MovieChat Forums > Ghosts of Mars (2001) Discussion > For the magic itself, it's the second be...

For the magic itself, it's the second best Carpenter film

posted 16 years ago by fattap
10 replies | jump to latest

I don't know about others, but i always loved and watched Carpenter's films for their magic, not for the production values, acting, story, etc... because what i learned about this man, that all what he creates on screen (even what looks like a bad acting) is intended for the magic of the world he conjures up in the film.

So my rating for movies where i sort of lost myself in and forgot about my reality:

1) The Thing
2) Ghosts Of Mars
3) In The Mouth Of Madness
4) Halloween
5) Escape From L.A.
6) Escape From New York
7) The Fog
8) Vampires
9) Prince Of Darkness
10)Christine

[–] jorgddh 16 years ago

I liked "Ghosts of mars", it was a fun movie, and it's refreshing to watch a B-movie with a B-budget, instead of a B or Z movie with A-budgets (some guy called Bay makes a lot of these).

I think it's time Hollywood let Carpenter make a western.

[–] dcw-12 16 years ago

People with no imagination need hyper-realism and giant stupid CGI effects. Most movies today have all the artistry of a monster truck rally. Carpenter is an artist not some screaming carnival barker. As soon as you accept the world Carpenter has created something clicks into place and you are transported to another world.
I love his movies for that reason, all of them. Ghost of Mars being one of my favorites.

[–] cord-74 16 years ago

You know, interesting thing about The Thing is how tame it seems to be today. No matter how many times i watch The Thing it simply is not as strong as in the 80's, and i think the reason is that most movies since the late 80's and early 90's started questioning or/and subverting the power of cinema. The first time i saw Last Action Hero i knew we're going in the wrong direction. And look what Carpenter did with that, he made In The Mouth of Madness, the film that made the film illusion real again, at least he tried. Something happened since then, and it just isn't right in my opinion, it just isn't the 30's/40's anymore when people were thinking if King Kong was real or not.lol. The Thing today would not be shocking anymore. Because the magic of cinema is gone! people don't believe what they're seeing as much as back then. So, i don't think we should blame Carpenter for being so restrained, we should blame industry and ourselves for looking behind that magic. Just look outside, it seems that everyone today is a film student, it's ridiculous. Sometimes i wish i was an innocent kid again.

[–] Ben_Cheshire 15 years ago

This is an interesting little thread, fattap.

Unfortunately I can't relate, as I only watch them for the boobs.

However, I think Carpenter fans like the previous poster sometimes expect too much from Carpenter, whose movies nearly always are cheesey fun. I seem to think his later movies get more flack because people expect something more than that. But even in his most classy, quality movies, like Halloween and The Thing, cheese is at least part of the sandwich: Donald Pleasance's character, which is the half of the movie that Carpenter himself wrote, is pure cheese.

But if you look way back to an example from his early period, Escape from New York, Kurt Russell's acting is pure mozzarella. Carpenter ALWAYS made movies like Ghosts of Mars.

Anyway, I'm just going through his movies at the moment. So far I've seen, in this order: The Thing, Halloween, Christine, Escape from New York, The Fog, Ghosts of Mars. I've also seen Vampires back in the day. I've got Big Trouble in Little China and The Thing shipping my way on blu ray, the first of which I've never seen.

Ben

[–] Ghombie 15 years ago

Youve got to see Assault on Precinct 13 Ben. Prince of Darkness is a must see for any Carpenter fan too.

[–] Ben_Cheshire 15 years ago

I'll put them on the top of my list, along with Starman and Mouth of Madness and friends.

I actually just watched Ghosts of Mars for the first time tonight, which is why I looked it up and posted here. A real fun ride, full of so much rockem-sockem action scenes, sexy Natasha Henstridge and fun Carpenter situations and dialogue.

Shame for me Precinct 13 in its best transfer has been released on blu ray region-locked to A. My ps3 is locked to B here in Australia. I guess I have to wait for it to come out in UK and order that...

[–] velvetburglar 15 years ago

Big Trouble is my favorite, but I agree with you on Carpenter in general. I think he's my favorite "escapist" filmmaker.

[–] ENDoftheline23 15 years ago

They Live. Hands down best.

[–] reverse_microwavee 15 years ago

What about People under the stairs?

[–] Demonic_Entity-1 15 years ago

^That was Wes Craven.

Anyhow, I saw this film in theaters and I really liked it, own the DVD and all. I like the way the story unfolded, with all the people telling each other what happened from different sides. Probably the aspect I liked the most and the gore-scenes were pretty cool too. The self-mutilation sequences reminded me of Return Of The Living Dead 3.

They will say that I have shed innocent blood...what's blood for, if not for shedding? - Candyman