It's fine for what it is stupid with low grade special effects. But looking at the film, it just does not really make much sense in terms of how you are suppose to defeat the ghosts. Every single time you kill one, it just processes another body/host, so there is really no way to kill them. There is even an extended scene when the team kills a great deal of ghosts, which is pointless due to them processing another body once the one they are in dies. Also the special effects are laughable bad for a film with the cast, director, studio, and budget behind it. Even Carpenter says he stopped caring and then tried to back track years later, Tommy Wiseau style saying the movie was always supposed to be a satire/parody/comedy. I really do like a good deal of Carpenter films (The Thing, Assault on Prescient 13, and Escape From New York are great movies), but this movie is easily his worst.
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PrimeMinisterX (8859)
3 years ago
Have you seen The Ward? I have not but I have heard that IT is easily his worst film.
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Poozer91 (631)
3 years ago
I have not. It was his return to directing after 10 years and movie came and went with basically no publicity. I did hear it was bad, but not terrible. Amber Heard is in it, so it probably is low quality.
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[deleted]
3 years ago
I've seen The Ward. It's an alright film.
One of the reasons it's often labelled as Carpenter's worst is because if you'd seen it and were asked who directed it you'd be stumped. The film is very vanilla and was very much a director-for-hire job by Carpenter. It has practically no hints of his style at all.
It's more serious and has higher (more modern) production values than much of Carpenters later films...it's far less cheesy than the likes of Village of the Damned, Vampires and Ghosts of Mars.
It's honestly a decent enough film but if you're looking for a fun Carpenter film it's not gonna' scratch that itch.
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PrimeMinisterX (8859)
3 years ago
Thanks for the input.
According to Wiki, "Carpenter said that the script 'came along at the right time for me,' and he was particularly fascinated by how the film took place within a single location."
I guess making the film scratched whatever itch he had to make another movie after an almost 10-year hiatus, because it's now been 12 years since The Ward and he hasn't made another film.
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[deleted]
3 years ago
Yeah, the script probably stood out to him and he decided to take a stab at it. Though like with some other later films of his, I feel the studio definitely had influence on the project. It feels a bit alien when placed alongside Carpenter's other work but it was a decent, albeit generic, modern horror flick. It's not got much replay value though, I watched it for the first time a few years back and don't think I'll ever revisit it.
Though it proved to me he's still a very capable director and it's a shame he's been so inactive for so long.
I understand why people would call it his worst. Me personally, I'd put The Ward above Village of the Damned and Vampires.
Ghosts of Mars is cheesier and in many ways lesser, but I find it to be very entertaining so it'd top The Ward.
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