Paid Members Devon Malcolm Posted January 16, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 The great man turned 75 today! I think he's probably my favourite director of all time, just ahead of Sidney Lumet. Arguably the greatest genre filmmaker in American history. I am upset about leaving Starman and Christine out of the poll because they're both very good, too, but it's the measure of his body of work. But it's Prince of Darkness for me, Clive. Conceptually fascinating, it scares the crap out of me every Halloween when I watch it and it might be the best horror film I've ever seen. SPOILER ON THE SECOND VIDEO Let's see you balls this one up, UKFF. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Tommy! Posted January 16, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 2 minutes ago, Devon Malcolm said: Let's see you balls this one up, UKFF. I'll take the fall 2nd post in: I've only ever seen 1 of these films. I'll change my avatar to Michael Owen shortly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Mal the Glorious Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 My favourite director, I even enjoy the more maligned stuff like Vampires and Ghosts of Mars. It's a toss up between The Fog and The Thing for me. If you get the chance to see him play live, do it! I caught him at the Tyne Theatre a few years ago and it was a great night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Devon Malcolm Posted January 16, 2023 Author Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 2 minutes ago, Tommy! said: I'll take the fall 2nd post in: I've only ever seen 1 of these films. I'll change my avatar to Michael Owen shortly. The great thing is that there's no wrong answer in this poll, so have at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperBacon Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 I don't think it's his best film, but I do enjoy Escape from New York the most. Love that Scorsese article. I love when they all have nice things to say about each other as fans, it's really wholesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Houchen Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 When you see that list, it hits home his versatility and talent, doesn’t it? And that doesn’t even mention his fantastic work as a composer as well!  From that list, The Thing just pips Assault On Precinct 13 for me, Clive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Devon Malcolm Posted January 16, 2023 Author Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 13 minutes ago, SuperBacon said: I don't think it's his best film, but I do enjoy Escape from New York the most. I'd say I enjoy Big Trouble in Little China the most out of his. My 15y loved it when we watched a couple of months ago too. But that's another thing, his best are all so rewatchable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Jazzy G Posted January 16, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 I remember being sat in front of Big Trouble In Little China as a kid. I honestly don't think I've actually "watched" any of them, though. I'm such a philestine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members PunkStep Posted January 16, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 Skyfall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Chris B Posted January 16, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 For me, the answer is 'Whichever one I saw most recently'. Totally agree with @Devon Malcolm- Carpenter is also my favourite film director, and I think it's a real shame that producers stopped trusting him on the back of the 90s, as it likely robbed us of some fascinating stuff in the 2000s. The 90s run of big conceptual stuff was really interesting - I need to revisit In The Mouth of Madness and The Prince of Darkness, as neither of them blew me away, but both had really fun stuff in there. I found they both struggled a little in terms of budget vs ideas... but I think that was likely comparing them to other things rather than seeing them on their own terms. I think The Thing is one of those rare movies that pretty much perfectly does what it sets out to do (along with Casablanca, Jaws and Die Hard). It's a little perfect piece of clockwork precision, where there's not a moment that's not driving the entire thing forward, and it does it surprisingly subtly throughout. I also love that Carpenter brought in Ennio Morricone to do the score, as the producers didn't want what they saw as a lower-budget Carpenter score, and Morricone wrote the most perfect Carpenter score you've ever heard. He produced the synth version as a 'here's what it will overall sound like' before producing the entire sountrack with an orchestra - which Carpenter promptly ignored, massively preferring the synth version... and Morricone didn't know until he saw the film at the premiere. (Some unused tunes were later used for The Hateful Eight). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaitoRyo Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 Like many of you, I love just about everything John Carpenter. Even his 'lesser' films have their moments, but that run from Assault on Precinct Thirteen through to The Thing is seriously impressive. Five excellent films on the bounce - and that's not to say Dark Star and Christine are rotten or anything, either. For me, his best is probably The Thing. Wonderfully atmospheric, genuinely frightening and featuring some stunning effects work, it is still vert effective. I watched it when I was probably too young (because my step-dad had a VHS copy and I convinced him it'd be fine), so I saw it first time at an impressionable age and it has really stayed with me. I'd say Halloween is a close second, but there are three or four in the conversation. Just a tremendously versatile director whose work has stood the test of time. Of his films, I still haven't seen all of Ghosts of Mars or any of Starman, though I'll get around to it one day. Need to give Big Trouble in Little China a revisit at some point too, as I've only seen that the once and remember it being a great deal of fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Chris B Posted January 16, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 5 minutes ago, SaitoRyo said: I'd say Halloween is a close second, but there are three or four in the conversation. Just a tremendously versatile director whose work has stood the test of time. If it was almost any other director, the conversation would start and end with Halloween. It's almost certainly the most influential and important film he's made. And it's absolutely brilliant. I slightly love The Fog and The Thing more, and there's a slight underdog thing going on with both - The Thing because of how it fared at the time, and The Fog because it's pretty much nobody's favourite Carpenter movie, but is absolutely dripping with atmosphere. It's also my favourite score he's done, I think. At least, it's the one I'm most likely to listen to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Devon Malcolm Posted January 16, 2023 Author Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 33 minutes ago, SaitoRyo said: Of his films, I still haven't seen all of Ghosts of Mars or any of Starman, though I'll get around to it one day. Starman is excellent. More a romcom than anything but very pleasant and wholesome. One of my favourite Jeff Bridges performances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Jesse Posted January 16, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 More than any other film I think Halloween is what turned me into a film geek in my teens. It was watching that, probably my first 'not for kids' horror movie, that sent me into reading interviews and essays and eventually to Men, Women & Chainsaws and a Film Studies class in college. Looking back I don't know if it's his best film but it's the one that sits in my memory the strongest for the impact it had on me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Devon Malcolm Posted January 16, 2023 Author Paid Members Share Posted January 16, 2023 I remembered wrongly for a long time and thought the first Carpenter film I saw was Assault on Precinct 13 when they showed it on Moviedrome once. But it was actually Big Trouble in Little China because I remember my dad renting it for us one night. I think The Thing was one of the main films that really got me into horror when I was in college though. Taped it off Sky Movies Gold one night, watched it after college the next day and then had to be peeled off the ceiling after the defibrilator part. Still amazing to me that it flopped at the box office, imagine it if was released today? Would be absolutely massive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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