My 2 Cents on John Carpenter. Because I'm bored.

[deadpunk]

:D

The guy is hands down my favorite film maker of all times. Honestly, if I could only ever watch one movie for the rest of my life (which, oddly, I heard was a new torture scene in Saw IV) I would pick Big Trouble in Little China. No hesitation.

I mean; They Live!, Escape From New York, Prince of Darkness, Halloween, In the Mouth of Madness... Hell, I even loved Vampires. (thats a an argument for another thread :p) There really isn't a single Carpenter film I haven't enjoyed. Okay... Escape from LA was pretty shitty. I don't own it, but I would certainly watch it again.

At any rate, I think one of the greatest reasons I am a horror freak is due, largely in part, from viewing The Thing. :stunned:

The feeling of isolation that Carpenter creates with this movie overwhelms me. He manages to create an almost post-apocalyptic feel with the movie's sense of remoteness. You never get the chance to forgot the characters are alone in an unforgiving environment. Hell, those dudes were fucked before the alien showed up. :lol:

The casting is brilliant. (Wilford Brimley in a horror film? Who knew that would work? But, it totally does.) There's a black dude on roller skates listening to disco. Kurt Russel's character runs around randomly blow torching shit. For an early 80s film, the FX are still passable enough to not distract today's horror fans (which is a kind way of saying they were the shit in the 80s).

Its almost a perfect blend of horror and action (which is the route he should have taken with Vampires, but again, thats another thread :evil:). And by that I mean that both the horror and action scenes have very plausible feels to them. Theres no over-the-top heroic bullshit, which is all to prevalent when these two genres generally meet. :annoyed:

Movies that have cliff hanger endings generally piss me off to no end. But, the ending of The Thing left me oddly satisfied. (The only other cliff hanger ending I can say that about is Fallen with Denzel Washington).

If you haven't been to http://theofficialjohncarpenter.com/ you should check it out. Theres a trailer for a behind the scenes look at The Ward, which is supposed to resonate more with his older works.

Thats all :D

[Danny]

the guy made halloween, which i prefer to nightmare of friday. It seems cliche by todays standards but thats because it sets the clear example of excellence in the genre, from the idea of the final girl, to the "supernatural" natural killer.

-and the music was bitchin' , though i dig the synth's in dawn and most folks i know hate that.

[MoonSylver]

Well said. Love Carpenters stuff. Just everything about it, from the synth heavy soundtracks on. I wish there were other movies that made me feel the way The Thing does, but I've never found another movie that fosters such feelings of isolation, paranoia & doom (in a good way!)

[capncnut]

Escape From LA ain't a bad piece of shit. I absolutely hated the film when it first came out and was only able to watch it once in twelve years. I forced myself to buy the DVD in 2008 (for Carpenter collection purposes) and I've watched it a couple of times since. Actually, it's quite comical.

[bassman]

Carpenter has a few gems and several duds, imo. I get shit for it all the time, but I actually think Halloween is severely over rated.:confused:

The Thing is definitely his grown jewel. Amazing flick. One of the few horror films that I thoroughly enjoy on a regular basis.




I've got plans to see They Live on the big screen in about two weeks.:)

[axlish]

For some reason, folks concentrate on the bad efforts when thinking on John Carpenter. In reality, he has a 7 or 8 to 1 hit to miss ratio. I dislike Ghosts of Mars and Memoirs of an Invisible Man, but all the rest range from worth the watch to classic. He has a much better track record that Romero.

[krakenslayer]

At any rate, I think one of the greatest reasons I am a horror freak is due, largely in part, from viewing The Thing. :stunned:

The feeling of isolation that Carpenter creates with this movie overwhelms me. He manages to create an almost post-apocalyptic feel with the movie's sense of remoteness. You never get the chance to forgot the characters are alone in an unforgiving environment. Hell, those dudes were fucked before the alien showed up. :lol:

The casting is brilliant. (Wilford Brimley in a horror film? Who knew that would work? But, it totally does.) There's a black dude on roller skates listening to disco. Kurt Russel's character runs around randomly blow torching shit. For an early 80s film, the FX are still passable enough to not distract today's horror fans (which is a kind way of saying they were the shit in the 80s).

Its almost a perfect blend of horror and action (which is the route he should have taken with Vampires, but again, thats another thread :evil:). And by that I mean that both the horror and action scenes have very plausible feels to them. Theres no over-the-top heroic bullshit, which is all to prevalent when these two genres generally meet. :annoyed:

Movies that have cliff hanger endings generally piss me off to no end. But, the ending of The Thing left me oddly satisfied. (The only other cliff hanger ending I can say that about is Fallen with Denzel Washington).


Funnily enough, I'm going to see The Thing at the cinema tonight! :D

[capncnut]

Funnily enough, I'm going to see The Thing at the cinema tonight! :D
Oh dude, you'll be blown away! I saw it theatrically a few years ago (double sci-fi horror bill with Aliens) and it's a great experience.

[krakenslayer]

Oh dude, you'll be blown away! I saw it theatrically a few years ago (double sci-fi horror bill with Aliens) and it's a great experience.

Awesome! :elol:

[deadpunk]

Funnily enough, I'm going to see The Thing at the cinema tonight! :D

I'm sooooo jealous. Lemme know how it is! :hyper:

[jded]

He's not my favorite, that spot goes to Cronenberg, but I do enjoy most of Carpenter's films. Halloween is so simple yet very effective. The one scene that get's me every time is towards the end after Laurie Strode has stuck Michael with the clothes hanger. In the background we can see over Lorie's shoulder that he's lying flat on the floor.
I've seen it several times and I know he will rise and sit up, but the timing is so perfect that it fools me. The camera's focus is on Lorie, but your minds eye switches back and forth.
I read something a long time ago by some author that analyzed every aspect of Halloween and John's other films. I did not realize until after, that there are many subtle manipulations used by John to create certain discomforts and unease, specifically in Halloween. Take for example the breakout from the asylum. When Michael show's up at the school we become him as he watches Tommy Doyle, then we shift to the backseat where we the viewer become the voyeur or the prisoner confined with no way out. We are also subjected to heavy breathing as Michael drives away.

DP, what did you think of Assault on Precinct 13?

[deadpunk]

DP, what did you think of Assault on Precinct 13?

I've never seen it, to be honest. I've considered renting it a time or two, but I always wind up picking something 'new'. How is it?

[capncnut]

I've never seen it, to be honest. I've considered renting it a time or two, but I always wind up picking something 'new'. How is it?
Assault is in my top three Carpenter films easy. Hell, it might even be number one. Probably the best seige film ever made. In terms of creepy music and atmosphere, it's ahead of the pack. Just buy it and don't even think about it, you will not be disappointed.

[shootemindehead]

'The Thing', 'Halloween', 'Assualt on Precint 13', 'Prince of Darkness'. 'Escape From New York'.

That's it.

Carpenter has unfortunately chosen to dilute his content and include stupid humor that doesn't work and it's led to a really patchy career.

When he's good, he's great. When he's bad, he's really bad. I nearly asked for my money back after 'Escape from LA'.

'The Thing' though, is not only Carpenter's best film (by a long shot), but one of the truly great horror films ever made.

[Danny]

Assault is in my top three Carpenter films easy. Hell, it might even be number one. Probably the best seige film ever made. In terms of creepy music and atmosphere, it's ahead of the pack. Just buy it and don't even think about it, you will not be disappointed.

word b'yatch. i caught it a few years back on film 4 and its so hard to recommend by explaining it as "a few cops at a precinct hold off gang attacks for a night" it sounds boring but its so good. The acting, the music, its bloody great and its such a simple but unusual premise, i cannot recommend this flick enough.

[MoonSylver]

I see Escape From LA getting a lot of heat...probably deservedly so...it might be Carpenters one of Carpenter's weakest...yet I still love that flick for some reason...It really is almost just a remake of New York, but different, but I still love it. Kinda like my relationship w/ Evil Dead 1 & 2, where they're really kinda the same film, but not. LA ain't a patch on New York, but there's enough new & different stuff to make it worthwhile for me, including the "set pieces". Maybe I'm forgiving just because it was a chance to see Snake Plissken ride again. The ending ALONE made it totally worthy to me.

[acealive1]

ghosts of mars, they live, the thing, both escape films did their job. i was a huge ghosts of mars fan upon its inital release and i still am

[deadpunk]

Assault is in my top three Carpenter films easy. Hell, it might even be number one. Probably the best seige film ever made. In terms of creepy music and atmosphere, it's ahead of the pack. Just buy it and don't even think about it, you will not be disappointed.

Thanks. I'll check it out!

[jded]

Thanks. I'll check it out!

Yes, do so DP. It is not horror at all but a taut and bold effort with that 70's feel that we love so well. Kinda sorta has some of that grit and nastiness akin to The Warriors and definitely reminiscent to Escape from New York when it comes to style.