I'm surprised nobody is talking about (Remake) Assault on Presinct 13 DVD (1 Viewer)

[Brent M]

I rented this DVD last night and enjoyed it so much I'll probably go out and buy it this week. Great action flick and one of the best DTS tracks I've heard in a while. I wasn't really sure what to expect when I rented it, but needless to say I was pleasantly surprised. If you dig action movies, you should definitely pick this one up.

 

[Justin_S]

Next time, please specify if your thread is about the remake. Thanks.

 

[ChrisChap]

Thanks for the recommendation, I will check it out.

Even if you did inconvenience the doubtless hundreds of HTF'ers who clicked this thread hotly anticipating a discussion of a 30 year old B movie only to be shocked and saddened that you were talking about the newly released DVD of the remake. :wink:

 

[DaveyM]

I'm shocked and saddened that this thread is about the remake and not the superior original version.

 

[Brent M]

I'm shocked and saddened that this is such an issue for you. Oh, by the way, this thread is about the remake.

 

[Gordon McMurphy]

Being a ardent, long-term Carpenter admirer, I love Assualt on Precinct 13, which is a masterpiece of low-budget, independant filmmaking. Cassavetes meets Howard Hawks. Love the score, great dialogue, fine use of Panavision (like all of JC's films). I wish that the editing was a bit tighter, but overall, I feel that it is a most impressive first feature (I don't consider Dark Star his first film; it was a genunie sophmore collaboration with is student colleagues).

I have not seen the remake. Is it significantly different from Carpenter's film? I see that the character names are different, as is the plot, ie. no gang of thugs, but a posse of corrupt cops, is that right? It gives me the impression that James DeMonaco was 'inspired' by Carpenter's film and that credit is given in order to avoid a lawsuit. Why didn't they change the title? Another lazy, cynical 'marketing-think-tank-remake', it seems. Most studios now have a team of... 'people' who 'brainstorm' which films could be remade; movies already owned by the studio are cheapest, obviously. Carpenter, by is own frank admission is a capitalist and never says no to money.

A remake of The Fog is in production:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0432291

It might turn out pretty good. But I doubt it. Carpenter's film, though heavily influenced (The Crawling Eye was the initial spark for The Fog and also the E.C. horror comics of the 50s) by other films and filmmakers are unique in their style and characterizations and emotional effectiveness. Re-making his films, is foolhardy and misguided, I feel. By all means be influenced by him, if you are making a horror/sci-fi/action film, but really, is it worth tracing his best work, which is barely 25 years old?

I dread to see a directly-influenced version of The Thing, working from W.D. Richter's script. The success of that film was 90% genius casting. You'll never pull that off again.

 

[JoshB]

I thought the new version was pretty good, with a decent cast and action scenes. However, it seemed odd that a major studio would choose to remake a film that a majority of the movie-going public has not heard about. Still, I may give this a rental first before deciding to place it along side the original Carpenter classic.

 

[Robert Crawford]

That's even better because it reduces the amount of criticism or comparison from fans of the original film outside of the Home Theater Forum. As stated earlier, even the original is basically a remake of "Rio Bravo".





Crawdaddy

 

[BrunnenMatt]

Just ordered this, can't wait to receive it.

Have not seen any reviews yet, but held back until it was confirm it had a DTS soundtrack.

Awesome movie,

...BMatt

 

[JoshB]

I haven't seen many reviews for this set around. The DTS track should be great, but no word on the picture quality or the extras. It seems this one slipped under the radar for many.

 

[T r o y]

Brent,

Thanks for the input on this remake. How was the DTS track when it came to gunfire ? I really love a good action movie that has great sound from automatic firearms, 9mm, etc. Were they very dynamic and "hit you in your gut" kind of sound to the gunfire ?

Thanks for the reply!

Troy

 

[Brent M]

Troy,

The gunfire sounds outstanding in this film and man, there is a lot of it! There are many different weapons being used(machine guns, pistols, etc) and there is a very dynamic "punch" to them. Like I said earlier, this is one of the best DTS tracks I've heard in a while.

 

[T r o y]

Brent,
Thanks for the input! I can't wait to hear this one.

I thought the gunshots in the movie "Collateral" sounded outstanding. "In your Gut" kind of punch to them.

I'll let ya know my thoughts on Precinct when done watching.

Later,
Troy

 

[Felix Martinez]

Looking forward to seeing the remake; however, one of the many novel approaches Carpenter used in the original was the use of "silent" gunfire. That is, you were with the characters being shot at, and all you would hear is the "zipping" and "pops" of broken glass and wood. That was such a cool concept, and added to the bleak, dreamy mood of the original.

 

[RaymondSteiner]

I had read the Premiere gamazine French edition, the movie get very good comments in the "best of the month" column, they praise a lot the work of Jhon Leguizamo...

 

[Kevin M]

Well, that and it was a money saving device for a low budget film. (which of course was perfectly in line with the script's logic of how this could happen unnoticed in the middle of a city)
Love the original, haven't seen the remake (nor do I have a particular desire to) so I'll leave it at that.

 

[Frank@N]

For anyone that's interested, the original movie (on DVD) can be had in the WalMart $5.88 bin.

I didn't pick one up yet.

Ordinarily I like Carpenter's stuff, but this one was done so early that I was afraid it wouldn't have his usual style.

 

[Scott Temple]

Frank, Assault on Precinct 13 (1976) feels very Carpenter-ish. His style is definitely there IMO. I think you would really enjoy it - and at $5.88, it's a steal. Great 16x9 transfer, wonderful commentary by the man himself, a very insightful interview segment with Carpenter and Austin Stoker, the isolated score, radio spots, a still gallery, and the trailer. I got it when it was first released on March 11, 2003 and paid close to $20 for it.

 

[T r o y]

I haven't seen any reviews for this one on any of the well known review sites. Anyone seen a descent one yet ?

Thanks!

 

[Alistair_M]

Hi Troy

http://www.currentfilm.com/dvdreview...lt2005dvd.html

I use a website called dvdbasen to keep track of reviews

http://www.dvd-basen.dk/uk/home.php3

Best regards

Alistair