Prince of Darkness (1987)
Directed by: John
Carpenter.
Written by: John
Carpenter (as Martin Quatermass).
Starring: Donald
Pleasence (Priest), Jameson Parker (Brian Marsh), Victor Wong (Prof. Howard
Birack), Lisa Blount (Catherine Danforth), Dennis Dun (Walter), Susan Blanchard
(Kelly), Anne Marie Howard (Susan Cabot), Ann Yen (Lisa), Ken Wright (Lomax), Dirk
Blocker (Mullins), Jessie Lawrence Ferguson (Calder), Peter Jason (Dr. Paul
Leahy), Robert Grasmere (Frank Wyndham), Thom Bray (Etchinson), Joanna Merlin (Bag
Lady), Alice Cooper (Street Schizo), Betty Ramey (Nun).
No
one thinks that Prince of Darkness is one of John Carpenter’s masterpieces-
although it has gained a cult following after an initially bad reception when
it released in 1987. This was Carpenter returning to his lower budget horror
roots after Starman and Big Trouble in Little China – two bigger budget films, that
weren’t huge hits at the time. In many ways, it does feel like Carpenter
playing homage to himself – he has a group of people trapped in a single
building by the hordes outside a la Assault on Precinct 13, and has a villain
that can end up inhabiting the people, one at a time, so you’re not quite sure
who to trust a la The Thing. Hell, it has Donald Pleasance in it as a Priest,
and while his name isn’t said in the movie itself, in the credits, it is Father
Loomis – which of course is the name of his Halloween character. In some ways,
the character is the same as well – this Priest knows that evil is coming, but
cannot get people to believe him.
Prince
of Darkness is an odd film indeed. Carpenter had an interest in quantum
mechanics and physics at the time, and he seems to be setting up the age-old
conflict between science and religion. There is something locked in the
basement of this church (considering the title of the movie, no points for
guessing what) – and it has awoken, and is ready to come out. Instead of just
counting on religion however to keep it contained – he calls on Professor
Howard Birack (Victor Wong), a physics professor at a local university who
enlists the help of his best students, complete with all the technology that
the cast of Strange Things could dream of, to find a scientific solution to
their problems. Science and religion are both in conflict in this movie, but
also working together in a strange way.
Carpenter’s
basic strategy here is the same as it was in The Thing – he wanted to build a
mounting sense of dread in the movie, moving slowly, building suspense before
the climax. That it isn’t as successful as it was in The Thing is obvious.
Mainly that’s because Carpenter’s screenplay strains with unnecessary
exposition and scientific explanations – dialogue that is deadly to deliver.
The cast is mainly fairly dull – they never are able to bring to life what are
basically archetypes. The couple at the center is Brian (Jameson Parker) and
Catherine (Lisa Blount) – a pair of students who fall in bed, and then in love,
in short order – a movie meant to make the ending hit harder, so it’s not just
a bunch of cookie cutter characters being offed one by one. Blount fares better
than Parker here – he really is the most bland of all bland leading men – so
the ultimate ending certainly does have a kick, particularly the final shot.
But
the star here really is Carpenter – who despite the flaws in the narrative,
really does nail the mounting dread. I think some work needed to be done perhaps
on the homeless horde outside to make them more menacing (and believable) than
they are here. But Carpenter’s slow mounting dread is expertly handled, his
score his excellent. His best decision is to shoot the dreams the team has –
radio transmission from the future – or consumer grade VHS – the grainy, fuzzy
look working perfect to make them even creepier. Prince of Darkness still isn’t
one of Carpenter’s best films – it doesn’t hold a candle to Assault on Precinct
13, Halloween, The Thing or Christine – and it doesn’t have the ambition of its
follow-up – They Live – but it’s better than they gave it credit for in 1987 –
and worth the attention of the horror auteur’s fans.
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