An Introduction to John Carpenter
Jorge Solis, Resident John Carpenter Expert

John Carpenter. 

When I think of horror movies, the names of directors Wes Craven, Dario Argento, and George A. Romero come to mind but John Carpenter stands out from all the rest. I know what I'm expecting when I see John Carpenter's name above the title of the movie. A John Carpenter movie is exciting, fun, and sometimes, suspenseful.

Now I'm not going to tell you where John Carpenter went to school, where he grew up, or his entire life story. I'm not even going to tell you which movies were his box-office triumphs or blunders. If I told you any of this, this wouldn't make me a true John Carpenter fan. Instead I'm going to tell you what really matters: his work.

In my opinion, John Carpenter's direction has become better and different with each movie. John Carpenter's direction in Halloween is reckless and wild but in Starman, his direction is controlled and steady. He is a musician as well as a director. He has composed the music to many of his movies. John Carpenter is also a writer, which I think is very important. His writing style is impressive and you will know it when you his movie, Assault on Precinct 13.

I won't be able to review all his movies like his Oscar award winning short film, The Resurrection of Bronco Billy.  I'm not making it up when I say that the master of horror, John Carpenter, is an Oscar winner. John Carpenter has also worked in television with his production of the tv-movie, Elvis and he did the made for cable movie, Body Bags, with Tobe Hooper for Showtime. You probably won't find these works in your local Blockbuster. With the movies that I do review, I would like others to know why John Carpenter is my favorite director.

John Carpenter is a writer, director, and a musician. The other person that I can think of who can do all three is the director of Abre Los Ojos, Alejandro Amenabar. I can't even name ten filmmakers who can do all three. John Carpenter is a rare kind of filmmaker and I hope to show you that through my reviews.