Halloween II

Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Pleasence, Charles Cyphers, Jeffrey Kramer, Lance Guest, Dana Carvey (bit part)
Directed by: Rick Rosenthal
Rating: R
Genre: Horror
1981

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: After attacking Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis), Michael Myers disappears. Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence) continues hunting for him as more bodies pile up.

Review:

Tim: I believe that Halloween II is one of the best horror sequels of all time. When a horror film works, typically they create a sequel. Most horror sequels represent huge drops in quality. This is not the case here. Sure, Halloween II is not as good as the original. However, it does continue the story in a very strong way. I wish other horror franchises would learn from this film. It's not perfect, but it is better than what we would expect.

One of the big lessons from this movie is that you have to carefully plan out the sequel. There needs to be a reason for it. This sequel starts immediately after the events of the first film (the first five minutes are actually the end of the original). I really liked this because it gives the franchise some continuity. Most horror sequels start at some undetermined point time in the future. It was great knowing exactly when and where this film took place. I also love that this film carried the characters forward. Once again, we have Laurie Strode and Dr. Loomis. So many horror sequels feature pointless new characters who have no purpose except to die. This film did introduce a number of characters ready to be killed off, but it also featured the characters we grew to care about in the original. This was one of the film's greatest strengths.

Jamie Lee Curtis is once again good as Laurie Strode. She spends most of the film either injured or scared, so there wasn't a great deal for her to do. I missed the scenes of character development in the original. I wish Curtis had a bit more to do rather than to just run away from Michael. Still, she's one of the all time greatest horror movie heroines, and furthered that title here. Donald Pleasence was very good as well. Horror movies should learn from this- you need a talented, experienced actor to bring your film some class. Pleasence has some terrific lines about human nature, which add an important element of gravity to the entire film. A talented cast should not be overestimated. So many horror movies save money by hiring unknowns- this film at least had some decent names involved.

I thought there were a number of good fright scenes throughout the film. This sequel obviously tried to up the ante with some of the death scenes, and managed to do that quite well. There were a number of cringe-worthy moments of gruesome death, when it took my all not to look away. This film is definitely not for the faint of heart. With so many horror movies, audiences have become more and more desensitized to the gore. It was nice to have those scenes here work and actually be scary. Michael Myers also has a number of great moments. The film does a good job of utilizing his appearance to scare the audience. I loved when he walked through the glass door, and the fire scene is pretty remarkable.

For the people who don't like this movie, I can sympathize with them. However, so many horror movie sequels are significantly worse than the original film. It was nice to see a horror sequel that actually worked. This film is less effective than the great original, but it is also an effective horror movie in its own right. I really enjoyed this film, and Halloween further proves it's one of the best horror franchises of all time.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Halloween, Halloween III, Scream 1-3, Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street