John Carpenter is the definitive director of horror, even factoring in fellow legends Wes Craven and Tobe Hooper as well as newer masters Ari Aster and Robert Eggers. And just as any of them had or have, Carpenter was known for having his muses, his frequent collaborators. Jamie Lee Curtis was in Halloween and The Fog, Donald Pleasence was in Halloween, Escape from New York, and Prince of Darkness, Adrienne Barbeau was in The Fog, Escape from New York, and had a vocal cameo in The Thing, and the late Peter Jason was in Prince of Darkness, They Live, In the Mouth of Madness, Village of the Damned, Escape from L.A., and Ghosts of Mars.
But even with all those collaborations, Peter Jason was not, in fact, Carpenter’s best collaborator. That would be Kurt Russell. Even still, not all five of their movies were made equal.
5) Escape from L.A.
image courtesy of paramount pictures
It says a lot that the worst of Carpenter and Russell’s collaborations is still a good bit of fun. It’s definitely cheesier than its far superior predecessor, Escape from New York, but you’ll find yourself having fun with the return of Snake Plissken. You even get a cameo from Bruce Campbell playing a body part-harvesting mad scientist.
As for why Escape from L.A. is no New York, it comes down to a narrative that feels one part rehash and one part lacking the urgency of the original. Then there’s the surfing scene, which has some of the most laughable CGI of any ’90s movie. It’s enjoyable, but outside the basketball scene (itself kind of a copy of the first film’s wrestling scene), not much of it will really stick with you. In a good way, anyway.
4) Elvis
image courtesy of abc
Austin Butler did a good job as the King, but it was really Russell and Carpenter who nailed it. And with the 1979 version we also don’t get the hammy Tom Hanks performance as Colonel Tom Parker (here, Batman‘s Pat Hingle plays him as an actual human being, not a Foghorn Leghorn knockoff).
Escape from New York and Used Cars are the movies that are typically seen as Russell’s transition from Disney child star to adult actor, but it was really this TV movie that marked that shift. And deservedly so, because Russell’s inhabitation of the music legend is uncanny.
3) Big Trouble in Little China
image courtesy of 20th century studios
If we were only giving points for originality, Big Trouble in Little China would find itself in position number one without a shred of competition. Now, its unique tone and story make it inherently not for everyone, but for those who can get on its wavelength, it will find itself rewatched each and every year.
It’s a movie that knows the genre conventions of the action film and stops just short of adhering to them. Russell’s Jack Burton is another wonderful concoction. He’s a tough guy, or at least thinks he is, but he’s not even really the hero of his own story. He’s more just a goofball who thinks he’s on top of things yet never is. To be fair to him, he doesn’t know kung fu and is as baffled as the viewer that there are people out there who know how to perform magic.
Stream Big Trouble in Little China on Prime Video.
2) Escape from New York
image courtesy of avco embassy pictures
Russell and Carpenter’s greatest trick was taking a character utterly devoid of emotion and making him endearing. But Russell’s perfect casting as Snake Plissken is just one thing that makes Escape from New York a classic.
It’s sublimely paced, never overstaying its welcome, which alone allows it to be one of the most rewatchable actioners of the ’80s. Toss in Carpenter’s score (all of them have been great, but this is one of his most hummable), a villain performance by Isaac Hayes, and a convincing decimated New York and this is an all-timer.
Stream Escape from New York on Prime Video.
1) The Thing
Image Courtesy of Universal
With most directors it’s not hard to say what their very best movie is. With Carpenter it comes down to a tie between Halloween and The Thing. It’s impossible to choose because neither has a flaw.
As great as Escape from New York is, this is still easily the best Carpenter-Russell film. It’s unbearably tense all the way through, the performances are perfectly modulated, and the practical effects are some of the very best of all time. It’s also so well structured that, no matter how many times you watch, you don’t really, truly know who all has become the Thing at any given moment.
Stream The Thing on Shudder.
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