FLASHBACK: John Carpenter’s Ghosts Of Mars (2001)
Originally intended to be the third film in John Carpenter’s Snake Plissken series—(which would have been titled ESCAPE FROM MARS)—GHOSTS OF MARS follows a Martian police unit sent to retrieve a dangerous criminal from a remote mining post. On arrival, they discover that ghosts of ancient Martians have possessed all the miners.
Written, directed and scored by Carpenter, the film stars Natasha Henstridge, Ice Cube, Jason Statham, Pam Grier, Clea DuVall, and Joanna Cassidy.
Carpenter says he made GHOSTS OF MARS an over-the-top action movie in the tradition of 1980s action movies COMMANDO, PREDATOR, and RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD PART II. He was frustrated that audiences expected it to be a serious horror movie. "The name of the movie is GHOSTS OF MARS, I figured the campiness would be self-explanatory."
Following the film's weak reception at the box office, Carpenter decided to retire as a filmmaker. He didn't make another feature until 2010's THE WARD.
British studio Hammer kicked off their classic monster movies with their Dracula films often starring Christopher Lee as Count Dracula and Peter Cushing as Doctor Van Helsing. Find out about all nine movies in their series.
Continuing our comparisons between the Fantastic Four and The Munsters—why do the FF and The Munsters fight crime? This is another example that THEY have in COMMON—but very few others would also have this in their description.
Bram Stoker’s novel DRACULA has left a lasting mark on the vampire genre. Published in 1897, the book also explores superstition, sexuality, and the clash between modern POVs with ancient evil.
In the latest episode of our show, we go over the uncanny similarities between the influential comic book legacy of the FANTASTIC FOUR and the monstrous (but beloved) television sitcom THE MUNSTERS!
The Rondo Awards honor the best in classic horror research, creativity and film preservation. This year's winners include the reissue of ROBOT MONSTER, the movie GODZILLA: MINUS ONE, the TV series WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS, and more! Find out the details here.
Over the decades, there have been LOTS of robots on TV—including helpers and heroes, plus warnings about evil robots. We look at robots from a couple dozen TV shows, including sci-fi series, cartoons, and sitcoms.
The founder of 3D Film Archive talks to Monster Complex about the reissue of 1953 alien horror movie ROBOT MONSTER—including why he’s following it with a 3-D comic book anthology.
With tech so common now, we take a look at some of the best movie robots of all time—from charming co-workers who just want to help us out to menacing monsters planning to stomp on us.
Want to see some monster movies that are technically bad but are fun to watch? These may never live up to the standards of applauded horror movies, but you can’t say they aren’t fun to watch…
Chris Well been a writer pretty much his entire life. (Well, since his childhood.) Over the years, he has worked in newspapers, magazines, radio, and books. He now is the chief of the website Monster Complex, celebrating monster stories in lit and pop culture. He also writes horror comedy fiction that embraces Universal Monsters, 1960s sitcoms, 1980s action movies, and the X-Files.
The 1957 sci-fi horror movie called the “worst film ever made” has a new book version coming for the 100th birthday of Edward D. Wood Jr., the man who wrote, directed, produced, and even edited the movie.