It’s real hard to think of another director who’s contributed as much to genre filmmaking, on the whole, as John Carpenter. From effectively pioneering the slasher flick with Halloween to creating an alien monster in the Thing that's still more terrifying than most all that’ve come after it, the man’s left an undeniably lasting stamp on horror, sci-fi and straight-up action. From where I’m sitting, specifically, it says a lot that at least one of his movies has been relevant to so many theme weeks on this site. Twist endings, political satire and, now, aliens… his body of work's wide enough to cover it all.
Thus, in honor of this latest Carpenter remake, I figured the time was right to look at some of the man's work. Read on as we discuss one lesser-known offering, one controversial slight misfire and one unquestionable classic...
Assault on Precinct 13 (1976) Dir. John Carpenter
This was Carpenter’s “first real movie,” a self-described exploitation flick that’s likely best suited to late night screenings at a grindhouse theater. Well, at least, it probably shouldn’t be watched on the kind of worn VHS I rented from a tape store however many years ago. I don’t know, I feel like a lot of the man’s movies would actually benefit from a remake, since his ideas were often bigger than his budgets and the FX of their time could handle. Granted, I haven’t actually seen that ’05 remake with Ethan Hawke and Laurence Fishburn, so my argument’s missing a big chunk of its equation. Then again, the Nest was supposed to be loose remake, too, so maybe my thinking’s actually not too far off.
Carpenter was heavily influenced by Howard Hawks and, while that link would be made concrete when he remade the Thing from Another World a few years later, it’s still present here (albeit in a more conceptual form.) By his own admission, this is a mash-up of Rio Bravo and Night of the Living Dead, with the old West action recast into downtown LA and the zombies replaced with an evil biker gang. Of course, the bikers act like zombies anyway, with enough common sense lacking in their onslaught that you’re honestly pulled out of the story some. I can’t vouch for whether the remakes, both official and spiritual, improved on the idea, but I walked away from this thinking that, even with the wall-to-wall gunfire, such a badass concept wasn’t realized as well as it could’ve been.
That aside, the part where the gang kills a kid out of the back of an ice cream truck is notably harsh.
Escape from New York (1982) Dir. John Carpenter
I’m risking some serious backlash by saying this, but I think this would also benefit from a remake.
Again, you’ve got a phenomenal premise. New York’s a walled-off prison island ruled by criminals! Air Force One crash lands in NY and a mysterious outlaw’s brought in to rescue him! That all immediately seizes your imagination like a bear trap. However, I still can’t get over how often Snake gets his ass kicked in this. You’ve got to make your hero an underdog, of course, but it sure feels like Snake doesn’t actually do that many badass things for the amount of times supporting characters say he’s a badass. Yeah, crushing the tape at the end and essentially dooming the entire world is a hell of final hand, but him telling people to either “Call me, Snake” or “Call me, Plisskin” seem like the only other card in his deck.
Again, this also has had something a spiritual remake already in the Vertigo comic, DMZ, and as much as Kurt Russell’s the man, I really haven’t been opposed to the talks of a “re-imagining” whenever they get periodically brought up.
Big Trouble in Little China (1986) Dir. John Carpenter
Now this, without qualification, is Carpenter’s best flick. It’s just… just… perfect. Equal parts Wuxia swashbuckler and red meat 80s macho 80, it gifted the two-fisted, truck-driving philosopher Jack Burton to the world and, as far as I can see, the world has never been the same since. This marked the end of Russell's time as Carpenter’s cinematic alter ego and, even though Burton’s a dude you’re supposed to laugh at, I find him to be a much better badass than Snake.
Go on and start a battle thread in the forum if you disagree.
I haven’t taken enough time to compliment Carpenter’s minimalist synth scores because, well... their awesomely atmospheric quality should be a given. It speaks to the man's unique voice that not only can you a movie's "like a Carpenter flick," you can also say a soundtrack's "like a Carpenter score." Following that, Big Trouble deserves all the credit it can get for charging the man’s band, the Coupe de Villes, into the MTV universe. As if you needed any explanation for why the promo below is so rad, here's a further nugget of info - - that's the original Michael Myers there on the keyboard!
Really though? Would you really want them to remake Escape from New York, Tom? You know they would make it all "Dark" and "Edgy", instead of having Kurt Russel gravel his way through the horrific future of 1997. Isn't that what your previous article was all about?
Yeah, a remake of Escape from New York would just remove all the character from the flick.
Besides, Carpenter himself already made a remake: it was called Escape from LA and it was a functional parody of Escape from New York and it was great.
But you're right about one thing: Big Trouble in Little China is the greatest film ever made by man.
Big trouble in little china is probably my favorite film to come out of the Russel/Carpenter contribution. It's a celebration of the Wuxia movies, and has the rapid fire dialog that seems to have fallen out of a 1940s adventure film.
It also tweaks the conventions of the movies of that time too. The ethnic sidekick character turns out to be the one to get the girl and save the day, while the buff action hero type bumbles around and makes wisecracks.
@Olivaw said:
The more people accept this truth the better off the world will be.
I can understand why you'd want a remake of Escape From New York, but to me, the only thing that needs to be remade would be the FX, because they are obviously outdated. And yes, it is one of the top movies in my minimal DVD collection. I've seen it many times and I think really, that would be the only and I do mean only thing that needs to be touched. Otherwise I can tolerate what are now outdated FX in the movie and enjoy it for what it is.
I somewhat recall the At The Movies review of Big Trouble In Little China. I wish I could recall which one hated it, if it was Siskel or Ebert, but he clearly didn't "get it". Not that there is a whole lot to get so to speak. It is just one of the best damn fun movies ever.
Nice write up of John Carpenter and I am surprised more wasn't covered concerning his other movies, especially Vampires with James Woods.
You know what ol Jack Burton says at a time like this?
BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA is so fucking good. That movie is simply a joy that I never get tired of.
And listening to the commentary it's interesting to really think about the time period it came out in, and what was on screens at that time. It's no wonder nobody 'got' this movie when it was released. In fact, based on a podcast I recently listened to it's clear that there are still people who don't get its sheer comedic genius.
And Jack Burton is, without question, Kurt Russell's pinnacle as an actor. Only someone who absolutely understood the tone of that movie could have pulled it off so well.
Same said for Kim Cattrall. She seems to be having fun and really rips through that dialogue with the perfect combination of sincerity and cheese.
I just watched The Thing last night on Netflix, because I was interested in it because of the ads for the new version. Guess....that's not really what movie studios count on these days, huh? Drumming up interest in movies resulting people in CHECKING OUT THE ORIGINAL FUCKING MOVIE INSTEAD OF THE REMAKE. Crazy idea, I know. Oh darn:) Sucks for you, Universal.
Needless to say, it was awesome. Reminded me of Alien, if Alien wasn't an overrated pile of suck with one or two good scenes (now, Aliens though, is a genuine classic). I don't think I've ever seen a horror movie filled with more rational, professional people before. Everyone in The Thing figured out there was an alien there replicating people, like, 20 minutes into the film - I don't even think anyone screamed by being surprised throughout. Ever. Those dudes are the kinds of dudes you WANT to be in that kind of situation with. Kurt Russell, Keith David - these are some level headed, cold-hearted bastards. And yet, the movie was still tense and compelling as hell. Totally awesome.
Now I gotta check out Big Trouble in Little China, a movie I've seen in pieces, but never all the way through. It's on Netflix via Starz, so I best get watchin' while the watchin's good. Stupid Starz deal collapsing:(
Can't wait until Colin Farrell's Total Recall movie starts getting it's ad campaign started up. It'll give me just the excuse to go and pop in the Arnold Schwarzenegger version again!
John Carpenter is such a great director. It's a shame that more people haven't seen his films.
Okay Tom, you make some good points about Snake, but if you're qualifier for being a badass relies on how much ass they kick, then I don't know how you can make the argument that Burton is a bigger badass-- the dude gets knocked out, or misses every battle!
@vinsanityv22 said:
I agree. I watched Carpenter's Thing a couple days before I saw the prequel, and all it did was make me want to watch Carpenter's movie all over again. Especially since the ending tied almost everything together as nicely as it did. I think they want everybody to think of it as a remake so they can do a shot for shot remake with "The Thing 2", but judging by the ending, I don't think the director got the message.
It wasn't horrible, but it damn sure wasn't needed either.
Could you maybe include some more of Carpenter's films? Or maybe some of his lesser known ones (like Alex's recommendation of In the Mouth of Madness)? The guy has tons and tons of films under his belt, and you picked three of his most well known ones without including The Thing, They Live, or Halloween. What is the point of this post?
One day civilization will collapse and in its ashes it will be rebuilt from an old VHS copy of Big Trouble in Little China.
And all will be good.
YES! My love of Big Trouble could destroy worlds. Glad most here seem to understand its amazingness.
@vinsanityv22 said:
I will cut you
Big Trouble in Little China is indeed the best movie ever made. You've got a good head on your shoulders, Tom.
I am among the few who holds Assault on Precinct 13 in the same high regard as the other two movies mentioned. Carpenter is a master of atmosphere and "Assault" is no exception. It could be described as simple in many ways but that is also why it's so effective in what it's trying to achieve. Sometimes all you need to make a great movie are some decent enough protagonists, a menacing villainous force and a bad-ass score. It's simple but great.
I love his movies! His movies' music, the tension, the mood, the stories... All around one of my favorite Directors!