After cementing himself in a more grounded kind of horror with Halloween, genre icon John Carpenter gradually began exploring the world of the supernatural, whether it was the ᴀssimilation terrors of The Thing or the Lovecraftian mind-bender that is In the Mouth of Madness. One of his earliest ventures into the supernatural was 1980’s The Fog, a movie that served as his return to horror after helming the Kurt Russell-led Elvis and also stands out as one that has garnered a cult following in the 45 years since becoming a box office hit.

Co-written by Carpenter and frequent creative partner Debra Hill, The Fog is set in the sleepy coastal town of Antonio Bay in Northern California, where they are just about to celebrate the centennial of its founding by six members. Before the festivities can begin, however, an ominous fog that can seemingly move of its own volition begins sweeping through the town, which hides something sinister within it that threatens anyone who inadvertently gets caught in it.

The Fog’s Setup Is Effective, But Slow

Carpenter’s Focus On Mood Could’ve Worked If Not For The Quick Pace Changes

One of the biggest things The Fog initially has going for it is the steady build-up of the mystery surrounding the тιтular weather event. Beginning with a campfire ghost story that sets the ominous mood to come from the rest of the film and continuing with a fisherman trawler watching as a derelict ghost ship sails by them, we’re introduced to an interesting concept of a crew who crashed their ship and drowned while mistaking a campfire for a lighthouse due to a fog.

From this setup, it feels like we’re about to be treated to a chilling supernatural tale, only for Carpenter and Hill to quickly escalate things as those aboard the trawler are brutally murdered by the ghostly figures from aboard the clipper ship. In one sense, this change has potential, as it would make the rest of the film a tense ride, even if it’s predictable as characters become fodder. And yet, the creative duo quickly shifts things down as the fog recedes and our attention is drawn to others in the town.

This is ultimately how the movie ends up proceeding, and Carpenter and Hill bounce back and forth between laying the groundwork for the origins of the fog and the motivation of the spirits within it to the more violence-driven thrills they were known for in ᴀssault on Precinct 13 and Halloween. Considering Carpenter has discussed having to do reshoots on the film upon feeling dissatisfied with his original cut, and subsequently resH๏τ certain sequences and added others, there are moments when this mish-mash is all the more evident.

The Practical Effects Continue To Astonish 45 Years Later

It’s The Fog Effects, However, Whose Aging Unfortunately Shows

Even as he’s explored various subgenres in the world of horror, Carpenter has often been the champion of practical effects in his films, and many of those seen in The Fog still hold up 45 years after the movie’s original release. The makeup and prosthetics used to create the ghostly crew of the Elizabeth Dane are appropriately chilling, while many of the film’s kill sequences are appropriately horrific, particularly the murders of the fishermen in the movie’s opening and the confrontation between one character and the lead ghost over a golden cross.

With a movie whose тιтle promises plenty of the sight-obscuring weather event, the fog should — and does — play a prominent role in the film. Unfortunately for Carpenter, this effect aged quite poorly. The blame can’t be put entirely on the director, given CGI was not yet a thing, and for the era, the way it’s done works in establishing the supernatural nature of the fog. From a retrospective look, the stuttering of the effect is quite noticeable, and the glowing depiction of it becomes a little lackluster to look at.

Thankfully, Carpenter and his production team more than make up for this with more practical uses of it throughout the film. As old-fashioned as it may seem nowadays, a well-used fog machine can do wonders to establish an eerie mood in a scene, and the movie’s tenser moments work because of it. One scene, in particular, that remains as effective as ever is the spirits’ attempts to attack the young Andy, with the babysitter’s death from the sudden appearance of multiple spirits being a nice jolt.

There Are Simply Too Many Characters In The Fog

With No Clear Protagonist & Imbalanced Screentime, It’s Hard To Know Who To Care About

Arguably, the other big disappointment to come from The Fog is how Carpenter and Hill attempt to fill Antonio Bay with interesting characters, which ends up making the film feel more overstuffed than compelling. From the start of the movie, it feels like either Adrienne Barbeau’s Stevie or Hal Holbrook’s Father Malone are meant to be our main characters, with the former serving as guardian of the town from her lighthouse radio station and the latter discovering the dark history of the town that has inspired this haunting.

However, we’re also quickly directed to focus on Tom Atkins’ Nick, a local resident, and Jamie Lee Curtis’ Elizabeth, a hitchhiker who becomes romantically linked to Nick after getting a ride from him, as they investigate the disappearance and murder of the fisherman from the film’s opening. But wait, let’s not also forget Janet Leigh’s Kathy, wife to one of the fishermen and organizer of the town’s centennial. Oh, and did you remember to factor in all the founding members of Antonio Bay and the crew of the Elizabeth Dane, whose sins started this whole thing?

While everyone’s plot threads may eventually weave together and begin to make more sense in the grand scheme of things during the film’s final act, it’s hard to deny that The Fog ends up feeling a little overstuffed and unfocused. The Fog‘s ensemble cast certainly does a great job in their parts. And while not every single movie needs to have a sole protagonist, as evidenced by Carpenter’s own two-handed focus between Laurie Strode and Dr. Loomis in Halloween, but this is one that really does feel a bit disjointed in its puzzle pieces.