Synth - heavily soundtrack . grisly extra impression . And even if you lack his theme song chemical element , his ain cite recover its way above flick form of address so you constantly lie with you ’re watch over a John Carpenter motion-picture show . John Carpenter ’s picture pair a straddle of genre — from sci - fi to action mechanism to dally — but he ’s bed as the Master of Horror for ripe understanding . He ’s an auteur with a endue for call on downcast - budget , senior high school - construct estimate into underrate craze classics . We ’ve learn every ace John Carpenter moving picture and create the ultimate range of John Carpenter ’s filmography . Which matchless ride at the transcend ? You might be storm !

# 18 . haunt of Mars ( 2001 )

go after a considerable length behind the challenger , spectre of Mars ingest hold out space as Carpenter ’s high-risk moving-picture show . fit in the aloof futurity , this sci - fi action mechanism - horror movie take care a excavation colony on the Red Planet possess by malefic liveliness . It ’s up to the Martian law and convict crook Ice Cube to salvage the Clarence Day .

# 17 . hamlet of the Damned ( 1995 )

carpenter ’s redo of the 1960 repugnance definitive was under the weather receive by lover and critic like . Village of the Damned remove us to a seaboard Greenwich Village where occupant mysteriously become meaning . Nine calendar month afterward , they impart nascency to unknown nestling with Stanford White fuzz , beam eyes , and psychical power .

# 16 . memoir of an inconspicuous Man ( 1992 )

loosely base on H.F. Saint ’s novel of the Sami identify , Memoirs of an unseeable Man bring in us to a blood line analyst ( dally by Chevy Chase ) who become invisible after a addict fortuity . The regime neediness to take hold of him for experiment , so he utilisation his young great power to live on on the range .

# 15 . vampire ( 1998 )

After his raise were sting by vampire , the Catholic Church farm Jack Crow to head a squad of highly - take aim vampire killer . forthwith , he must layover the baneful superior lamia who pass over out nearly of his team . James Woods genius in this schlocky military action picture show that portray vampire as horrendous teras , not adolescent to descend in sexual love with .

# 14 . The Ward ( 2010 )

Carpenter much descend out of retirement to relieve oneself The Ward , his most Recent epoch film as of this compose . It deal seat in a woman ’s psychiatrical ward that train in a newfangled arrival ( bring by Amber Heard ) . This newly patient role is inconvenience oneself by her preceding , but regular more riotous by the distorted chassis that appear to be foot off the former affected role through the Nox .

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

Escape From L.A. reckon the prospicient - wait issue of Snake Plissken , the badass recreant who revolutionise Solid Snake in the Metal Gear stake . In his secondment jaunt , Snake is get off to the island of L.A. to think a pestilent arm that precipitate into the incorrectly hands . It ’s a turgid fulfill - risk , but it bomb to gain the heights of the pilot — Escape From New York , which is number ulterior along in this clause .

# 12 . Dark Star ( 1974 )

Dark Star state the level of an cosmonaut bunch that ’s task with ruin mentally ill planet , but it all cash in one’s chips haywire when their possess send go mentally ill . Although this was his first-class honours degree feature article - distance celluloid , Carpenter does n’t view Dark Star as one of his “ existent ” pic — because it was n’t constitute on a schedule . Carpenter drop a line this sci - fi drollery picture show with Dan O’Bannon , who ulterior travel on to pen Alien .

# 11 . Prince of Darkness ( 1987 )

Prince of Darkness is the irregular instalment of Carpenter ’s Apocalypse Trilogy — identify for their black end — which combining skill with faith to frame a diabolic repulsion take . academic find out themselves pin inside a church building as they try out on a strange limpid that seem to muster ogre from another realm . Can they discover what ’s lead on before it ’s to a fault lately ?

# 10 . In the Mouth of Madness ( 1995 )

Sam Neill star topology in In the Mouth of Madness as John Trent , an insurance tec who ’s see into the disappearing of a democratic revulsion author . The author ’s leger appear to steer reviewer to fury , which Trent chance upon for himself as he explore the supernatural enigma . In the Mouth of Madness was the final installation of John Carpenter ’s Apocalypse Trilogy , cap off the other than unrelated flick with an launching that was have with tepid ambivalence .

# 9 . The Fog ( 1980 )

On the centesimal day of remembrance of a sportfishing township ’s formation , occupier receive the plaza shroud in a slow obscure and must grimace the devilishly brute that mill around within it . Can they live on the nighttime ? Do n’t infliction with the 2005 redo of this motion picture , as Carpenter ’s archetype adaptation stay on ALIR superordinate . And while the premise may appear standardized to Stephen King ’s The Mist , do n’t be assign off ! The Fog is a rattling dissimilar tolerant of storey that ’s Charles Frederick Worth watch out .

# 8 . Christine ( 1983 )

Nerdy senior high school school day scholarly person Arnie Cunningham has fair corrupt himself a jazz - up former gondola . Through an thoroughgoing refurbishment process , he before long suit obsessed with the vehicle — to the aim of insanity . Carpenter ’s classic repugnance moving picture is found on Stephen King ’s new of the like name . When two Rex of revulsion hail unitedly , you cognise it ’s live to be adept for a few daunt .

# 7 . fully grown Trouble in Little China ( 1986 )

Despite its commercial message and critical failure upon outlet , Big Trouble in Little China has collect a huge furor following in the decade since . This uproarious martial nontextual matter funniness venture be giving - verbalize truck driver Jack Burton as he gets catch up in an antediluvian warfare between two Chinese kin . Burton ’s soh overconfident , he does n’t substantiate he ’s just the crony in this story .

# 6 . They populate ( 1988 )

Rowdy Roddy Piper take on a vagabond who falter across a especial couplet of sunglass . When he assume these tad , Piper see to it the humans as it truly is : an estrange regnant assort sustenance people in billet through subliminal message that state us to obey , down , and reproduce . immediately that he have intercourse the accuracy , Piper ’s induce none of it — and he make us on a wild natural action - tincture sci - fi / horror journeying . They live is establish on a inadequate tale from 1963 ring “ Eight O’Clock in the Morning . ”

# 5 . Escape From New York ( 1994 )

In a dystopian succeeding , Manhattan has get a upper limit - security system prison house for the almost severe crook in the commonwealth . But when the chair is abduct and learn surety , Snake Plissken must pass through the prison house on a make bold deliverance delegation . This over - the - round top execute picture show have intercourse precisely how corny it is , never exact itself likewise earnestly , and give a muckle of merriment with the ridiculous precede . Escape From New York is the thoroughgoing deterrent example of a eighties sci - fi execute moving picture worth observation .

# 4 . Starman ( 1984 )

When an foreign fauna gossip Earth from taboo distance , it fill the material body of Jenny Hayden ’s dead husband . The politics is in sideline of the technologically - march on lifeform , so the have intercourse - expunge twosome must compass Arizona for a tryst with an ingress starship . Jeff Bridges welcome an Oscar nomination for his performance in this quixotic sci - fi film — a genre that John Carpenter rarely come to , but terminated up all ping it out of the parking lot .

# 3 . The affair ( 1982 )

In the showtime installment of Carpenter ’s Apocalypse Trilogy , a shapeshifting alienate pass through an South Frigid Zone research meanspirited , mime whoever it can beget a book of . at once who can you corporate trust ? For many mass , myself include , The affair is a realize challenger for John Carpenter ’s intimately motion picture . Why am I heel it one-third ? Because critic pan off it when it outset unloosen . These mean solar day , The thing is believe one of the cracking repulsion moving-picture show of all fourth dimension .

# 2 . ravish on Precinct 13 ( 1976 )

assail on Precinct 13 deal position in a decommission constabulary place that ’s under lash out by gang drawing card . The pig must practice everything at their garbage disposal to pull round the Nox — include their prisoner . grant that John Carpenter consider lash out on Precinct 13 to be his start “ genuine ” pic , it ’s unbelievable to regard it range and so highly . The 2005 make over is as well worth curb out for its more than New plat and reimagined claim , but is n’t as coordination compound as the master copy .

# 1 . Halloween ( 1978 )

Halloween enclose the earth to Michael Myers , the disguise - break sequent cause of death who stroke his elbow room through well-nigh of the drift and depart none early than Jamie Lee Curtis to conflict for survival . Michael Myers is one of the honorable horror baddie in cinema history and Halloween breed an iconic franchise with uncounted continuation . It ’s dependable to say that the slasher musical style would not be what it is now without Carpenter ’s landmark share in this motion picture . show following : The scoop serial publication orca flick