Happy Halloween, all! What better way to celebrate Halloween than by reviewing the original 1978 classic film Halloween directed by John Carpenter and written by John Carpenter with Debra Hill.
In 1963, six-year-old Michael Myers murders his sister on Halloween Night in Haddonfield, Illinois. Fifteen years later, Michael escapes from the mental hospital he was placed in the day before Halloween and returns to Haddonfield to continue his killing spree.
Arguably, John Carpenter didn’t invent the slasher genre. He has, however, made the genre come into the mainstream and gave it mainstream success. There’s a reason for that. This movie has some of the best writing in any horror movie out there. Instead of being campy and just having Michael go on a nonstop killing spree, the movie develops what’s going on in this town and a little bit of what happened to Michale in the psychiatric hospital.
The majority of the movie is about babysitter Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) getting ready for Halloween. She has no idea about Michael or that her town is in danger. This is perfect in that when she finally meets Michael she’s a lot more scared than if she was expecting it. Jamie Lee Curtis puts on a great performance and you can see that she was into this role. Not to mention she has one fo the best screams coming out of any “scream queen” throughout the history of film.
Professor Loomis (Donald Pleasence,) the doctor who was taking care of Michael, is a great character. Yes, the majority of his lines are about how Michael is evil, but he makes it sound so interesting. The speech he says while he and the cop are investigating the Myers’s house is one of the best speeches in any horror movie. “The blackest eyes, the devil’s eyes” is ana amazing line.
One interesting thing about this movie is that throughout the film you see trick or treaters walking around this suburban neighborhood. It’s a nice little touch that makes this movie seem like it takes place in an actual town.
The problem with this movie is Michal himself. He’s just a little boy who killed his sister, but he’s apparently Jason Voorhees in that he can’t die. How did this six-year-old kid gain these powers? Granted, the final act where he’s chasing Laurie is amazing with Laurie doing something that’s rarely seen in horror movies: she’s being smart and actually outsmarting the killer. However, Michael’s supernatural powers are never explained except that he’s evil.
Despite Michael’s unexplained powers, Halloween is still a great movie with great acting, story and a solid cast that’s worst watching every year on Halloween.
Categories: Movies
Tags: Halloween (1978), Michael Myers.
Sanrock Reviews 