LITERAL REMAINS

With the release of Halloween II this Friday, I thought I would give my opinions on the rest of the series; what I think are the high and low points.

Halloween:  Arguably the best, and also a classic of the horror genre.  I can’t remember who said it, it may have been John Carpenter himself, but it has been described as a matter of style by necessity.  Halloween was made a shoestring budget, so the money wasn’t there to do everything the filmmakers wanted.  Which is a good thing.  There is a restraint present that isn’t in the succeeding sequels (especially not in Rob Zombie’s remake).  The pacing is the key.   It creeps, but is never boring.  It’s creepy, and terrifying, just downright scary.  The performances are topnotch.  I can’t see Jamie Lee Curtis, or think about her, without hearing the unforgettable Halloween theme.

Halloween II:  I don’t care too much for this first sequel.  It’s a drastic departure from the original.  There’s more blood, more nudity, more of almost everything except the quality filmmaking of the first one.  Where are all the patients in the hospital?  It’s derivative.  Although it has its moments, just not enough of them.  One thing though, a nursing home I used to work at reminded of this film an awful lot:  it was really dark there at night, and it always brought the hospital scenes from Halloween II to mind.

Halloween 4 – The Return of Michael Myers:  I’ve never seen Halloween III:  Season of the Witch, mainly because it didn’t involve Michael Myers.  Apparently a lot of Halloween fans don’t care for it; I could just never understand having a Halloween movie without Mike.  So, for part 4, it’s The Return of Michael Myers!  The producers got smart.  And this is one of the best sequel.  Danielle Harris, hottie that she is now, is kind of irritating as Michael’s young niece in this one,  and Donald Pleasance finds his over-the-top groove as Dr. Loomis here, but other than that everything here just clicks right into place.  It’s not on par with the original, far from that league, but it’s a good one to watch over and again.  I love the opening credits, very autumnal and picturesque.

Halloween 5 – The Revenge of Michael Myers:  Danielle Harris is still irritating.  Donald Pleasance is still over-the-top.  “Retread” is the term that comes to mind.  And what is up with Michael’s mask in this one?  It looks not normal and very not good.  It is kind of like Halloween II (the original sequel), it’s a nice gesture, but really, why?  It’s the thought that counts, I guess, but we could have all lived without it.

Halloween – The Curse of Michael Myers:  The worst.  Absolutely. The. Worst.  What the hell was this all supposed to be about?  What were the people responsible for this thinking?  Why put Donald Pleasance through this crap?  It was his last movie, there was no better direction for the series?  Why dump this load on us, the fans?  Why?  Why?  WHY?  I can’t hardly stand to watch this one to this very day.

Halloween H20:  Luckily, after the crapfest that was The Curse of Michael Myers, we get a small nugget of gold.  And Jamie Lee Curtis.  Along with Return, H2O reigns as the best of the sequels.  This is just a good movie, straight up.  Jamie Lee alone with her boyfriend at the prep academy she teaches at for the weekend, the students all gone (or so she thinks), and then big brother Michael crashes the party.  From start to finish this is Halloween gold.

Halloween – Resurrection:  The best I can say about Resurrection is that it was a nifty idea, and it’s not Revenge or Curse.  It’s a thru and thru guilty pleasure.  It has some great things going for it, but falls apart along the way and never fully realizes its potential.  Thus is life. Busta Rhymes is a hoot, everything is kind of predictable, but it’s a fun ride if you hang in there.

Halloween – Unrated Director’s Cut:  I saw this opening night.  I was excited.  It could never live up to my expectations.  It really didn’t.  At least not the theatrical cut.  The movie I saw in the theater didn’t feel like a complete feel, it felt truncated, half done (not half baked).  The director’s cut dvd is the way to go with this baby.  It’s not a classic, just a good movie.  Rob Zombie isn’t John Carpenter, and he really doesn’t try to be.  He brings a white-trash glam to the table and a grittiness in place of the original’s sleekness.   This has become a favorite movie of mine.

John
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