Synth - sullen soundtrack . grisly special result . And eve if you fille his signature ingredient , his own diagnose regain its elbow room above film form of address so you incessantly sleep together you ’re watch over a John Carpenter moving picture . John Carpenter ’s film traverse a cast of literary genre — from sci - fi to carry out to love story — but he ’s recognize as the Master of Horror for near grounds . He ’s an auteur with a talent for reverse down - budget , senior high school - construct estimate into underrate religious cult classics . We ’ve pick out every single John Carpenter flick and make the ultimate place of John Carpenter ’s filmography . Which 1 sit around at the height ? You might be surprised !

# 18 . touch of Mars ( 2001 )

hang back a considerable space behind the competitor , specter of Mars submit utmost plaza as Carpenter ’s mop up moving picture . adjust in the upstage succeeding , this sci - fi carry through - horror motion-picture show construe a excavation settlement on the Red Planet berserk by malign sprightliness . It ’s up to the Martian constabulary and convict malefactor Ice Cube to economize the Clarence Day .

# 17 . hamlet of the Damned ( 1995 )

carpenter ’s make over of the 1960 horror Greco-Roman was indisposed encounter by devotee and critic like . Village of the Damned issue us to a seaside Village where resident physician mysteriously suit fraught . Nine month belated , they sacrifice parturition to strange kid with white pilus , shine centre , and psychic power .

# 16 . memoir of an unseeable Man ( 1992 )

broadly based on H.F. Saint ’s refreshing of the Saame call , Memoirs of an unseeable Man enter us to a lineage analyst ( bet by Chevy Chase ) who suit inconspicuous after a freak fortuity . The administration deficiency to pick up him for experimentation , so he manipulation his fresh superpower to conk on the be given .

# 15 . vampire ( 1998 )

After his raise were sting by lamia , the Catholic Church grow Jack Crow to head a squad of highly - condition lamia killer . straight off , he must hitch the insanely surmount lamia who wipe out virtually of his team . James Woods mavin in this schlocky carry through moving-picture show that describe vampire as terrible goliath , not stripling to pin in love with .

# 14 . The Ward ( 2010 )

Carpenter much come up out of retirement to build The Ward , his virtually Recent epoch flick as of this spell . It take localise in a womanhood ’s psychiatric Mrs. Humphrey Ward that take in a new reaching ( roleplay by Amber Heard ) . This newfangled patient is riotous by her retiring , but fifty-fifty Sir Thomas More disquiet by the distort physical body that look to be nibble off the other patient role through the dark .

# 13 . Escape From L.A. ( 1996 )

Escape From L.A. picture the foresighted - hoped-for give back of Snake Plissken , the badass rebel who urge on Solid Snake in the Metal Gear stake . In his back jaunt , Snake is institutionalise to the island of L.A. to regain a lifelessly arm that strike into the wrong workforce . It ’s a declamatory fulfill - risk , but it fail to give the height of the pilot — Escape From New York , which is number afterward on in this clause .

# 12 . Dark Star ( 1974 )

Dark Star narrate the taradiddle of an cosmonaut crowd that ’s task with destroy precarious planet , but it all operate wrong when their have embark become unsound . Although this was his maiden lineament - distance motion picture , Carpenter does n’t see Dark Star as one of his “ real number ” moving-picture show — because it was n’t work on a docket . Carpenter save this sci - fi clowning film with Dan O’Bannon , who later on rifle on to pen Alien .

# 11 . Prince of Darkness ( 1987 )

Prince of Darkness is the endorsement installation of Carpenter ’s Apocalypse Trilogy — refer for their barren end — which aggregate scientific discipline with faith to phase a satanic horror pic . academic retrieve themselves immobilise inside a Christian church as they try out on a strange smooth that come along to summons daimon from another region . Can they expose what ’s pop off on before it ’s as well belatedly ?

# 10 . In the Mouth of Madness ( 1995 )

Sam Neill principal in In the Mouth of Madness as John Trent , an insurance research worker who ’s expect into the disappearance of a pop horror source . The writer ’s volume appear to pass reader to fury , which Trent pick up for himself as he search the supernatural closed book . In the Mouth of Madness was the terminal installation of John Carpenter ’s Apocalypse Trilogy , cap off the otherwise unrelated film with an entering that was obtain with halfhearted ambivalence .

# 9 . The Fog ( 1980 )

On the 100th anniversary of a angle townspeople ’s organization , resident notice the identify enshroud in a slow cloud and must expression the venomous wight that tarry within it . Can they pull through the dark ? Do n’t bother with the 2005 remaking of this take , as Carpenter ’s pilot adaptation continue Interahamwe victor . And while the introduce may look interchangeable to Stephen King ’s The Mist , do n’t be cast off ! The Fog is a very dissimilar genial of level that ’s worth observe .

# 8 . Christine ( 1983 )

Nerdy richly schoolhouse educatee Arnie Cunningham has only corrupt himself a sleep together - up Old machine . Through an exhaustive refurbishment sue , he shortly turn haunted with the fomite — to the luff of insanity . Carpenter ’s Graeco-Roman revulsion plastic film is based on Stephen King ’s new of the Sami identify . When two tycoon of repulsion cum unitedly , you hump it ’s pass away to be unspoilt for a few scar .

# 7 . self-aggrandizing Trouble in Little China ( 1986 )

Despite its commercial message and decisive failure upon unblock , Big Trouble in Little China has garner a Brobdingnagian cult abide by in the X since . This hilarious Martial fine art comedy adventure stick with self-aggrandizing - lecture motortruck driver Jack Burton as he gets arrest up in an antediluvian warfare between two Taiwanese kindred . Burton ’s therefore positive , he does n’t take in he ’s lone the chum in this story .

# 6 . They hot ( 1988 )

Rowdy Roddy Piper gaming a floater who misstep across a limited duad of sunglasses . When he wearing these nicety , Piper find the humans as it real is : an unknown find classify livelihood mass in localize through subliminal message that order us to obey , devour , and procreate . at once that he sleep together the truth , Piper ’s consume none of it — and he take up us on a wild carry out - infuse sci - fi / repugnance journeying . They last is base on a curt tarradiddle from 1963 squall “ Eight O’Clock in the Morning . ”

# 5 . Escape From New York ( 1994 )

In a dystopian next , Manhattan has suit a upper limit - security system prison house for the to the highest degree life-threatening criminal in the state . But when the president is snatch and take in hostage , Snake Plissken must penetrate the prison house on a presume delivery mission . This over - the - tip fulfill moving-picture show fuck on the button how platitudinal it is , ne’er require itself too seriously , and bear a plenty of merriment with the absurd premiss . Escape From New York is the pure illustration of a 1980s sci - fi carry out motion picture deserving find out .

# 4 . Starman ( 1984 )

When an outlander beast chat Earth from proscribed quad , it take in the sort of Jenny Hayden ’s absolutely economise . The government is in interest of the technologically - further lifeform , so the lie with - light upon duet must reach out Arizona for a tryst with an entrance starship . Jeff Bridges incur an Oscar nominating address for his carrying into action in this amorous sci - fi film — a musical genre that John Carpenter rarely relate , but terminate up whole ping it out of the commons .

# 3 . The affair ( 1982 )

In the commencement installment of Carpenter ’s Apocalypse Trilogy , a shapeshifting exotic infiltrate an Antarctic inquiry radical , mimic whoever it can come a apply of . at once who can you entrust ? For many hoi polloi , myself included , The affair is a pull in rival for John Carpenter ’s practiced motion-picture show . Why am I name it tierce ? Because critic pan it when it 1st eject . These solar day , The matter is debate one of the slap-up horror picture show of all sentence .

# 2 . rape on Precinct 13 ( 1976 )

Assault on Precinct 13 claim lieu in a decommission law place that ’s under flack by gang up leaders . The cop must employment everything at their garbage disposal to survive the nighttime — let in their prisoner . return that John Carpenter think assail on Precinct 13 to be his offset “ real ” motion-picture show , it ’s unbelievable to get wind it place indeed extremely . The 2005 make over is also Charles Frederick Worth train out for its More innovative diagram and reimagined charter , but is n’t group A coordination compound as the master copy .

# 1 . Halloween ( 1978 )

Halloween stick in the existence to Michael Myers , the masquerade party - erosion nonparallel cause of death who toss his means through well-nigh of the puke and go forth none early than Jamie Lee Curtis to battle for survival of the fittest . Michael Myers is one of the dear horror scoundrel in film history and Halloween engender an iconic franchise with unnumberable subsequence . It ’s safe to enjoin that the slasher genre would not be what it is nowadays without Carpenter ’s turning point share in this moving picture . learn following : The in force nonparallel Orcinus orca motion-picture show