The Fog Blu Ray/UHD Review

The Fog was John Carpenters follow up to his surprise hit Halloween. Like Halloween, The Fog favours atmosphere over gore, but is it as good? Read on Fiends, and find out…

Synopsis:

Antonio Bay, California. April 1980 marks the townships centenary year. As the towns celebrations approach, a number of unexplained phenomena begin to occur. These phenomena are accompanied by a mysterious fog, which rolls in from the sea. The vengeful spirits of a wrecked ship have returned to extract their revenge on the descendants of the townsfolk who lured them to their deaths on the rocks of the bay. Can they be stopped? And can anyone survive The Fog?

Analysis:

The Fog is a fairly straightforward supernatural horror film. Carpenter wastes precious little time in setting the story up, with an introductory scene laying out the bare bones of what happened 100 years prior. The town priest fills in more details in a single expository scene, and thats all we get. The bulk of the film is made up of the films nominal heroes trying to survive and figure out how to stop the fog and it’s supernatural denizens from killing them all.

Much like Halloween before it, The Fog favours atmosphere and suspense over gratuitous gore. Yes, there are on screen murders, but there is almost zero blood shown. The decaying supernatural mariners are kept to the shadows, enveloped in the titular fog. This has the effect of making them seem even more creepy that if they were just shambling zombies, clearly visible to all.

The film operates with an excellent ensemble cast, all of whom put in terrific performances. Adriene Barbeau, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Atkins, and Hal Holbrook form the core of the cast. All of these had either already worked with John Carpenter, or would go on to work with him in the future. Notably, the film also features Janet Lee, in one of only 2 films where she shares screen time with her real life daughter Jamie Lee Curtis.

Dean Cundeys cinematography is as excellent as you would expect, helping to layer the menace effectively. Mostly shot at night, the film oozes supernatural energy from every frame. The titular fog is lit from within for the most part, which helps to give it an otherworldly look.

The Disc:

As with the studiocanal release of Prince Of Darkness, The Fog is an entirely new 4k master. This makes the film look the best that it has done since the original print ran for the first time. The film feature rich, deep blacks, and vibrant colours when required. The HDR version on the 4k disc is even more stunning than the standard Blu Ray which has also been included.

To help keep the maximum image quality, all the sets extra material has been featured on a seperate disc. The extras included are as follows:

Retribution: Uncovering John Carpenter’s THE FOG: A brand retrospective documentary produced by Ballyhoo Motion Pictures and featuring interviews with cinematographer Dean Cundey, production designer/editor Tommy Lee Wallace, photographer Kim Gottleib-Walker, make-up effects artist Steve Johnson, Carpenter biographer John Muir, music historian Daniel Schweiger, visual effects historian Justin Humphreys and assistant Larry Franco

The Shape of The Thing to Come: John Carpenter Un-filmed: A brand new featurette looking at the John Carpenter films that never were
Easter Egg – surprise!
Intro by John Carpenter – an interview with director John Carpenter originally recorded for a French DVD release in 2003
Scene Analysis by John Carpenter – Director John Carpenter analyses key scenes from The Fog, in an interview from 2003
Fear on Film: Inside the Fog (1980) – A vintage featurette which includes an interview with John Carpenter
The Fog: Storyboard to Film – original storyboards
Outtakes
TV Spots
Theatrical Trailers
Photo gallery incl. Behind the Scenes
Audio Commentary with writer/director John Carpenter and writer/director Debra Hill
Horror’s Hallowed Grounds with Sean Clark – a fun tour of the film’s locations hosted by Sean Clark
Audio commentary with actors Adrienne Barbeau, Tom Atkins and production designer Tommy Lee Wallace

• Dolby Vision
• Region: 2.35:1
• Audio: 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio

The Fog: Conclusion:

This is yet another stunning package from studiocanal, showing off one of John Carpenters best films in a truly stunning manner.

5/5 fiends. Essential.

Buy The Fog: Amazon.co.uk

Gallery:

About the Author

Robb Hitchen

Administrator

Robb is a mid-40s horror nerd. He graduated from Staffordshire University in 2001 with a B.A. (Hons) in Film, Television, & Radio Studies. He has never worked in these fields.

Visit Website View All Posts