John Carpenter's Prince of Darkness (1987) – Episode 174 – Decades of Horror 1980s

"Hello... Hello... I've got a message for you... and you're not going to like it... Pray for death!" Yup. He’s right. His message was not likable. Join your faithful Grue-Crew - Crystal Cleveland, Chad Hunt, Bill Mulligan, and Jeff Mohr - as they try to keep it real amidst the world of quantum mechanics, John Carpenter-style, with Prince of Darkness (1987). It’s like hanging out with a friend.

Decades of Horror 1980s
Episode 174 – Prince of Darkness (1987)

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A group of graduate students and scientists uncover an ancient canister in an abandoned church, but when they open the container, they inadvertently unleash a strange liquid and an evil force on all humanity.

IMDb

 

• Director: John Carpenter
• Writer: John Carpenter (as Martin Quatermass)
• Music: John Carpenter, Alan Howarth
• Cinematography: Gary B. Kibbe
• Cast
  • Donald Pleasence as Priest
  • Victor Wong as Professor Howard Birack
  • Jameson Parker as Brian Marsh
  • Lisa Blount as Catherine Danforth
  • Dennis Dun as Walter
  • Susan Blanchard as Kelly
  • Anne Marie Howard as Susan Cabot (as Ann Howard)
  • Ann Yen as Lisa
  • Ken Wright as Lomax
  • Dirk Blocker as Mullins
  • Jessie Lawrence Ferguson as Calder
  • Peter Jason as Dr. Leahy
  • Robert Grasmere as Frank Wyndham
  • Thom Bray as Etchinson
  • Alice Cooper as Street Schizo

Prince of Darkness is Chad’s pick, which, knowing what a big fan he is of John Carpenter, should come as no surprise. Over the years, he’s gained an appreciation for how well-written it is and loves the use of quantum mechanics in a horror film. Crystal describes the story as being very cool and Prince of Darkness as being a classic, even though not on a parr with his best films. Having always thought well of Prince of Darkness, Bill loves it more this time around, emphasizing what he calls Carpenter’s best score, the beautiful look, and how fantastically intelligent it is, even though a few of the characters are somewhat “fodderish.” The first time around, all Jeff could think was WTF, but now he loves the complicated story and Prince of Darkness has moved way up in his ranking of 1980s horror movies. 

Your Decades of Horror 1980s Grue Crew gives Prince of Darkness an enthusiastic thumbs-up! As of this writing, Prince of Darkness is available VOD from various streaming sources and as a Scream Factory 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray released January 2021.

Every two weeks, Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror 1980s podcast will cover another horror film from the 1980s. The next episode’s film, chosen by Jeff, will be Michele Soavi’s The Church (1989), produced by Dario Argento. But don’t call it Demons 3!

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