Martin Scorsese Loves These John Carpenter Classics: “A Master Craftsman”
John Carpenter has one of the most acclaimed genre filmographies of all time. While it might be too easy for contemporary audiences to see the likes of Ghosts of Mars and The Ward (though I quite like that one) and wonder whether he ever really had it, few filmmakers, no matter the genre, delivered quite as many certified bangers as he did. Martin Scorsese agrees. While the famed director might not think Marvel movies are cinema, he certainly thinks Carpenter’s work is, and always has been, just that. In a 2011 interview, he reflected on Carpenter’s filmography, spotlighting his favorites among an exceptional body of work.
Martin Scorsese opened by saying,
“John Carpenter is a filmmaker who is unashamed to stay within the genres he loves (horror and science fiction) and who practices his trade like a master craftsman.” He goes on to spotlight Assault on Precinct 13, Halloween, and Carpenter’s remake of The Thing as examples of Carpenter’s trademark ability to scare, noting, “There are so many moments in his films that are absolutely startling—the murder of the little girl with the ice-cream cone in Assault on Precinct 13; the appearances of Michael Myers on the very edge of the frame in Halloween; the appearances of the creature in his truly terrifying remake of The Thing.”
Assault on Precinct 13 scarred me for life. Even The Fog, a personal Carpenter favorite of mine, got some love from Scorsese. The director said, “I’m a great admirer of The Fog, the mood of it, the sense of mystery.” Of course, like your dad probably, Scorsese is an especially huge admirer of They Live. He remarked, “They Live is one of the best films of a fine American director.”
Back to The Fog for a moment because this is important. Rather than opening with the expected kill or big moment of terror, Carpenter instead lets his camera roll through the sleepy town of Antonio Bay. As it does, an old man narrates a ghost story as strange paranormal activity occurs in scattered pockets of the small town. Lights flicker and glass shatters. It’s so deceptively simple, both remarkably meaningful and inconsequential at the same time—the perfect way for Carpenter to open the movie. Martin Scorsese is right to highlight the sense of mystery and mood.
No one does it quite like him, and while Carpenter himself might be more content to play Dead Space these days than make another movie (though, as evidenced by David Gordon Green’s Halloween trilogy, he still scores them to perfection), we at least have decades of remarkable work to look back on.
What do you think? Which John Carpenter movie is your favorite? Do you agree with Martin Scorsese? Let me know over on Twitter @Chadiscollins where we can maybe get a petition going for someone to finally let Carpenter make that Dead Space movie.
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