The Wasteland Reviewer

The Wasteland Gems: The Fog (1980)

How do you choose what to watch on all those streaming services you have access to? There are so many options that it is just overwhelming. These services constantly release new content and overshadow all the great films from the past that are already there and ready to watch. Now there is The Wasteland Gems! Here is a great film on streaming right now that you should check out this weekend:

The Fog (1980)

 When you hear “horror” and “John Carpenter” mentioned together, what films do you think of? Most will think of the classic, low budget slasher that changed the world of horror forever, Halloween. Others will think about the impressively crafted and chilling remake of the classic alien film, The Thing. But Carpenter made a few other horror films that are certainly worth the attention and recognition. One such film is the excellent ghost pirate horror film, The Fog.

What makes this film so scary? The horror of the film certainly comes from the impressive filmmaker from Carpenter and the design of these creepy ghost pirates. One of the trademark elements of Carpenter’s filmmaking is the POV camera shot. Carpenter leverages this well as well as some effective tracking shots with long camera shots. The sustained suspense that Carpenter crafts is quite impressive. Carpenter also does a great job of building up the tension and anticipation to finally see these haunting and grotesque ghost pirates. There are great scenes like the silhouette of a pirate at the glass doors that just build such a sense of dread. The use of the titular fog goes a long way in building that suspense and tension as well.

What is another great selling point of this early 80s Carpenter effort? This film is jammed packed with a wonderful ensemble of actors. Adrienne Barbeau is a strong presence as disc jockey Stevie Wayne, who brings a good bit of personality to the film. Jamie Lee Curtis continues her early career run as a trye scream queen in this follow-up to Halloween. Her mother and legendary actor Janet Leigh, of Psycho fame, even makes an appearance. Tom Aktins was such a great addition to so many beloved 80s flicks and he makes a nice impact paired up with Curtis. Charles Cyphers is another strong and recognizable Carpenter alum coming over from Halloween. Buck Flowers is yet another fun character actor who became a Carpenter regular. You even have Hal Holbrook as Father Malone who makes an impact whenever he is on screen as well as being a significant piece to this chilling mystery.

What is the perfect cherry onto of their eerie and ghastly horror flick? This film has such fun and engaging mystery! What are these ghosts? Why are they here? The revelation is simple yet satisfying. There is a fun folk horror edge and that B-horror movie feel. Carpenter just knows how to make genre flicks, and he makes this lean, mean, and entertaining flick perfect for the Halloween season.

The Fog is streaming on The Criterion Channel.