THE FOG is one of the better John Carpenter films, but the remake has lots of good build-up only to disappoint by the end.
The recent remake tries to expand and take THE FOG into new directions. The story revolves around a mysterious fog rolling
back into an island town with ghosts out for revenge. They are out for the descendants of the four men who killed them. The
ghosts were lepers (lead by the main bad guy from THE SAINT movie). One of the descendants, Elizabeth (Maggie Grace), is having
dreams about the past and is drawn back to the island. Her boyfriend, Nick Castle (Tom Welling of SMALLVILLE), is in a way
responsible for putting the events into motion without knowing it. The new version suffers from not enough character development,
but the build-up and story is excellent. Selma Blair is hot as ever and I wish they could have used her character more. The
effects are top notch and do make the fog feel like another character. I just was hoping for more in the ending and it just
seemed like all fog and not enough rain in the end. I enjoyed the remake and it makes me want to see John Carpenter's original
again.
VIDEO: 2.35:1 (Anamorphic Widescreen)
AUDIO: English 5.1 Dolby Digital, French 5.1 DD
Subtitles: English, French
SPECIAL FEATURES: The feature audio commentary with director Rupert Wainwright reveals what scenes weren't in the theatrical
version as the director wished none of the scenes were cut in the first place. It's not worth listening to for a second time.
It's just so-so as commentaries go.
Seven deleted and extended scenes (with optional director audio commentary) are on the DVD including some scenes cut for
pacing and others due to budget reasons.
Three featurettes are on this DVD-
WHITEOUT CONDITIONS: THE REMAKING OF A HORROR CLASSIC (8 minutes)- John Carpenter, producer David Foster, writer (of the
remake) Cooper Layne, and director Rupert Wainwright talk about the changes done to THE FOG for the remake. Wainwright told
Layne to keep the romance angle out until the second draft. The director was
SEEING THROUGH THE FOG (10 minutes)- This making of featurette covers the deal made to make the new version, the casting,
and the new layers added to the remake. featurettes interviews with cast, the director, screenwriter, and the producers (John
Carpenter and David Foster).
FEELING THE EFFECTS OF THE FOG (14 1/2 minutes)- special effects featurette that first brings out the difference in the
effects between the original and the remake). Lots of practical effects (different types of fog) with some CGI effects. Make-up
effects are also looked at.
PREVIEWS: THE PINK PANTHER (2006), THE DA VINCI CODE, MONSTER HOUSE, LEGEND OF ZORRO, UNDERWORLD EVOLUTION, THE CAVE, RENT,
ZATHURA, UNDERWORLD DELUXE EDITION, THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE, MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA
FINAL ANALYSIS: Fans of the original may want to check out the remake for an interesting new take. THE FOG remake still
could have been more than what it ended up with.
this review is (c)7-24-2006 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission (except for excerpts and a link
to the review). Look for additional content at http://enterlinemedia.livejournal.com and send all comments to lord_pragmagtic@hotmail.com
