The Fog [2005]

Action, Horror, Mystery, Thriller

Tom Welling	Nick Castle
Maggie Grace	Elizabeth Williams
Selma Blair	Stevie Wayne
Kenneth Walsh
Mary Black	Aunt Connie
DeRay Davis	Spooner
Kenneth Welsh	Tom Malone
Adrian Hough	Father Robert Malone
Sara Botsford	Kathy Williams
Cole Heppell	Andy Wayne
Jonathon Young	Dan The Weatherman
Rade Sherbedgia

Director	Rupert Wainwright
Producer	John Carpenter; Randi Chernov; Debra Hill
Writer	Cooper Layne; John Carpenter

As remakes go, The Fog has some grisly deaths that gore-mongers will appreciate, and star billing for Tom Welling is guaranteed to attract younger views and Smallville fans; however, the movie will have most horror buffs thinking fondly of John Carpenter's original. A combination of ghost story and slasher thriller, it's a typical example of why remakes are a risky endeavor, especially since the 1980 film does not rank with Carpenter's best. This time, residents of the seaside community of Antonio Island, Oregon, are falling prey to deadly specters that emerge from a spooky fog and are seeking revenge for one of the town's darkest secrets. As the body count rises, Selma Blair livens up this otherwise lukewarm horror pic in the role originated by Adrienne Barbeau, and genre buffs will enjoy in-jokes that refer to the original film and Carpenter's career in general (including one character named "Nick Castle," a reference to one of Carpenter's closest collaborators and fellow directors). Unfortunately, the film's also lost in its own fog of narrative confusion and lack of casting chemistry, but that shouldn't stop die-hard horror fans from checking it out. --Jeff Shannon