Martin Scorsese names his favourite John Carpenter movies
As one of the forefront forces of the New Hollywood wave, alongside the likes of Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and Brian De Palma, Martin Scorsese found an early career niche in gritty realism. Mean Streets and Taxi Driver, in particular, proved Scorsese’s talent behind the camera and kicked off his pivotal actor-director relationship with Robert De Niro.
As Scorsese’s career developed, his horizons broadened to encompass sports drama in Raging Bull, the biopic in The Aviator and thrilling mystery in Shutter Island. Although the narratives and settings differ, Scorsese binds his oeuvre with a distinctive lens, just as prevalent yet more subtle than that of Wes Anderson.
Although Scorsese’s projects are almost always tethered to the unnerving side of reality, the Goodfellas director is a surprising fan of sci-fi horror, especially that created by the legendary director John Carpenter. It would appear Scorsese draws his line somewhere between such fantasies and the glossy action of Marvel movies.
Carpenter is known best for his expansive sci-fi horror catalogue, which boasts The Fog, The Thing, Escape from New York and Starman, among many others. However, his most famous project was 1978’s Halloween. Several directors have led the iconic slasher franchise through a further 12 instalments to date, updating and sterilising as they go.
Scorsese once revealed his admiration for Carpenter and some of his highlight movies as part of an interview feature. “John Carpenter is a filmmaker who is unashamed to stay within the genres he loves and who practices his trade like a master craftsman. His pictures always have a handmade quality – every cut, every move, every choice of framing and camera movement, not to mention every note of music [he composes his own scores] feels like it has been composed or placed by the filmmaker himself.”
“His sense of composition is quite exacting and precise, and his control of movement inside and outside the frame can be hair-raising,” he continued. “There are so many moments in his films that are absolutely startling- the murder of the little girl with the ice-cream cone in Assault on Precinct 13; the appearances of Michael Myers on the very edge of the frame in Halloween; the appearances of the creature in his truly terrifying remake of The Thing. And the mood of his pictures is so carefully crafted and sustained. I’m a great admirer of The Fog. the mood of it, the sense of mystery.”
He added: “But I also love They Live, in which an alien invasion of America is uncovered by people living on the ragged edge of society in Los Angeles. This movie was Carpenter’s commentary on what he saw as the excesses of the Reagan era, and the movie shares many qualities with pictures made during the Depression, such as Heroes for Sale and Wild Boys of the Road. It’s lyrical and tough at the same time, with a strong sense of community among the displaced people living in makeshift homes on the outskirts of LA, and the mood is unusually sad and bitter.”
“The science-fiction element reveals itself as the story goes on: The ‘beautiful people’ on TV and walking down Rodeo Drive are actually aliens, transmitting subliminal messages to the hypnotised masses, their true images visible through special glasses that are being handed out at a mission for the poor. I like the humour of the picture, the hilariously long fight scene between ‘Rowdy’ Roddy Piper and Keith David, and the sense of outrage. They Live is one of the best films of a fine American director,” Scorsese concluded, picking out a personal favourite.
Martin Scorsese’s favourite John Carpenter movies:
- They Live (1988)
- Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)
- Halloween (1978)
- The Fog (1980)
- The Thing (1982)
