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Halloween II

Halloween II

A KILLER FOLLOWS HIS INJURED TARGET TO THE HOSPITAL ON OCT. 31 IN HADDONFIELD, III.”You can’t kill the boogeyman,” explains John Carpenter in Halloween, and to prove it he brings Michael Myers back in this handsome but grisly sequel. Jamie Lee Curtis returns as Laurie Strode but spends most of her time cowering in a hospital gown, and Donald Pleasence runs around like a maniac as the panicky doctor desperate to hunt down Myers before he kills again. Carpenter writes and produces with partner Debra Hill, and together they replace the mystery and uncertainty of the original with an exponentially bigger body count and some strange tales about the Druids and pagan ceremonies, and the now-familiar family ties between Michael and Laurie. First-time director Rick Rosenthal (Bad Boys) paces the film at a brisk jog and directs it with a clean, crisp style, taking the murders out of the dark to display them in all their nasty detail. –Sean Axmaker

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5 Comments

  1. Eric A. Ashley

    October 9, 2010 at 5:07 am

    Review by Eric A. Ashley for Halloween II
    Rating:
    “Halloween II” picks up directly at the end of the original film, and sends survivor Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) to the hospital to nurse her wounds. Unfortunately for her and most of the cast, Micheal Myers follows. Donald Pleasence and Nancy Stephens also reprise their roles as well.Directed by Rick Rosenthal and scripted by John Carpenter and Debra Hill, “Halloween II” is a very respectable sequel. There is a lot more blood and gore in this one (which came in the post-“Friday the 13th” era), but unlike some of the later sequels, this one still has that “Halloween” feel about it. The finale is also very tense and wraps up the story pretty well — you could view the original and this one without any of the other sequels and have a complete story.The DVD is presented in 2.35:1 ratio and does not contain any extras aside from some brief production notes. But the movie is good, and its a bargain price, so pick it up and make it a “Halloween” night.

  2. Seifer

    October 9, 2010 at 4:16 am

    Review by Seifer for Halloween II
    Rating:
    Warning-some spoilers ahead.This is most likely the best of all the sequels.It’s not quite as good as the original,but it comes darn close.It’s just as scary as the first,and there was one vital ingrediant that the first film lacked-blood and gore.It’s plentiful.Serrated kitchen knife shoved into neck,eyeball gouged out with needle and throat slit with scalpel.VERY graphic.There are some interesting things you can learn about Mike’s past as well.The special FX are pretty good,such as the scene where the car crashes into the kid and the end battle sequence.The plot is great and the story and script above-average.Dick Warlock is awesome at playing Myers and is possibly the best Shape to date! Mike’s mask is also very cool looking and even creepier than the mask from the first film.Overall,a fantastic sequel that comes darn close to being as good as the first.Buy this and the first movie and watch ’em both alone in the dark.If you dare! Rated R-contains gory violence,brief nudity and some bad language.

  3. BUFFY/CHARMED/Star Wars Finatic!

    October 9, 2010 at 3:58 am

    Review by BUFFY/CHARMED/Star Wars Finatic! for Halloween II
    Rating:
    This movie is one of the best sequels released..It starts with a clip of how the 1st one ended and brings you right into the continuation of the story…it’s just as suspenseful as the first with the same feel and cinematography. The 1st and 2nd films are great to watch back to back…a TRUE sequel…check it out!

  4. Lunar Strain

    October 9, 2010 at 3:29 am

    Review by Lunar Strain for Halloween II
    Rating:
    When I originally viewed this sequel, I can remeber being very impress on how the film turned out. I was weary because Carpenter didn’t return to direct, but some of my worries were layed to rest after I saw that he both wrote and produced it. Rick does a very credible job directing the feature and surprisingly makes the film FEEL pretty darn close ot a Carpenter film. What I really liked about this sequel is that it takes place right, I mean RIGHT after the first film. It follows the shape (Michael Myers) as he fillows Jame Lee Curtis (who is blatenly wearing a wig) to a hospital, and then the hospital itself becomes a house of horrors. I was more than pleased with only a few complaints. I didn’t like how the hospital was always dark (like the lights were never on) and how michael got two bullets straight in the eyes and continued to come (this fact was forgotten in latter poor sequels). That was a little chessy and over-the-top, but forgiveable. The only thing that could have made this film better is if Carpenter himself directed, but even with him at the helm, it might not have turned out much better than this. The next entry HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH, though has nothing to do with these first two films, is a still a good movie. Fans of Carpenter whould also give it a try but stop their. The sequels after that take their audiences for granted and the continuity errors galore as they try to connect to the first two entires.

  5. G. Garner

    October 9, 2010 at 2:46 am

    Review by G. Garner for Halloween II
    Rating:
    In putting together this sequel, the powers-that-be decided to combine several of the strongest elements from the original film(Michael Myers, Dr. Loomis, the strong Halloween atmosphere)with the standard pace of an early 80’s slasher film(people getting killed every 5-10 minutes.) For me, this is the ideal combination. There has not been a slasher movie since that I have liked more than this one.

    Dr. Loomis is my favorite horror hero, and Michael Myers my favorite horror villain. They both enjoy some of their finest moments in this installment. I find this version of Myers creepier than the later incarnations, where he has suddenly grown into something resembling an nfl lineman. There is something in the deliberate movements, and the angular figure, that is decidedly inhuman. And Dr. Loomis elevates all of this to a far higher level than it could ever have achieved otherwise.His strength,courage, and iron will make him a hero. So do his moral concerns about seeing innocent people butchered. But there is also something in his personality that makes him the ideal adversary for the Bogeyman.Of course, as a psychiatrist, he feels professional responsibility. But it goes well beyond that. There is some part of his imagination that is obsessed with Myers, and some part of his humanity that is appalled by him. These feelings, taken in concert with his naturally heroic nature, make him the perfect combatant for Myers.

    This movie has the ideal pace. The story is divided between Myers stalking people at the hospital, and Dr. Loomis working with the local police to track him down. Slowly, methodically, Michael Myers begins to remove the employees of the hospital, as he makes his way towards Laurie Strode.As always, he operates like a hunter, or sportsman. Several of his victims are given opportunities to save themselves, as they were in the first film. This is what sets Myers apart from typical killers-he is rather like an artist of the macabre. If it’s too easy, he almost seems to regard it as beneath him. Of all the killings, my favorite is the nurse in the room with the aquarium. That whole scene is beautifully shot and lit, with the aquarium casting all sorts of reflections across the darkened room, and the cadaverous face of Myers gradually coming into view over the doomed girl’s shoulder.The murder of the security guard is effective, as well.

    The atmosphere is perfect. The long, winding hallways are ideal for a movie of this sort.There are just so many places where Michael Myers could be. The effect is only intensified as the night wears on and the primary lights are extinguished.The music is great, too. It incorporates the basic Halloween theme, but it has been altered enough to set it apart from any of the other films. It’s not really a tangible thing: all of the elements just work for me.The doomed people, congregated in the dark hospital. The Bogeyman, always lurking in the shadows.Dr. Loomis, making his way ever closer to the scene of the slaughter.This is a film I never get tired of watching.

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