John Carpenter’s iconic 1980 ghost story classic The Fog has undergone a full 4K restoration by StudioCanal and is returning to cinemas in time for Halloween this year.
In the film, a tiny California coastal town prepares to commemorate its centenary when Reverend Malone (Hal Holbrook) stumbles upon a dark secret about the town’s founding; radio announcer Stevie (Adrienne Barbeau) witnesses a mystical fire; and hitchhiker Elizabeth (Jamie Lee Curtis) discovers the mutilated corpse of a fisherman. A mysterious iridescent fog soon descends upon the village, and more people start to die.
Made for a budget of just $1 million, the movie grossed $21 million at the box office and is very well reviewed, the same can’t be said for the Tom Welling and Selma Blair-led 2005 remake which was widely panned.
Eric Di Bernardo, Rialto Pictures’ director of sales, spoke about the re-release saying:
“The Fog has been our most requested title for as long as we have handled the StudioCanal library here. It is Carpenter’s most visually alluring film and we think it’s been worth the wait.”
The plan, for now, is to release the film at the Metrograph in New York, Landmark’s Nuart Theatre in Los Angeles and the Music Box Theatre in Chicago starting on October 26th. Throughout Halloween week, the movie will also be screened at certain specialty theaters such as the Alamo Drafthouse. A 4K home video release isn’t yet announced but will likely follow in coming months.
Carpenter is executive producing and helping on the score for the new Halloween movie which opens a week prior in cinemas. The Fog was Carpenter’s first film after he directed the original Halloween.
