A research team finds a mysterious cylinder in a deserted church. If opened, it could mean the end of the world.

Credits: TheMovieDb.
Film Cast:
Vater Loomis: Donald Pleasence
Catherine Danforth: Lisa Blount
Howard Birack: Victor Wong
Brian Marsh: Jameson Parker
Walter: Dennis Dun
Kelly: Susan Blanchard
Susan Cabot: Anne Marie Howard
Lisa: Ann Yen
Lomax: Ken Wright
Mullins: Dirk Blocker
Calder: Jessie Lawrence Ferguson
Dr. Paul Leahy: Peter Jason
Frank Wyndham: Robert Grasmere
Etchinson: Thom Bray
Bag Lady: Joanna Merlin
Street Schizo: Alice Cooper
Nun: Betty Ramey
Film Crew:
First Assistant Director: Larry J. Franco
ADR Mixer: Doc Kane
Sound Effects: Dane A. Davis
Editor: Steve Mirkovich
Costumer: Mark Peterson
Original Music Composer: John Carpenter
Production Design: Daniel A. Lomino
Original Music Composer: Alan Howarth
Stunts: Simone Boisseree
Director of Photography: Gary B. Kibbe
Script Supervisor: Sandy King
Supervising Sound Editor: Michael Hilkene
Executive Producer: Andre Blay
Executive Producer: Shep Gordon
First Assistant Editor: Timothy Alverson
Assistant Editor: Frederick Wardell
Dolly Grip: Kirk Bales
Key Grip: Charles Saldaña
Sound Re-Recording Mixer: David J. Hudson
Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Mel Metcalfe
Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Terry Porter
Costume Supervisor: Deahdra Scarano
Boom Operator: Joseph F. Brennan
Foley Artist: Joan Rowe
Stunts: Bob Herron
Makeup Artist: Francisco X. Pérez
Stunts: Randy Hall
Foley Artist: Jerry Trent
Stunts: Mario Roberts
Stunt Coordinator: Jeff Imada
Stunts: Justin De Rosa
Casting: Linda Francis
Visual Effects Supervisor: Robert Grasmere
Set Decoration: Rick Gentz
Stunts: Christine Anne Baur
Unit Production Manager: Stratton Leopold
Supervising Sound Editor: Val Kuklowsky
Stunts: Debbie Evans
Property Master: Kent H. Johnson
Sound Editor: Eric Lindemann
Sound Effects: John P. Fasal
Electrician: Charles Smock
First Assistant Camera: Casey Hotchkiss
Hairstylist: Janis Clark
Unit Publicist: Kimberley Coy
Foley Mixer: Greg Curda
Still Photographer: John R. Hamilton
Location Manager: Ken Lavet
Sound Editor: Frank Howard
Production Sound Mixer: Thomas Causey
Leadman: Rick Caprarelli
Sound Editor: Jeremy J. Gordon
Assistant Sound Editor: John O. Wilde
Craft Service: Rick Chavez
Production Coordinator: Marian Shambo
Casting Assistant: Melanie Massey
First Assistant Camera: Joseph E. Thibo
Camera Operator: Jud Kehl
Gaffer: Ken Spencer
Construction Coordinator: Larry Verne
Construction Foreman: Michael Wright
Special Effects Coordinator: Kevin Quibell
Assistant Property Master: Audrey A. Johnson
Electrician: Kevin Arnold
Best Boy Grip: Ron Peebles
Grip: Danny Falkengren
Assistant Property Master: Richard M. Kerns
Standby Painter: Anthony Tomeo
Standby Painter: Claudia Gilligan Ivanjack
Best Boy Electric: Rob McCarthy
Second Assistant Camera: Frederick Hamm
Extras Casting: Bess Gilbert
ADR Recordist: Laura Hekking
Foley Recordist: Bruce Bell
Negative Cutter: Dode Weyant
Production Accountant: Joy Ewing
Assistant Sound Editor: Charles Davis
Stunts: Wayne King
Stunts: Ellarye
Movie Reviews:
John Chard: Then it really is Old Scratch knocking at the door.
Something of the forgotten John Carpenter movie, Prince of Darkness shows both the good and bad side of the supremely talented director.
The story is a beaut, a bit skew-whiff, but unmistakably Carpenter territory as Satan exists in some sort of parallel universe. How he manifests himself is narratively a bit tricky, but still it makes for good horror, especially as the old religious angle finds Carpenter - in the guise of Donald Pleasence - chortling away to himself in a way that Old Nick has been prone to do.
Cue bugs, green goo, zombies and a centuries old sect determined to keep Satan out of our world. The scares are many, atmosphere bubbling away (in time with another of Carpenter's pulse beat synth musical scores), while the finale has a genuine surprise up its sleeve.
Unfortunately the cast are playing second fiddle to the supernatural strengths, working from a script that doesn't sit at one with the screenplay, rendering the characters as uninvolving fodder. Yet be that as it may, it's still a film of delights, enough in fact to make it a top end entry on Carpenter's CV. 7/10
CinemaSerf: When an elderly priest passes away, one of his colleague discovers a mysterious green liquid hidden in a cylinder deep beneath a long-abandoned church. Rather misguidedly, as it turns out, he invites a group of enthusiastic students to come and investigate it's properties. Big mistake! It was hidden deep in the bowels of this crypt for a very good reason, and once they release it they discover that the Satanic horror they face might just be the tip of the iceberg! Donald Pleasence is strong here as the priest who realises, all too late in the day, that they are facing a terror that could jeopardise the very future of humanity... Christianity at any rate! Can he galvanise his now panic-stricken helpers to reverse the effects of the deadly gloop before they all become zombified servants of evil? The dialogue maybe isn't so hot, especially as hysteria begins to set in amongst the petrified, but the pace is great and the effects have held up remarkably well as this solid and quite menacing story builds to a genuinely exciting conclusion. The supporting cast deliver well, too and John Carpenter and Alan Howarth manage a score that adds quite a bit of peril to the accruing sense of danger the former creates throughout this rather superior drama. It's short, taut, and well worth a watch.
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