The Night HE Came Home.

Long rumoured, confirmed yesterday: John Carpenter is returning to score this year's HALLOWEEN, directed by David Gordon Green. A HALLOWEEN film, from the director of the magnificent JOE, starring Jamie Lee Curtis, and scored by the master himself? Time to get hyped people. Footage screened for press and industry types this week was allegedly impressive.

The questions on my mind: what form will Carpenter's new score take? Will it be nearly identical to the original, or will he expand and/or alter it significantly? Will he write something entirely new? Will it have a harder, more rock edge, like his recent reworking of the ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK theme?

We'll see in October. Or perhaps sooner in a trailer?

More Live Carpenter + some extra gravy

Following on from this post, here's another glacially cool video of Carpenter performing with his new band, this time the main title theme from Escape from New York. This live version has a much harder, more muscular edge than the original, and it is absolutely badass. A friend of a friend of mine just saw Carpenter perform in Berlin and said it was incredible. The Southern Hemisphere awaits you Mr. Carpenter.

Now check out that killer tribute to the master at top, art courtesy of Kid Eternity. It's nice to see In the Mouth of Madness get thrown in with some of Carpenter's more conventionally appreciated films for once, as it's too often ignored. Madness is one of my personal faves, and is long overdue a stacked blu-ray release.

The good news on the blu-ray front is that Shout! Factory is releasing a new SE of The Thing this September, featuring a ton of new special features and a new 2K transfer approved by Dean Cundey. The old Universal SE is still great (in terms of its special features), but a spiffy new transfer is long overdue. That Universal release was one of the first dvds to hit the market (I think it was the first dvd I ever bought, back in '99 or 2000!).

The big, BIG news is that there's a new Halloween movie on the way, a Miramax/Blumhouse co-production. Rumoured directors are The Guest's Adam Wingard and Oculus' Mike Flanagan, both of whom are excellent choices. Carpenter would be executive producing in  a "hands on" capacity (unlike his producing credit on the woeful The Fog remake, for which he accepted a cheque and simply walked away), but perhaps the most exciting bit of news is that he's in talks to come on board to write and perform the score.

"Why don't you take your social regulations and shove 'em up your ass"

Remember what I did
Remember what I was
Back on Halloween

But what's in between
Where are your ideas
You sit around and dream
For next Halloween

Why not everyday
Are you so afraid
What will people say

After Halloween