John Carpenter

For a pop filmmaker who specializes in elegantly made if occasionally somewhat hoky modern horror films and cheeky action extravaganzas, one can nevertheless find many recurring themes in the cinema of John Carpenter. From his use of the ‘siege movie’ motif and the claustrophobic implications of that sub-genre to his political undercurrents in even the goofiest surfaces of his plots to his recycling and elaboration of the concept of the Hawksian woman, so named for the kind of tough, independent and quick-minded female often featured in the work of his idol, Howard Hawks, John Carpenter’s work is often more than meets the eye. Fitting then that perhaps one of the most overlooked themes of much of his best work is existential in nature – that of the discovery of worlds within worlds leading to the breakdown or redefining of the concept of reality.