Official John Carpenter Thread - shart or not

[blainegarrett]

I have not seen all the Carpenter movies, but I really like what I have seen. He seems to have an amazing diversity. One one side he has the realistic horror flicks like Assault on Precinct 13 to boarder line Steven King shit like Village of the Damned. And then there is campy awesomeness like Escape from LA and desolate flicks like The Thing.

A. What do people who are more movie buffs think of him and his work?
B. What do you think he wil do next? A love story?
C. Just how awesome are his soundtracks, huh?


beef. p.s. Don't spoil village of the damned, I am halfway though... but I expect Superman to punt those fucking kids into space.

[Abraham Smashington]

Sorry guy, I fucking hated Village. I put it up there with Ghosts of Mars... *shudder*

But the motherfucker has created some of the best and iconic genre movies of our time: Halloween, Escape from New York, The Thing, THEY LIVE, The Fog, Memoirs of an Invisible Man (Hey Fuck you! I enjoy this flick. It's Jurassic Park guy vs. Lampoon guy!) Big Trouble in Little China, Vampires, In the Mouth of Madness and the list goes on for a bit more...heh The guy at one point was a fucking machine. But his latest attempts have been a tad flat (Ghosts of Mars?) Meh.

As for a love story, he did that. IT was called Starman. And yes, his fucking soundtracks kicked all kinds of synthy ass. He definitely in my top 5 directors of all time, if only because his movies are fucking fun as hell to watch, and in the earlier ones you can tell he had a blast making them.

[Ari]

I don't have time to go over every movie he's done (but I really want to), so I'll just say this: When he was at the top of his game, his output was amazing. He has made several films that I would consider iconic classics. The guy is seriously one of the best of all time, so it's such a shame to see his last few films.

I hope he has retired, I really do. He has left his mark on cinema, and it's a bloody fucking good one. Let's not add anymore Ghosts of Mars or Vampires (which had an amazing opening, and that was about it).

[Abraham Smashington]

Vampires (which had an amazing opening, and that was about it).

QFT. Plus JAMES MOTHERFUCKING WOODS!

But after the opening, it was a big pile of MEH.

[Ari]

Yeah, I bought it a few years ago on vhs. I thought I remembered it being awesome (I saw it in theaters), but I guess I was just remembering the opening. I don't plan on picking it up on dvd anytime ever.

[Abraham Smashington]

Yep. Sold mine off a long time ago.

I want In the Mouth of Madness out on Blu ray dammit! That movie is like the Mist without the Mist and some hammy acting. Good shit.

[Ari]

Dude, trying to pick from that list above is no easy task.

I love Halloween to death, but I love They Live even more. As much as I love They Live, I think I may like The Thing just a wee bit more.

It's not easy picking between the 3, but I'm going to have to go with The Thing. The tension, practical fx, and the Brimley just narrowly edge out the Piper, the David, and the kick ass, chew bubble gum line.

Bust just barely.

[Abraham Smashington]

Fuck yeah man. They Live (while being an awesome B-flick) has nothing on the fucking greatness that is The Thing. The Thing is one of the movies I use to gauge people's taste. Shit, Lesley asked to see it when we first met because I had talked about so much. And she dug it. hence us together. So thanks John Carpenter! haha.

[Ari]

I have still not been able to get Sarah to sit down and watch it with me.

Funny story, a few Halloweens ago we went over to my buddy and his wife's (before the divorce) house. We were going to sit back and watch horror movies all night. I, naturally, brought The Thing. She bought 2 black and white horror movie from the dollar bin at Wal-Mart. Guess what we had to watch? Fucking worst Halloween ever, especially since no one else there had ever seen The Thing. Poor saps still don't know what they're missing.

[Abraham Smashington]

Dude, you should have stirred the shit man! The Thing is the best movie to watch on Halloween with people who haven't seen it.

And pray you find that one person who knows absolutely nothing about it (cause even if people haven't seen it, they know shit about it. It's weird)....That's like my own personal mission. When my stepsisters get a bit older, it's fucking on. I'm gonna turn them into some horror experts. Good stuff.

[patronsaintofcheeseburgers]

Agreed with the Thing...loved the movie. But my favorite is They Live, I love Piper, I love the story, I love the cheesy (but minimal) effects. Close number 3 would be Assault. I saw the remake first and was amped to see the OG.

John Carpenter is a genius, and his soundtracks were great because he did them and fit them to his movies...

[patronsaintofcheeseburgers]

What I want to know...is who voted for Big Trouble? And how, Mr. Garrett, did you mention Escape from LA as one of his "better films". LA was crap compared to any of the others you have on that list.

[Ari]

Dude, Starman has a vote, yet Halloween does not.

I smell some dirty pool here, peoples.

[Nathan]

Starman was me. Love that flick. Many other greats on the list, but I figured no one else would vote for Starman, so I did.

[Ari]

Starman was me. Love that flick. Many other greats on the list, but I figured no one else would vote for Starman, so I did.

Yeah, you probably figured right.