Saturday, April 3, 2021

An American Werewolf in Paris, A Werewolf and a Euro-Babe

Okay, this one isn't as famous as "An American Werewolf in London," but is just as good.  The musical score may be heavier and there is no gratuitous shower scene with Jenny Agutter, but the 'Paris' version has a babe-werewolf (Euro-Babe-werewolf, actually) and some outstanding action and massacre scenes. Today we look at 1997's "An American Werewolf in Paris," directed by Anthony Waller.  I admit...this one is corny and sometimes syrupy sweet...but the kills and werewolves are nice. 

Three American twenty-somethings sneak into the Eiffel Tower just after closing. Andy (Tom Everett Scott) seeks to bungy jump off it.  The blokes are interrupted as a Euro-Babe, Serafine (Julie Delpy) also sneaks in to commit suicide. Andy takes one look at the beauty and is in love. She jumps and so does Andy. Andy saves her life and now a twisted love story begins. After Serafine runs off, Andy is infatuated and manages to track her down...to a Paris mansion.  She begs him to leave her alone for his own good. She is also seen dressed as a nurse in white, stealing human hearts from a hospital.  Andy won't take no for an answer and draws the attention of head-werewolf, Claude (Pierre Cosso).

Claude lures the three Americans to a party with the promise that Serafine will be there.  It's a trap and the guests are lured there so the werewolves can feed on them. A massacre scene ensues, one of Andy's buddies is torn to shreds and Andy is bitten. Now Andy is one of them and Serafine saves him from Claude. The two fall in love and will end up naked in bed while the mangled corpse of Serafine's mom watches with disgust. Serafine wants to save Andy and tells him how that can be done.  The werewolves, meanwhile, plan world conquest. Now Andy puts all his efforts to saving Serafine from a lifetime of lycanthropy and Serafine tries to protect Andy from the werewolf horde that seeks to eat him.

The massacre scenes are quite good and Serafine is a terrific Euro-Babe.  Andy's kills, which include Julie Bowen as an American slut, are terrific as they come back as the undead to convince Andy to kill himself.  Is the new world order of werewolves a good metaphor for what has happened to this planet over the past few decades?  Is Serafine's attraction to Andy a slight against wimpy French men? Is a world run by werewolves preferable than what we have now? It is so nice to see a movie about a Euro-Babe werewolf without an underlying theme of PMS.  For a great time and an excuse to tell your buddies you enjoyed a French film...see "An American Werewolf in Paris." 



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