Pretty Good

Good concept, poorly executed.

Fresh and Exciting

As Good As It Gets

"Full Moon High" is a werewolf horror/comedy that got released in the year 1981, meaning almost simultaneously with two of the greatest classics in the same sub genre, namely "The Howling" and "American Werewolf in London". No wonder practically nobody remembers this film. While certainly not as great as those two, "Full Moon High" nevertheless deserves a little more praise from the genre fans and a little more recognition in general. The film definitely hasn't got the same premise as the other werewolf classics and goes straight for laughs. Tony, a popular American high school student and fanatic football player travels to Romania with his sleazy businessman father. While the latter is talking about the promised land to a couple of prostitutes, Toney receives bad news from a local fortune teller and gets attacked by a red-eyed werewolf at night. He transforms for the first time on the plane back to the States, but nobody notices because hijackers blindfolded everyone on board of the flight. What an oddball sequence that was, actually. Once back at his school and surrounded by his obsessive girlfriend and football buddies, Tony can't resist to bite girls in the bums and decides to disappear. Twenty years later, he returns to his hometown and is mistaken for his own son. "Full Moon High" is, as said already, a straightforward comedy and I'm really not used to seeing that from writer/director Larry Cohen. True, his film always contain social mockery and black comedy (like "Q – The Winged Serpent" and "God Told Me To"), but this really feels like a liberating side project for him. There's too few horror for my liking, for example the transformation sequences are worthless, but I appreciated the film as a relaxing and occasionally very hilarious horror comedy.

In this send-up of horror films, 50's cold war paranoia, Reagan-era America, and high school films, Adam Arkin plays Tony, the star quarterback of Full Moon High in the 1950's. He and his father (Ed McMahon) travel to communist Romania and while he's lost in the streets one night, he is bitten by a werewolf. When he returns stateside, he cannot control his animalistic urges and goes on a killing spree. Frustrated, he flees town. Decades later, the immortal Tony returns to town and re-enrolls in highschool. He still can't control his transformations, and the townspeople, and his friends, realize he's not quite human. It all culminates during the schools big football game.I expected this to be one of those 'so bad it's good' films from the early 80's. But I was surprised that the film was actually, legitimately funny. The cast, including Kenneth Mars as a pervy coach, Roz Kelly as Tony's lusty former flame, Demond Wilson as a bus driver, and Alan Arkin as a oddball doctor, go all out, with hilarious results.While watching this film I was struck by how similar the writing and humor were to 'Family Guy.' 'Full Moon High' has that same anything goes attitude and never takes itself seriously.

I've seen better teenage werewolf movies in my time, this one however, takes the cake. More comedy than horror, "Full Moon High" puts the "c" in cheese-fest. The star quality in this movie is not bad. Just the way it was made just sends in rolling downhill. Adam Arkin plays Tony, an all-American high school football player of the 50's who ends up not aging due to a werewolf bite in Transylvania. The most annoying part of the movie was the violin player. He drove everyone batty! Ed McMahon plays his ultra-conservative father who met his end of his own bullet. Adam's father Alan plays a shrink who seems to be not top of his game. After all these years Tony seems to be very out of place due to the attack, and then he'll get the chance to catch in his state. More laugh than blood shed, this movie is just a start in the 80's, "Teen Wolf" was an improvement from this! 1 out of 5 stars.

Whack!!! I got this movie because Elizabeth Hartman was in it. I was disappointed to find out she was in like two short scenes towards the end. Other than that I was basically hitting the fast forward button the entire time. Some teenager goes on a trip to Romania with his Dad and gets bitten by a wolf and turns into a werewolf if there's a full moon. He kills his father and friends. About 30 years past but he doesn't age a bit and enrolls in a high school. There he meets a shy teacher whom he ends up biting and then has kids with her. This movie sucked and I don't recommend it to anyone. Read War and Peace instead. Only Ms. Hartman did a great job. Check out a very young Bob Saget in this one!!