Halloween II (1981)

Directed by Rick Rosenthal

Released October 30, 1981

Written by John Carpenter & Debra Hill

Movie Synopsis Courtesy of IMDB

"While Sheriff Brackett and Dr. Loomis hunt for Michael Myers, a traumatized Laurie is rushed to hospital, and the serial killer is not far behind her."

In celebration of Halloween this week, I decided to break the order of my movies and go with a festive 80s movie. Now you might be wondering, why I am starting with Halloween II instead of the original Halloween? Well the original was actually made in 1978, so I couldn't put it in this blog. Therefore, I went straight to the sequel for this week's blog. So for those of you who didn't see the original, you might be a little confused on this movie.

What I loved about this sequel is that it really does start right where the first movie ended. Not just moving on in hopes that you remembered what happened in the first, but it actually takes the last five or so minutes of the first movie and has that as the opening scene to the sequel. 

This is fairly uncommon for sequels. Most of the time they will take the last moment of the first film and show it as a flash back, or they will just start the next film as "a few years later" type of situation. Most sequels don't start with the exact moment that the first film ended. It was nice doing this because one, it allows their to be two films that have a lot of detail instead of trying to make one long movie. Two, it allows the viewers to get right back into the film with their heart racing just like it was at the end of the first film. And third, the viewers are given a refresher on what actually happened in the last film, without having to recall the movie as they are watching the sequel.

One of the nuances of this film and this franchise that makes it so believable and terrifying is the portrayal of Michael Myers. Yes, the mask is creepy, the fact that he won't die, or that he doesn't talk is very disturbing, but that isn't what makes him so believable as a monster/villain/murderer. It is in his walk and his physical actions that make this character so terrifying. Just watch this scene.

He isn't running, rushing, or making dynamic movements. It is the slow approach that makes him haunting. It is almost an arrogance type of thing, if that makes sense. He knows he is going to kill his victims and he is confident in his ability to catch whoever he is chasing. So he doesn't find the need to run or rush his approach. He simply goes at his own pace and waits for his victims to stubble, fall, or make a wrong step in order for him to attack easily. Therefore, he is an arrogant murderer. With all this being said, it is a major credit to the actor who played Michael, and his ability to physically act this role. Without lines or even facial expressions, it could have been hard to create this kind of creepy killer persona. But through the walk and physical acting of Michael, the audience is left scared and screaming at their TVs for everyone to run faster!

Okay, there is one technical aspect of this movie that really frustrated me because it could have been so cool if it was done right, but in my opinion it wasn't. What I am talking about is the POV shots: Point of View. These are the times when Michael is walking and we are seeing the scene through his eyes. This is only used a handful of times, but it didn't need to be used more than that because the effect would have worn off. We knew this POV shot was happening because we would hear Michael's breathing. BUT! What they should have done is blurred the edges of the screen to make them two circles. That-way the audience was given a visual cue as to when we were seeing things through Michael's POV and so the scene would have matched what Michael was seeing. He has a mask on, therefore his sight is slightly cut off on the sides, bottom, and top. He doesn't see the whole room like how they showed it during the POV shots. To make the shot more effective they should have made the visual field mimic how Michael was seeing it.

One technical aspect that I think was done really well was the lighting. Lighting in a horror movie can often be very difficult. This is because most of the time things are happening at night or in a dark building, so there often isn't suppose to be a lot of light. Then the fact that you don't want the audience to see what is happening too early because then it gets rid of the scare factor when a killer pops up out of the darkness. But I think the makers of Halloween II did a really good job of lighting. Especially, this scene.

All of a sudden Michael's face just pops up out of nowhere and while it gives the audience a jump scare, the character doesn't yet notice it. They only lit the things they wanted you to see, which allows them to scare and surprise the viewers a lot more when the lighting is done right.

What else helps with this, is the fact that the music is not giving away too much either. A lot of times, in horror or scary movies, the music will clue the audience in that something bad or scary is about to happen. Music is added that is scary and creepy to heighten your adrenaline. But just like the lighting, the music only made you notice things that they wanted you to notice in this film. The music only came in as the scary moment is happening, it enhanced the scene and the moment, without giving away to it before it happened. The music was almost a second thought as opposed to the driving force, which I liked in this movie.

Finally, in honor of Halloween, I thought you all would enjoy this little guide to help you survive in a horror movie this holiday.

Sam Loomis: "I shot him six times! I shot him in the heart, but...he's not human!"

This wraps up another set of movies. I am going to take a little break from blogging as the holiday season approaches. I will start back up probably around the new year. So for now, Happy Halloween!