"Masters of Horror" John Carpenter's Cigarette Burns (2005)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

John Carpenter

Writers:

Drew McWeeny (writer) &
Scott Swan (writer) ...

TV Series:

"Masters of Horror" (2005)

Original Air Date:

November 2005 (Season 1, Episode 8)

Genre:

Horror

Plot:

With a torrid past that haunts him, a movie-theater director is hired to hunt for the only known print of a film so notorious that its single screening caused the viewers to become homicidally insane.

Plot Keywords:

Collector | Regret | Snuff Film | Shot Through The Mouth | Beaten To Death

Cast

Norman Reedus	...	Kirby
Udo Kier	...	Bellinger
Gary Hetherington	...	Walter
Christopher Britton	...	Meyers (as Chris Britton)
Zara Taylor	...	Annie
Chris Gauthier	...	Timpson (as Christopher Gauthier)
Douglas Arthurs	...	Dalibor (as Douglas H. Arthurs)
Colin Foo	...	Fung
Gwynyth Walsh	...	Katja
Christopher Redman	...	Willowy Being
Julius Chapple	...	Henri Cotillard
Taras Kostyuk	...	Kaspar (as Taras)
Brad Kelly	...	Horst
Lynn Wahl	...	Cab Driver
Brahm Taylor	...	Protagonist

Runtime:

59 min | Germany:56 min (cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Certification:

Germany:18 (cut) | USA:TV-MA | Argentina:18

Company:

IDT Entertainment

Trivia:

The newspaper columnist lives in a secluded house in Carthage, New York. John Carpenter, who directed the movie, was born in Carthage, New York.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Kirby is confronted by Walter about the money he owes, Walter tells Kirby he's got one week to come up with it. Kirby towards the end of the movie gets the money and finds the theater chained up. When on the phone with one of the employees from the theater he says that he was given *two* weeks to get the money.

Movie Connections:

References The Shining (1980)

A rarity of originality, has to be seen to be believed

Wow. I was not ready for what this compact hour contained. So much more imaginatively written and better directed and acted than any crap that has passed for horror in the past 30 years.

I have seen most of J. Carpenter's films, some I like, some I don't. But with this piece he has surpassed not only himself but most horror films made either for theaters or TV.

It is hard to write about and describe because it is best to not give away too much, other than the premise involves a rare film that was shown only once, and it caused a riot to erupt in the theater, with deaths involved. The protagonist is hired to find the only known remaining print of the film, and finds himself drawn into something that was much more than he bargained for. Is there something supernatural involved? Does the film drive people insane? How can this be?

In some respects, there are more questions at the the end that remain unanswered. But, as with the best films, that's the way it should be; it stays with you, haunts you, and nags at your brain -- just like the legendary film within the film, "Le Fin Absolue du Monde."

Totally stunning, horrifying and awe-inspiring. A day later, I still can't shake it from my mind.