Biography of John Carpenter

The horror vein blood flowing

January 16, 1948
John Carpenter was born in New York on January 16, 1948 and his passion for cinema and for the horror-fantasy starts from an early age, fascinated by the sight of "destination ..." (1953) by Jack Arnold, the young Carpenter decides that cinema would be his life. In the mid 70 's he began his adventure in the world of celluloid writing three screenplays for three films: one is a western, never realized, that you had to call "Blood River", the second is the thriller "eyes of Laura Mars (1978) by Irwin Kershner and finally" Bad moon rising "(1986) Harley Cockliss. The first movie directed by John Carpenter's "Dark star" a sort of parody of "2001: a space Odyssey" (1968, Stanley Kubrick) but the first real film for which the New York Director is to report and to love is the very violent "District 13? The brigades of death "in which a handful of policemen and prisoners trying to save his skin from an attack by a group of lunatics who want to storm a police station.
Carpenter managed to create a film halfway between thriller and horror with scenes of terrible violence, including the killing of a child. The thugs of "District 13" doesn't seem to even men, act without talk to each other, they have no morals and although decimated by police, continue as police station assault automata. The movie doesn't get any success at home while in Europe is appreciated (although withdrawals are ridiculous anyway) and Carpenter begins to proselytize. This leads to 1978, the year thanks to the money of the producer Moustapha Akkad, is offered at John Carpenter the chance to direct a watch horror films-thriller on the exploits of an insane murderer who kills without hesitation and young victims. The budget is limited but the Director manages to churn out what is still considered one of the best horror films ever made: "Halloween".
It's the movie that reveals to the world the visionary talent of Carpenter and that creates a true icon of genre cinema: the killer Michael Myers dressed as a mechanic with the face covered by a white mask (that, which not everyone knows, reproduced the likeness of the face of the actor William Shatner, Captain Kirk of the first Star Trek series). "Halloween" comes out in theaters in that year and the success is Planetarium: marks the birth of salsher-movie (movie with murders in series) and launches a very young Jamie Lee Curtis, who will become movie icon. Carpenter not only directs "Hallowen" but also takes care of very successful soundtrack; the movie after a first half enough "granted", which follows the cliché of the classic the tingler, (murderer hiding in the shadows, anonymous, suspense) astounding then the audience with a completely unexpected: Michael Myers is immortal, nothing and nobody can stop him, he shoots at him and he gets up, he stabs and he doesn't get any injury, is no mere murderer but evil was impersonated.
Finally the world has discovered the talented Carpenter who now has the chance to realize more ambitious projects. Seen the success of the proliferation of imitations of "Halloween" (see "Friday 13") the film's producers decided to produce a second episode which Carpenter care the screenplay and soundtrack but entrusts the Director r. Rosenthal; the movie doesn't have much success, and is certainly lower than the first. John Carpenter then produces a third chapter, where there is no figure of Michael Myers, and that will be a resounding flop. Before these two sequels Carpenter in 1979 had directed the beautiful ghost story "Fog" in which a horde of zombies invades a small town ghosts in retaliation of its inhabitants, which a hundred years earlier had caused the death.
The film is beautifully maintained and perfect in all his views: fear, suspense, narrative and imaginative skill, everything works beautifully, but despite this the film does not have an adequate response from the public and critics. In the early ' 80 Carpenter directs two other very important films. The first is "1997 escape from New York", set in the near future where criminals are relegated to the ghost town, in one of which ends nothing less than the President of United States. To save the army uses one of the most dangerous criminals in circulation "Russell Park" (character played by a Masterful Kurt Russell and it will become a cult) who will save him in Exchange for their freedom. According to many "1997" remains one of the best science fiction movie of recent decades has been able to give us.
It is in the field of horror fiction that John Carpenter directs his masterpiece: "the thing" (1982), remake of the movie "the thing from another world" (1951). The protagonist is once again, Kurt Russell (protagonist of "big trouble in little China, 1986), the Director's favorite actor. The score this time was entrusted to our Ennio Morricone, but found the film are the beautiful special effects created by Rob Bottin, who with LaTeX and prosthetics gives horrible mutations that had never been seen before on the big screen. More gloomy and claustrophobic of "Alien", scary and creepy as "The Exorcist" the film had to be a global success, and instead was one of the most serious flop of the filmmaker who almost did make Bank route to Universal Production. And all this because in the same year was raging on the screens "E.T." by Steven Spielberg, and nobody was going to believe in alien villain, all saw otherworldly beings as tender pupazzoni to caress and cuddle and not as terrible mutant pests afflicting bodies and minds.
Even the criticism was ferocious, going as far as to define Carpenter "pornographer of horror" but then (as often happens), to several years away, reevaluate "the thing" until it among the best films ever directed. Ultimately a great movie ruined by being released at the wrong time. Carpenter's career continued to flop in flop: either the next "Christine-the infernal machine" adapted from the story by Stephen King gets the expected success. In 1987 the Director finds her vein horror with splatter "Prince of darkness", history of the advent of the forces of evil on Earth; less innovative and original compared to other films by the same Director, this horror is appreciated above all for sequences from real splatter movie, with pure, a sort of horror film moments halfway between "Zombies" by George Romero and "demons" of drool.
The following year John Carpenter back to horror fiction with "they live" in which one imagines the world subjected to alien beings who hide under false human form and controlling the world thanks to the media. An original script with which the filmmaker makes a film "politically" involved that, in a sort of parallel with the story of the film, hiding under the guise of a science-fiction horror, his true nature of fierce condemnation of a certain American society and its methods. A great idea only "limited" from below budget. Back then to horror "real" with the beautiful "in the mouth of madness" (1994), starring Sam Neill of "Jurrassik Park". Splatter, madness, murder, mutant beings and all you want to see in a horror movie, all seasoned with suspense and remarkable directorial skills.
One of the best horror films of recent years. For economic reasons, the following year, John drives remake of "village of the damned" surely the worst horror movie ever directed by the great New York Director. In 1998 he in workshop two projects: one created and the other does not. The first is "Vampires" a horror-western in which a Vampire Hunter (a huge James Woods) John Wayne style gives terrible hunting vampires. Humor, machismo, splatter: is again great Carpenter although at a lower level of its highest splendour.
The other project was "Halloween 20 years later", then directed by Steve Miner, who was to mark the great comeback Michale Myers. Carpenter could not manage both movies: he preferred "Vampires", but the audience of fans of horror (not always competent, mostly young and therefore attracted to horror-teens) not from reason; result: "Halloween" 20 beats, and much, the takings of "Vampires". "Ghosts of Mars", 2001, is a sci-fi horror story set on Mars in the not too distant future in which men, having colonized the red planet, they try to exploit all resources; but an ancient Martian civilization awakens and has no intention to comply with the needs of humans.
This film (presented out of competition at the Venice Film Festival) is a kind of summa of "obsessions" of his cinema: the heroine is strong and "indestructible" (Natasha Henstridge takes the place of Jamie Lee Curtis of "Fog" and "Halloween"), alien force, concealed behind human form, is poised to take over humanity ("the thing", "they live"), the setting from western (much like "Vampires") with a siege at the blockhouse , where thugs and cops join forces to save your Bacon ("District 13"). The only novelty is represented by the narrative style: in fact, the story is told through a series of flashbacks, it winds through the stories of various characters that intertwine with each other, unusual for a movie by Carpenter, Director who prefers an approach "classic", focused on the idea of unity of space and time. For fans of the genre are not lacking, as in "Vampires", the sequences splatter, with severed heads and limbs everywhere, while the digital effects, probably due to the low budget, does not demonstrate to the height of modern productions.
The great John Carpenter, this time, perhaps, minus a bit of pride, with a self-indulgent movie (from the title which, in the original language, is "John Carpenter's Ghosts of Mars") and lacking real novelties (as happened to Dario Argento's "sleepless"); rather far from such masterpieces as "the thing" or "in the mouth of madness" though still enjoyable, especially for fans of the Director. It seems that the Director is working on a film "purely horror" that he said "will be released by the cinema tottered, shaken by deep ...".
Article contributed by the team of collaborators.