Prince of Darkness (1987)

The second instalment in John Carpenter's Apocalypse Trilogy, Prince of Darkness finds the legendary filmmaker blending the elements of quantum physics & religion into one atmospheric horror that's consistently gripping, entertaining & suspenseful but slightly goofy as well.The story of Prince of Darkness takes place inside an abandoned church where a research team is invited by a priest to investigate an old secret that has been kept there for many years. As the team conduct their experiments, they realise that it's something far more sinister than they imagined.Written & directed by John Carpenter (best known for Halloween & The Thing), an air of mystery & sense of foreboding pervades the story from the very beginning as Carpenter establishes a disquieting atmosphere almost instantly with his haunting score & snippets of moments that accompany the opening credit sequence.The premise set up & tension build up is real quick and once the main plot surfaces, Carpenter slowly ratchets up the tension while retaining the mystery and conjures up some terrific chills. Characters aren't fully fleshed and have nothing to make us invest in their predicament but thanks to its dreadful aura, the interest is never lost.The isolated setting surrounded by a growing mass of homeless people only helps in amplifying its chilling ambience. Camera is expertly manoeuvred throughout the film, using different techniques & sources to add a distorting vibe to its images. Its 101 minutes runtime is steadily paced but the story would've benefitted from a few trims.Coming to the performances, the cast consists of mostly those who have worked on his films previously and they all chip in with serviceable inputs, if not more. Another aspect worthy of a mention is the film's thrilling score composed by John Carpenter himself, for those synth-heavy tracks add an eeriness to its already dark, menacing & ominous mood.On an overall scale, Prince of Darkness is another insidious feature from The Horror Master that may appear a bit dated today but its taut atmosphere & interesting story will manage to keep most viewers around until the end. John Carpenter's attempt to experiment with the genre and do something differently from the norm never fails to impress and for the uncanny experience it has in store, Prince of Darkness is well-worthy of its cult following.

Trust John Carpenter to constantly subvert expectations, aim for innovation and simply just please the crowds throughout his career. Prince Of Darkness is, at first glance, a creaky ol' fright fest, and it is that, but there's also a cheeky little irreverent streak to it as well, a borderline atheist flourish that you wouldn't normally find in a flick about summoning up the devil. Carpenter lays the atmosphere on thick, especially with a reliably spooky electronic score and a pace that burns slow and steady. Deep in the crypt of a church there lies a large glass vial containing swirling green matter, a pseudo scientific/spiritual cocktail that contains the "anti god", a denizen composed of backward atoms that wants to break out and raise a little hell. Grim faced priest Donald Pleasence will prevent this at any cost, and hires a team of underpaid undergrads led by a crusty professor (Victor Wong) to research it, camping out in the church for kicks. You can imagine how this goes, and there's a refreshingly old school 'Body Snatchers' vibe as various characters fall victim to the creeping dark forces. There's also mind-stimulating, sci-fi ideas at work too though, including an intriguing time travel prospect and a deft little jab at religion via the story's trickier elements. Carpenter, although hailed as a master of horror, is no simpleton when it comes to ideas, and he flexes his cerebral muscles nicely here. Ambient, gooey, smart, provocative, a terrific little fright fest that leaves you wanting more.

So maybe I'm stretching "classic" a bit, but this film never got the good reviews I felt it deserved, an I'm a veteran of many things horror. The subject matter is fairly original. Did you ever hear of Satan as a green fluid held prisoner under a creepy old church? I didn't think so. Watch how Donald Pleasance overacts, but he's engaging, and makes anything he's in that more enjoyable. A few more familiar faces include Jameson Parker, who's sporting a Freddie Mercury mustache, Dennis Dun, Alice Cooper(that's right)and Victor Wong. I found this film very suspenseful with some interesting kills, and cool scenes. It's not a film that ends nicely, like many John Carpenter films, so you may feel empty after watching it, but the ride should be worth it. There are a few negative things, however, that bear mentioning, such as poor character development, as there's really no one to root for, and an awful, forced love scene that's almost as bad as the one from The Fog(1980), as it wasn't needed at all. Getting those out of the way, I still recommend this film, as I don't think Carpenter made many more good ones after this came out.

John Carpenter's Prince Of Darkness is his second film in what he refers to as his apocalpse trilogy. The other two films are The Thing and In The Mouth Of Madness, the three films are not part of the same series or storyline , but all share an end of the world theme and are all made by Carpenter. Prince Of Darkness is also a return to the horror genre and low budget film making as John Carpenter was tired of dealing with big studios. He had complete creative control on this project and made a very strange, but original horror film that is very well done overall. The story is quite ambitious and crazy, combining theories from quantum mechanics and theology. Satan has been imprisoned in the basement of a Los Angeles church and when a priest dies that was part of a secret sect called The Brotherhood Of Sleep strange things start happening around the church and his successor another priest played by Donald Pleasance ask scientist (Victor Wong) for help. Wong brings in his group of scientists and students to help investigate and explain the strange phenomenon and find out that the vat of green slime was Satan imprisoned. The canister of green slime has been opened and Satan possesses people by spitting green slime in the victim's mouth, turning them into zombies and agents of Satan. Satan plans on using his human host to bring his father ( an all powerful Anti God) from a different dimension to bring about the end of civilization. The film has great ambiance accompanied with Mr. Carpenter's amazing score which really helped set the tone in this piece. The mood is dark and very creepy with satanic zombies, green slime, a lot of bugs and a cameo by shock rocker Alice Cooper as main zombie creeper. The performances are very good by an ensemble cast that includes frequent Carpenter collaborators Donald Pleasance, Dennis Dun, Victor Wong and Peter Jason. The film may be a bit much for some viewers to grasp as there is a lot of information to take in and can be better understood with multiple viewings. Prince Of Darkness is very much a thinking person's horror film and John Carpenter's nightmare vision is a very interesting and cerebral film that is very unique and very entertaining horror film.