Fog, The (US)

1980`s The Fog was John Carpenter`s followup to 1978`s surprise hit Halloween. Rather then make another film like that, Carpenter chose to make an old fashioned horror film which relied more on scares then gore.

The picture quality is excellent with few defects. The sound is also good although the 5.1 mix does sound a little restrained.

First extra is a audio commentary from director John Carpenter and producer Debra Hill which originally featured on Elite Entertainment`s 1995 US laserdisc. Next is a original featurette, Fear On Film: Inside The Fog. This lasts over 7 and a half minutes. There is also a 28 minute featurette, Tales From The Mist: Inside The Fog.

Next is 4 minutes worth of outtakes. Some more outtakes are available as an easter egg. Also included are a storyboard to film comparsion, 2 trailers, a teaser trailer, 3 TV spots and a large photo gallery.

Overall, this is a godd old fashioned horror film presented on a excellent DVD.

For some reason "The Fog" is constantly overlooked in Carpenter's body of work - probably because it is not as exploitative, and therefore less sensational, as some of his more recognized films. In terms of atmosphere however, no other film can even come close to what "The Fog" delivers. The beautiful cinematography and the great locations, combined with solid acting and masterful editing make "The Fog" a timeless horror highlight that has more in common with classic horror films than modern fare, and should be appreciated as such.

This movie is quite literally dripping with atmosphere. From the simple but effective lighting, the impenetrable darkness of the midnight hour shooting schedule and, of course, the titular fog, Carpenter really hones in on what will scare the audience. He takes a perverse pleasure out of juxtaposing the wholesomeness of small town life with the fear that is associated with an unknown terror. Even better, he knows that audiences get even more pleasure out of it than he does.

John Carpenter has shown that it doesn`t take a blockbuster cast and outrageous budget to formulate success. With only a budget of $1 million, The Fog earned more than $21 million during its theatrical run. Though it will likely be overshadowed by other Carpenter favs, one can only hope that the digital upgrade will give the movie some more exposure. MGM has combined a great transfer, excellent sound, laserdisc extras, and new supplements to give fans a DVD to be proud of. With a MSRP under $20, this disc needs to be in every horror fans collection. Highly recommended.

This is not really a scary movie just a very eerie movie.

One of John Carpenter`s best movies with plenty of atmosphere and one very important lesson in life:

BEWARE WHAT YOUR GRANDPARENTS GOT UP TO WHEN THEY WHERE YOUNG!!!!!

From Director John Carpenter comes a great horror film from 1979, All the leads give great performances but the star of the show is the mysterious fog gliding over the water.
The picture is good and the sound excellent, the new documentary, which is more of a retrospective is good and the commentary by Carpenter and Ex-Wife and co-producer Debra Hill is excelent, it is informative and entertaining as all Carpenter commentary`s are!

Feature:

When John Carpenter was on a role this is the kind of entertaining stuff he can come up with. The Fog is brilliant movie. John Carpenters direction is spot on, with great performances all round, even today The Fog is still a chilling masterpiece all round. It also features a great Score from Carpenter, which we hae come to expect from him, and the cinematography is also brilliant, capturing the mood right, well
done all round.

Sound:

A great 5.1 mix from MGM, who know how to treat films like this. Though the 5.1 isn`t that great it`s better than mono!

Picture:

Again could have been better but a great transfer any way.

Extras:

MGM have included some great extras which add to it`s special edition label. A great Commentary by John Carpenter and Ex-Wife Debra Hill. Also the new documentary is good and gives plenty of insight, the original 1980 documentary is good but covers the same ground. The storyboard to film comparison is also a great edition. The linear notes by Carpenter are again informative and good. Let`s hope when Escape From NY is released it`s as good or even better than this.

One of my favourite Carpenter Horror`s. It`s endlessly re-watchable. I feel that the extras should have on a separeate disc as there are some aliasing problems on the disc. With a bit of Tinkering, you can reduce the nature of such things though, I`ve learned...