storyline that was very different. Suffice it to say, the short premise that Andy is brought to Paris because the initial creature attack at the start of the film is Andy’s uncle, and that brings him to Paris to find out what happened. This sounds much better than what transpired in the film.
- According to the WGA there were up to 12 writers involved in the script. Not a good sign for sure in movie quality.
- Director Anthony Waller plays the subway metro driver that is killed near the end of the film.
Best Quotable Line
This comes from Andy when he is in the sewers, “Great. Come to Paris and check out les drains." Scott delivers the line perfectly, and it made me laugh. Not much amused me throughout this film.
Bill’s Hot Take
Sometimes, some cult-classic films need to be left alone.
Casting Call
- Tom Everett Scott as Andy
- Julie Delpy as Serafine
- Vince Vieluf as Brad
- Phil Buckman as Chris
- Pierre Cosso as Claude
Production Team:
Directed by Anthony Waller
Produced by Hollywood Pictures / J&M Entertainment / Cometstone Pictures
Written by John Landis / Tim Burns / Tom Stern
My Critical Response
{Snub-Skip this Film, Lifeboat Award-Desperate for Something to Watch, Commuter Comforter-A Perfect Film for Any Device, Jaw Dropper- You Must Watch This Film on a Big Screen, Rosebud Award- This Film is Cinema.}
An American Werewolf in Paris gets my Lifeboat Award. If you are desperate for something to watch, then check this out, but don’t expect to be wowed by the detailed plot.
Coming Soon
Next week, a look back at the 1998 film Firelight. The story of a governess who agrees to bear a child to pay off her debt. What could go wrong?