Synopsis:
A priest
discovers a vat of mysterious green liquid in the basement of an abandoned
church. He contacts a professor, who brings along some physics students and
scientists to investigate. While carbon dating corrosion and deciphering
ancient text, they discover that the strange ooze inside the vat is essentially liquid Satan!
Film Review:
While not on the list of Carpenter’s most well received films, Prince of Darkness
is indeed one of the creepiest out of his catalog. Maybe because it isn't very
traditional, maybe because it’s seriously slow burning, or maybe both. Using
the pseudonym Martin Quatermass, Carp definitely thought outside the box with the story. He wrote the script at a time in his career when he was interested
in quantum physics, and it's definitely a tale that requests your full
attention. I like pretty much every type
of horror there is, but the slow build stuff is my favorite. A movie that lets
you soak for a good while before ultimately dunking you under is the best kind.
Prince of Darkness is sinister throughout, but without a barrage of jump scares,
and the third act is a fantastic payoff to it all.
We’re
watching a John Carpenter film here, so of course it’s visually beautiful.
Great wide lens shots encapsulating the entire cast. Upside down cam for the
upward dripping of the green liquid. The matte paintings are gorgeous,
particularly one of a morning sky displaying the sun and the moon. Kills are
staged well and overflowing with style -the homeless lady/scissor scene is
incredible. Great use of golden lighting through the entire film. There’s an
awesome one shot sequence used as a form of introduction for a character. Lastly,
the low angle scenes of the manipulated homeless, as well as the vat of evil,
are totally menacing.
Prince of
Darkness contains a large ensemble cast, and we get a good amount of time with
most of the characters. First off, the late Donald Pleasence, known only in the
film as ‘Priest’. Pleasence always gave his all; he even made Halloween 5
tolerable -well, as tolerable as it could be. The man had some great line delivery, and whatever he had to say was
damn interesting, due to his passion. The late Victor Wong is also a delight,
as Professor Birack. From Big Trouble In Little China, to The Golden Child, to
this, Wong has always been memorable in roles. Much like Pleasence, he serves
up some fantastic dialog in Prince of Darkness, especially in an early
on sequence where he’s giving a class lecture.
The two
leads are Brian and Catherine, played by Jameson Parker and the late Lisa
Blount -wow, it’s really sad to see so many people from this film have passed
on. It really says something about the narrative when a movie that takes place
over a short amount of time has a love angle that’s believable. The Terminator comes
to mind, as does Miracle Mile. The characters of Brian and Catherine share a
moment close to the final act in Prince of Darkness that’s so authentic, and
pretty hard hitting. Jameson Parker (who apparently attended the Tom Atkins
School of Mustache) and Lisa Blount had some awesome chemistry with one another, and they make the time their characters have
together feel genuine.
The rest of
the supporting cast are all satisfactory and some of them really shine in their
roles once coming in contact with the green devil juice from the vat. Lastly,
Alice Cooper as the pale faced Street Schizo is honestly a creep fest of mega
proportions.
The special
effects are all very cool, whether it’s just a person spitting out green liquid or a head being lopped off by an ax. Lots of scenes are used with bugs; one particular in the parking lot of the abandoned church. The
death by half a bicycle is a favorite, and the makeup FX for one of the
students who gets possessed is truly revolting. We get plenty of close-ups
of said character’s arms and face to make snacking during the movie a MUST.
I've never
heard a John Carpenter score I didn't like, especially when it’s a
collaboration with Alan Howarth. While Halloween III’s score remains my
favorite work of these two mad geniuses, the music of Prince of Darkness is by
no means lacking. It’s got that signature Carpenter style bass note that
repeats persistently, with a choir sound accompaniment that parallels the tone
of the film perfecty. It’s haunting and builds uncomfortable anticipation, especially
during the final shot of the film.
Final Word:
Prince of
Darkness is another case of a film that found its fanbase over time, through
the home video market and probably word of mouth. I feel like the lot of John
Carpenter’s films are fairly diverse from one another, but this one may be the
most differentiating of them all. Make no mistake, though, it’s still Carpenter
through and through. The characters, visual style, the music… it’s all there. I
feel like the word “underrated” is tossed around way too much, but this is a
movie that really is a victim of said word, and for far too long. It’s “a
secret that can no longer be kept.”
Blu-ray Review:
Scream
Factory’s release of Prince of Darkness is presented in 1080p High-Definition
Widescreen (2.35:1). It probably goes without saying, but this is an absolutely
massive step up from the old 2003 Universal DVD release. Much like Day of theDead, this is another example of Scream Factory retaining the appropriate look
of a film and the era from which it was made, and still managing to make it
look more crisp and lush than it ever has. Outdoor shots of greenery are insanely
vibrant, and the makeup FX on the student I mentioned earlier are
just… wow. Beautifully nasty. For audio, there’s a choice between DTS Master 2.0
and 5.1. I went with 5.1, and it’s amazing. The Carpenter & Howarth score
are really brought out in the open with this choice, once again, way more than
they were on that old Universal disc.
Features:
Sympathy For
the Devil- with John Carpenter
A pretty
excellent new interview with John Carpenter, detailing his need for making a
low budget feature, and what aspired him to write the story.
Alice at the
Apocalypse- with Alice Cooper
All new
interview with Alice Cooper, and how he got the opportunity to play a role in
the film. Incredibly fun little interview, and Cooper seems just as awesome as
you may imagine.
The
Messenger- with Robert Grasmere
New
interview with actor/visual effects supervisor Robert Grasmere.
Hell on
Earth- with Alan Howarth
This
interview was a particular favorite of mine, because I've always been
interested in the musical aspect of Carpenter’s films, and the process behind
them. You’ll learn that here.
Alternate
Opening From TV Version
Growing up
at a time where I had to have seen Prince of Darkness on television, I somehow
had no recollection of this existing. It's not the first time television provided alternates for
a Carpenter film. Pretty neat.
Horror’s
Hallowed Grounds
Completely
awesome tour of Prince of Darkness set locations, hosted by Sean Clark.
Dude is informational and hilarious.
Trailers
& Radio Spots
Radio Spots
steal the show here!
Still
Gallery
Lots of nice
pictures in this feature, which also includes a few different one sheets and
whatnot.
Audio
Commentary with writer/director John Carpenter and actor Peter Jason
This was, I
believe, originally on a region 2 DVD release of the film. This was my first time
hearing it, though. It’s basically the best of both worlds. Carpenter spits out
knowledge, as does Peter Jason, and they take a lot of playful jabs at each other.
Prince of Darkness isn't always the topic of discussion, either. Lots of fun on
this one, and they keep it going pretty solid for the entire runtime. Well
worth a listen.
Final Word:
Scream
Factory’s release of Prince of Darkness is loaded, and it's a must for fans of
the film and/or Carpenter aficionados. Available for preorder HERE.
Release date, September 24th, 2013.
-Eric King (aka Brobocop)
