Rating: 
Summary: Scary as Hell
Review: One of John Carpenter's last truly great movies, made before he lost his touch and began cranking out dreck like "In the Mouth of Madness" and "Vampires."Not surprisingly this film tanked at the box office when released way back in 1987. It's script, a heady mix of quantum physics, religious doctrine, and questions about the origins of Christ and Satan, challenges everything viewers think they know about God, the Devil, and Man. But true horror film fans will appreciate it's intelligent script about Satan's return to earth and his attempts to bring along something even worse than him. What could possibly be worse than Satan? Buy the movie and find out. You won't be dissappointed. At its core, "Prince" is an old-fashioned horror film. A group of people, in this case, college grad students, their professor, and an emotionally shattered priest, are trapped in an old spooky place(a church) with something horrible. But the script's deft mix of science and secret scripture lifts it above cliche. Carpenter's skillfull direction creates a sense of claustrophobic tension that makes you feel as if you're in the movie. There are few directors who can create this sense of menace even in daylight scenes but Carpenter pulls it off. The film's first scene establishes a sense of escalating dread that spirals into full blown terror by the movie's final moments. You'll also be thinking about the film's bone-chilling last scene long after you've hit the rewind button.
Rating:
Summary: Q: Is Evil Animal, Vegetable, or Mineral? A: Liquid!
Review: John Carpenter's "Prince of Darkness" is vintage Carpenter and one of the Master's greatest and most underrated outings, serving up a masterfully ghoulish, take-no-prisoners, heavy on the red sauce and liquefied pure green Evil little howler of a horror movie. Consider "Prince of Darkness" as a fine Carpenterian wine (a merlot, of course---a deep *red* merlot), well aged---after all, 1987 was a good year, and this film is a fine vintage. The bouquet? Rich and heady, a fine distillation of "Assault on Precinct 13" and "The Thing." With that in mind, let's pop the cork on "Prince of Darkness". When the last, venerable priest of an ancient and mysterious Catholic order dies, Father Loomis (played with aplomb by the great Donald Pleasence---possibly playing the brother of Mike Myer's shrink?), sent to gather the priest's effects and secure his crumbling parish church, discovers something green, liquid and nasty bottled up in the church basement, and it's not detergent. Father Loomis calls in a team of physics students and linguistic researchers, who begin to suspect something Evil is afoot in the church basement, and It has plans of its own. Let the Smackdown commence! In this corner: A team of physics grad students led by Parker Jameson (A.J. Simon from the TV series "Simon and Simon, of course!) and veteran character actor Victor Wong (from Carpenter's other camp classic "Big Trouble in Little China", here hamming it up and chewing scenery with furious abandon and with the help of a spooky eye), and of course with Pleasence bringing in the ecclesiastical heavy weapons.
AND in this Corner: Evil, incarnate as puke-green liquid encased in a translucent cylinder in the base of a decrepit L.A. church, and its zombified homeless minions, who are in turn led by Alice Cooper with extra ghoul make-up. Welcome to my nightmare, indeed! As silly as all of it might sound, Carpenter has made a nasty, atmospheric, stylish and grippingly effective little horror movie, one that still disturbs me when I watch it---this is not a movie for the fainthearted. But more to the point, it's loads of fun; just look what you get--- *The Ultimate Evil---in a Can! It spews, it congeals, it defies gravity, and it infects its victims and makes them behave badly, right down to belching and personal remarks. This is nasty stuff, folks! *Donald Pleasence, Jameson Parker, AND Victor Wong in the same movie---and all over-acting (which in itself should bring about the end of the world)! *Some of the most merciless, nasty kills this side of "The Thing"---including death by cockroach swarm and my personal favorite, death by Bicycle (chain that thing, son)!
*Zombified homeless people, including a creepy-crawly Alice Cooper and a nice turn by veteran character actor Joanna Merlin (what's...that....in her alms cup?)!
*A trademark extra-creepy crawly Soundtrack composed by John Carpenter!
*Sexy physics grad-student pick-up lines and a happening romance between Parker and heroine Lisa Blount! If I'm making this sound more campy than horrifying, then I don't mean to, because "Prince of Darkness" is Carpenter at his very best: sure some of the acting is a little raw (but remember: if you can afford lots of b-movie actors, you get more gory kills!), but the editing, sleek cinematography (by first-timer Gary Kibbe, who went on to become a regular Carpenter crew-member), and sleazy set design come together to underscore the film's subtext of Evil as dry-rot. This is a brutal, relentlessly gory, and completely merciless little horror movie that doesn't pull any punches, and it does a fine job of painting its bleak, genuinely malignant atmosphere. There are some truly nasty touches here that will stay with you long after the credits roll: for instance, the 'radio broadcasts' (from another dimension? from the future?) gave me the crawls. If you like your Ultimate Evil with a side-order of nuclear physics, then "Prince of Darkness" is certain not to disappoint.
Rating: 
Summary: An "almost" perfect Horror film. Unique best decribes.
Review: Reality check:
Major Problem #1: this film features what is perhaps the most annoying opening credits sequence of any film ever made. The opening titles intercut between black screen with white text credits and silent scenes, backed only by Capenter (and Howarth's) superb soundtrack. But, it does so for an excruciatingly long time. I recall, vividly, seeing this film as a free movie presented by a local rock station, and most of the audience was either drunk, or stoned, or both. And the comically long dance between text credits and silent set-up scenes became fodder for the fiesty crowd, who began to moan, groan, laugh, scream, and throw popcorn as one of Carpenter's greatest miscalculations paraded on for a what must have been at least 10 minutes, an eternity in film time! Get to the movie already!
Problem #2: after a promising beginning (except for the opening titles fiasoc) and a middle great enough to put any horror fan in opium exctasy, the film does, unfortunately, degenerate into a Zombie movie (which has, perhaps, more relevance today, what with the whole Zombie revival of the last few years [Resident Evil, Hose of the Dead, 28 Days Later, Dawn of the Dead]). But, besides any recent relevence, this degeneration to a mindless shuffling zombies flick is a slap in the face to the film's brilliant build up which contains a combination of Quantum Theory, Theology, and Alien Conspiracy on such a level of Magnificense as to put the X-Files and The Prophecy to shame.
But more to the point of why I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. . .this is NOT the kind of film that you watch and, promptly, forget. There is a mythic resonance and subtle religiously horrific texture that permeates to one's subconscious and stays with the viewer, like the insistant and intrusive forced tacion dreams from the future which appear in the film, and never ever leave you.
The swirling container which imprisons the Prince of Darkness standing in the candle fillled basement of the church where the alter would stand in a chaple, the terrifying truth that science has proven that reality is not at all what we thought it was (a fact which has yet to sink in to the popular consciousness despite being realized more than half a century ago), the subtle acting (which is well above average for a b-movie) of Carpenter regulars like Pleasance and Wong, the brilliant cinematography which is painterly and artistic to its very core, and, perhaps more than, or, perhaps the sum of, it all, is the amazing score by Carpenter (with collaborator Alan Howarth) which achieves an electronic depth and ressonance beyond anything previous to, at the same time of, or to come in film scores. This is the kind of movie that, in the right hands, could be "remade" into a stunningly brilliant masterpiece, but will, most likely never be.
But all problems aside, all positive and negative, by all you hold holy, fact or fiction, real or unreal, if you are a fan of horror, sci-fi, or carpenter, you simply MUST see this film.
And be very cautious when you dream, if grainy video images of the front of a church shot on a shakey home camera dance before your eyes, for gosh sake, wake yourself up before you see what opens the front doors and reveals itself. Or it might just be the end of the world. . .
Rating:
Summary: Another good one from Carpenter
Review: Sunday, May 09, 2004 / 4 of 5 / Another good one from Carpenter. There is a certain niche in the horror genre that mixes religion and science well. Event Horizon, and Prince of Darkness are prime examples. I always enjoy this offering from Carpenter, it has his trademark minimalist musical tone set throughout, like the throbbing of a heartbeat. It also has his weird bent on conflict through identity issues, people are taken over and used to attack the others. And of course there is the shocking image of a bad guy standing in full view in the shadows, unmoving ala Halloween. A disparate group of grad students including physicists, language people, biologists, etc. are brought together to an abandoned church to investigate a mysterious cylinder which may well contain Satan. About to be loosed, he seeks his father an 'anti-God'. An interesting take on the theory of opposites in the universe, never mind that the dogma of an omni-powerful monotheistic God makes that possibility moot. Carpenter staple Donald Pleasance plays the latest in the line of priests to learn about the monstrous lie propagated by the church that evil is not in fact a sleeping physical entity. Cat and mouse games ensue in the church as the group gets trapped by homeless people under the power of Satan. Recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Scary as Hell
Review: One of John Carpenter's last truly great movies, made before he lost his touch and began cranking out dreck like "In the Mouth of Madness" and "Vampires." Not surprisingly this film tanked at the box office when released way back in 1987. It's script, a heady mix of quantum physics, religious doctrine, and questions about the origins of Christ and Satan, challenges everything viewers think they know about God, the Devil, and Man. But true horror film fans will appreciate it's intelligent script about Satan's return to earth and his attempts to bring along something even worse than him. What could possibly be worse than Satan? Buy the movie and find out. You won't be dissappointed. At its core, "Prince" is an old-fashioned horror film. A group of people, in this case, college grad students, their professor, and an emotionally shattered priest, are trapped in an old spooky place(a church) with something horrible. But the script's deft mix of science and secret scripture lifts it above cliche. Carpenter's skillfull direction creates a sense of claustrophobic tension that makes you feel as if you're in the movie. There are few directors who can create this sense of menace even in daylight scenes but Carpenter pulls it off. The film's first scene establishes a sense of escalating dread that spirals into full blown terror by the movie's final moments. You'll also be thinking about the film's bone-chilling last scene long after you've hit the rewind button.
Rating:
Summary: Low-budget chiller way better than it should be!
Review: Prince of Darkness SHOULD have been a horrible movie. It has alot of things wrong with it. For instance: -The opening credits are boring and take a LONG time to roll by.
-The first half hour of the movie, nothing much happens.
-There is a "romantic" subplot that is about as exciting and fun as eating paint chips.
-The budget is clearly really small, even for a Carpenter flick.
-It has a lot of scientific/spiritual mumbo-jumbo dialogue, which is bount to put people off in what is mostly a ZOMBIE MOVIE.
-The plot is outrageous, even by horror movie standards.
-Almost all the actors are recycled from older John Carpenter movies like "Big Trouble in Little China."
-Satan in a jar... 'nuff said.
-Alice Cooper... 'nuff said. Having said all that, this movie really creeped me out. It has some good scares, some gross-outs, and some chilling moments. The ending was flat-out nuts, in a good way. This movie doesn't measure up to Carpenter's version of "The Thing," but it is a good and original chiller all the same. On to the DVD... the sound and picture quality are excellent, but you get practically NO extras whatsoever. And I think this movie deserves the "Special Edition" treatment like "The Thing" and "The Fog" got.
Rating:
Summary: One hell of a ride!
Review: I'm going to get this out of the way, by stating up front what is wrong with this movie: -The opening credits take WAY too long. What was he thinking? Start the movie, get a beer, come back 5 minutes later.
-Related to #1, the movie is slow to start and the pacing seems a little uneven. Not much happens but talking for a while. If you expect a continuous slash-o-rama, you will be disappointed.
-The premise is a real doozy, and might bounce some people right out of the movie before anything even gets started.
-Like alot of Carpenter movies, this one has a small budget, and it sometimes shows.
-If you don't like John Carpenter's soundtracks, well, this has got one, only more so. Having said all that, I am forced to admit that "The Prince of Darkness" is one hell of a horror movie. Not quite on par with the damn-near-perfect "The Thing," and in fact a very different kind of horror movie, but a killer movie on its own merits. It is also more thought-provoking and intelligent than almost anything wearing the "horror" label. It makes great use of the "everything you know is wrong" premise to really screw with your head, and if it doesn't freak you out once or twice, you just ain't human.
Rating:
Summary: It is evil. It is real. It is awakening.
Review: Something evil is awakening in the ancient basement of St. Goddard's church, something that has lain dormant and for eons, until now... Between Big Trouble in little China (1986) and They Live (1988), John Carpenter released The Prince of Darkness (1987), a chilling story that asks the question is the devil a concept created by humans or is it a real, living, breathing entity? After the death of an elderly priest, one who turns out to be a member of an ancient and once powerful sect within the Catholic Church, a key is found among his meager possessions by Father Loomis (Donald Pleasance). The key unlocks a door within a deserted church, a door that leads to an older area containing a large cylinder with a greenish, swirling liquid. Father Loomis, sensing the stirrings of the contents of the container, contacts Professor Howard Birack (Victor Wong) and enlists his aide in determining the true nature of what is within the cylinder. Professor Birack gathers a group of graduate students to investigate, including Brian Marsh, played by Jameson Parker, who many may remember as A.J. Simon from the television show Simon & Simon. As the group begins to investigate, strange things begin to happen, homeless people gathering around the derelict church, the appearance of large amount of bugs and worms where the were none, etc. Soon various members of the group fall victim to the power of what is in the cylinder, and become pawns in a desperate struggle for the very soul of humanity. I did enjoy this film much and all the little, well thought out, elements that enhanced the story, focusing on the characters just enough to allow the audience to develop empathy for them, but not getting bogged down. There were a number of characters involved, and some could argue they were mostly fodder for the horror, but it didn't always appear such. Some aspects of the story may be lost unless particular attention is paid as the plot unravels, but I found it fairly easy to keep up, as I think most viewers would. I really enjoyed the idea of the use of advanced science to validate what couldn't be seen for so many years. Sometimes the story dragged a bit, but it felt deliberate, as if Carpenter was trying to build suspense leading up to the final confrontation. The inclusion of the 'dream' messages was quite nice, as I missed that when I first saw this movie so long ago. As always, Carpenter also managed to inject a small amount of humor to ease the tension before shocking back into the reality of the film. Some of the effects were lackluster, but that was easy for me to overlook, as I was riveted to the story and thoughts of what would happen next. I don't feel this was one of Carpenter's best, but I think it's much better than people give it credit for, and deserves a bit more recognition that it has gotten in the past. I was happy to see such a wonderful looking print used on the film, but I thought the audio could have been cleaned up a bit. Sometimes it got a bit 'soft', and I relied on subtitles to fill in the blanks. A trailer for the film is included, but that's it for special features. I would have enjoyed a commentary, but I am thankful that Universal saw fit to re-release this on DVD, as the original release has long since been out of print and much too expensive to acquire. Cookieman108
Rating:
Summary: Another great one from Carpentar...
Review: Prince of Darkness is a movie where religion and science comes together. Before you say: "it has zombies in it so it must be cheesy," watch the movie and you'll see how surprised you'll be. A group of students, a preacher, and a teacher go into an abandoned church to study a container of liquid which is supposed to be Satan and at some point, Satan begans to control the environment around the church. What I liked is how this movie tried to explain what Satan is using science. Watch for Alice Cooper playing one of the homeless people. There's a love story, but at least it's not unrealistic or sappy like most love stories are.
Rating: 
Summary: WORST CARPENTER MOVIE
Review: The ideas aren't really that bad, but in my oppinion this movie is very badly made. The scenes are crappy and the movie is nor spooky nor gory.
Just crap in my eyes - NO ENTERTAINMENT
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