Assault On Precinct 13

UK Release Date. 10 March 1978
Certification. X
Running Time. 1 hour 31 mins
Director. John Carpenter
Cast. Tony Burton, Darwin Joston, Austin Stoker, Laurie Zimmer.
Rating. 70%

Review.

Halloween showcased exactly why John Carpenter should be considered a genuine master of the horror genre. The Thing was a science fiction masterclass, and The Fog, a chilling ghost story. But before all these films - just two years after his debut feature, Dark Star - John Carpenter released Assault On Precinct 13, one of most effective exploitation films of the decade. 

The film's plot is simple. A handful of inhabitants of an abandoned police station are trapped inside and under attack by members of a violent street gang named Street Thunder. 

Despite minimal budget, the film is relentless, and Carpenter squeezes every last drop of tension out of this seemingly straightforward storyline. Like an early version of The Purge, where the streets are a nightmare filled with psychopaths, the end result is a film that grabs you by the scruff of the neck and drags you through its 90-minutes run time.

Carpenter wastes little time on character development, but the main protagonists are California Highway Patrol Officer, Ethan Bishop (Austin Stoker), charismatic criminal, Napoleon Wilson (Darwin Joston) and spirited secretary, Leigh (a standout performance from Laurie Zimmer). Similarly, the gang members are faceless assailants, adding to the sense of desolation and desperation of those trapped inside Precinct 13.. 

Technically, Assault On Precinct 13 is a masterfully composed film. The film's tight, medium-shots frequently position the characters in constant confrontation - blacks against whites, women against men, and prisoners against police officers. And as with much of Carpenter's best work, music provides a lot of the atmosphere. Carpenter created some memorable scores early on his career, but the main title theme from Assault On Precinct 13 creates an atmosphere of unease from the very beginning.

Despite the apparent freshness, there are obvious similarities with Howard Hawks' Rio Bravo. Both films take place in besieged police stations, and the principal character's moral codes of behaviour are paramount.

Assault On Precinct 13 was remade in 2005 by Jean-Francois Richet, starring Ethan Hawke, Laurence Fishburne, Gabriel Byrne and Maria Bello. Both films are entertaining, but for different reasons. Where the remake is glossier and has a different take on the storyline, in many ways, the simplistic nature of Carpenter's original is one of the film's great strengths. Assault On Precinct 13 remains an absolute classic in the action film genre.