Summary:
A psychotic mental patient who has been imprisoned for fifteen years after the brutal murder of his sister escapes confinement and returns to his hometown to kill again.
My Thoughts:
For years now, I’ve frequently used “Halloween” as a prime example of an overrated movie; in fact, I’m sure if you scoured TMM’s reviews you’d find at least a half-dozen references to my lukewarm reaction to seeing this film. I was so unimpressed with this film the first time that I saw it that it had been years since I’d seen it (probably since High School), but during those years, my knowledge of horror films exploded. Now a seasoned vet of the genre, I’ve watched dozens of psychological horror flicks (“Rosemary’s Baby”), giallo films (“Deep Red”), splatter movies stuffed with gallons of gore (“The Evil Dead”), cheap slasher movies (“Seed of Chucky”), and of course, the classics (“The Exorcist”, “The Shining”). My taste in horror had branched out, and I’ve found that I really can enjoy almost anything the genre has to offer; if it’s great, I get scared- if it’s terrible, I get to laugh. After watching a few other John Carpenter films at the beginning of the month (“In the Mouth of Madness”, “The Fog”), I found that I appreciated his style a bit more than I had when I first watched “Halloween”, and I figured maybe this year was the year I needed to give Carpenter’s best-reviewed flick another chance. (Plus, with the new 4K release I figured I could see how that looked.)
I’m happy I did revisit this film. I still don’t think that “Halloween” is an incredibly horrifying movie, but I also don’t think it’s as overrated as I used to think it was. “Halloween” is a simple but effective thriller with a villain that is pretty frightening, but really, the film is more of a fun experience during the actual viewing than it is a film that lingers in the viewer’s mind afterwards. I, personally, prefer my horror to keep me awake at night and second-guess what might be standing in the corner (like those incredibly disturbing final shots of “The Witch”). “Halloween” is the equivalent of paying to go through a haunted house: you get your moneys worth, but more than being truly terrified, you’ll be laughing in spite of yourself.
“I spent eight years trying to reach him, and then another seven trying to keep him locked up, because I realized that what was living behind that boy’s eyes was purely and simply evil.”
Fifteen years after Michael Meyers murdered his sister Judith, he escapes from the mental institution where he was being held. His psychiatrist, Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence, “Prince of Darkness”), tries desperately to find his escaped patient before he kills again. Meanwhile, in Michael’s hometown, a group of babysitters, including a girl named Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis, “A Fish Called Wanda”) get ready for Halloween night.
I think the thing that I like most about the film is the fact that Michael’s character isn’t really developed. In this first “Halloween” film, the only thing we really learn about Michael is that he murdered his sister when he was very young, he was locked up, and his psychiatrist believes that inside him there is only evil. There’s a great line said by Loomis (the line I’ve emphasized above) about Michael that strips him of any human characteristics, and in doing so Michael becomes not a troubled man who kills people, but an idea of forceful evil. More than anything, Michael becomes an unstoppable force that just keeps coming at the innocent, for no apparent reason other than to kill them because that’s what he likes to do. There’s no reasoning with him, there’s no stopping him other than killing him; he just keeps coming. Another reason I like Michael’s character is because of the sheer randomness with which he kills. Laurie’s character would’ve been completely fine had she not had to stop to drop off a key at the Meyer’s house, but when she does stop there, she attracts the attention of the man waiting inside.
I think Carpenter’s direction is at its pique here. While I, personally, enjoy his weirder, more Lovecraftian stories (“The Thing”, “In the Mouth of Madness”), after revisiting “Halloween”, from a directing standpoint at least, I think it is probably Carpenter’s best film. I love the techniques he implements at the beginning of the film- the POV shot of Michael going in to kill his sister is a perfect opening for this movie. I think the way Carpenter infuses tension throughout even the more boring scenes is pretty great; for example, I love it when Michael Meyers is simply waiting at the corner for Laurie and her friend as they walk down the sidewalk. Again, the film never gets so scary that I’d consider it an A grade horror film, but it certainly has some fun spooky moments.
Of course, I’d be remised if I didn’t at least mention Carpenter’s soundtrack. I honestly think most of Carpenter’s soundtracks are pretty rad, but this one takes the cake in terms of being the most iconic song he’s probably written. Michael’s theme is haunting and driving, and it works in every scene Carpenter uses it in.
Verdict:
I was far more impressed with this film this time through than I had been before. It will still probably never rise too far up my list of favorite horror flicks, but I think I understand the appeal a bit more now. If you’ve read this blog frequently then you know I’m a pretty big horror fan, and it doesn’t really matter if the films are good or bad, I’ll watch whatever. I’m actually more excited to go on and start watching the “Halloween” sequels. I don’t think I’ll get to all of them this year, but hopefully I’ll at least get through “Halloween II” and “Halloween III: Season of the Witch”, so watch for those reviews soon!
Edit: I ended up watching almost all of the “Halloween” movies. So if you’d like to know my thoughts on each, check them out!
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