In The Mouth of Madness review

I can recall many moons ago, when I was trying to complete the filmography of John Carpenter, seeking out In The Mouth Of Madness.

With very little knowledge of Lovecraft and anything surrounding it I wasn’t that enamored with it, but fast forward at least a decade and this has done a complete 180.

I would argue this is now John Carpenter’s last great film.

He balances the off-kilter, nightmarish quality of the story with some fantastic special effects and a stellar turn from chameleon Sam Neill.

I couldn’t wrap my head around him doing this film within a year of his biggest movie in Jurassic Park; talk about diversity.

The film is also extremely tight at roughly 95 minutes, and it feels like everyone is bringing their A Game. The slightly metal score works for the material, Gary B. Kibbe shoots the hell out of it KNB FX are on hand with some truly fantastic FX work, that at points rivals the work of Bottin on The Thing.

Arrow once again go all out on the special features with new commentaries and interview vignettes to bolster archival footage, it’s just a shame Carpenter doesn’t really do many interviews about his work these days as that would have been fascinating to hear now 31 years removed from its production.

If like me you dismissed this first time around or need a Carpenter itch to scratch before Halloween that doesn’t involve Michael Myers; In The Mouth Of Madness and Sutter Cane await.

In The Mouth Of Madness is released on Blu Ray and 4K from Arrow Video from 27 October 2025.