Being the very first "strong" horror movie, not to mention the very first slasher, I saw back in the late 80's, "Halloween II" has always had a special place in my heart and revisiting it just yesterday reminded me of how good it actually still is- as a sequel, as a standalone "hospital shocker" and above all, as a slasher flick!
Starting directly after the events of the John Carpenter original, "Halloween II" succeeds as a worthy continuation, selling it to the audience that it's still the "Night HE Came Home", October 31st, Halloween 1978.
Carpenter has never made any big qualms about his rather lacklustre motivation for getting involved with the sequel, but despite his reknown annecdotes about writing the script with a refreshing storage of beer at hand, he managed to create a set up which really feels like another chapter rather than a direct rehash of the first film, not the least thanks to the moody hospital location, the focus on a cast of adult characters in contrast to the typical teenage slasher-fodder and a healthy extra dose of the (back in the day) en vogue gore.
So there are those arguing that the series lost its credibility when it exchanged the "subtle approach" of the original with "Friday, the 13th"-esque graphic death scenes- And I've seen my fair share of edited versions to know that "Halloween II" works about just as fine without its nasty snippets which landed it an inclusion on the list of banned movies (in its uncut shape) in Germany- but truth be told, the "slasher" sub genre had evolved, moved on, so it was only natural for "Halloween II" to "get an update" stylistically if it didn't want to be a reprisal of the 1978 classic. It's certainly not coincidental that basically none of the slashers which tried to follow in the first "Halloween's" subtle footsteps has created quite the same buzz or fanbase as the likes of the "Friday" franchise, "The Burning", "My Bloody Valentine" etc
Despite the attention-grabbing bits of gruesomeness- like the bathtub-drowning, a "needle through the eye" etc- Michael Myers is very much still "the Shape" in this one, a lurking, prowling, heavy breathing phantom behind a mask, a shadow hiding behind the curtains or in a dark corner, playing with his victims, waiting for the right moment to strike...imho the scariest "horror icon" of them all!
Donald Pleasence as Dr. Loomis was never better or more determined than in "Halloween II", with later installments strangely opting to turn him into a rather crazed old nutter, not too far removed from Michael, with his insane turn in "Halloween 5" being a particular "Loomis low point" in my book.
With stunning Dean Cunday photography and a hypnotic "reloaded" version of the Carpenter score, "Halloween II" is also flavoured with some inspired choices in casting, like Leo Rossi as the foul-mouthed Budd, not the kind of character you'd usually encounter in a slasher flick.
My only minor complaint would be the decision to put Jamie Lee Curtis in a rather passive state early on in the movie. While it adds a certain degree of tension to some moments seeing a drugged Laurie slowly moving through the deserted hospital floors, it only allows for a couple of creepy chase scenes towards the end while other characters take center stage for the most part.
Though it would be interesting to compare the currently known theatrical cut of "Halloween II" with director Rick Rosenthal's original edit, which got altered quite significantly by Carpenter, who infamously stepped in and shot most of the splatter stuff, I somehow doubt it would change anybody's mind on their (dis)liking of the movie, particularly when considering that Rosenthal returned to the series to herlm the arguably worst sequel of them all, "Halloween Resurrection"
If you have only time for one "Halloween" this year, why not make it "Halloween II"?
Even more so than the rest of his controversially discussed work, "musician-turned-director" Rob Zombie's two "Halloween" movies are pretty much a "Love 'em or Hate 'em"-affair, rarely do you come across any middle ground when fans debate Zombie's tampering with John Carpenter's genre defying classic 1978 original or the "Michael Myers myth" as fashioned by the "Halloween" franchise.
When US teeny boppers clearly preferred the generic "mc movie" "The Final Destination" over "Halloween II" at the box-office, they sent a worrying vote to the Hollywood suits against anything that could evoke such strong reactions as Zombie's movies, which are- for better or worse- the complete antithesis to your average mainstream slasher.
I wouldn't say that his vision of "Halloween" even remotely ressembles what I for one would have done with it, yet I really appreciate a modern genre director with a distinct individual style over the dominating breed of skilled-but-soulless craftsmen churimg out the majority of mainstream horror.
"Halloween" fans don't get tired of moaning about the decision to show Michael's face in the new movie, though even the late, great Moustapaha Akkad (the true godfather of the franchise) remarked in an interview (in the "Halloween: 25 Years of Terror" documentary) that they would eventually have to look behind the mask, explain his motivation. (Rephrased) "You can't keep him mystical forever".
Another course for complaints are Michael's visions of his mum (Mrs. Zombie) as the spirit guiding him to further bloddbaths in a quest to "reunite the family". Again, it's a case of how many liberties you grant a remake's-sequel-director with an all-too-tried-and-tested formula.
I found that story angle with mum, young Mikey and the white horse to be visually engaging while another "Halloween" fan might want to throw his telly out of the window- you decide.
The characters in Zombie's "Halloween" movies are seriously flawed, which neither excludes the iconic Dr. Loomis, nor the (once virginal) heroine Laurie Strode- another source of heavy critisism.
While the original and its subsequent sequels played an important role in my "education" as a horror fan, I don't consider them to be the holy grail and I rather watch an artist like Zombie doing interesting things with (and to) them instead of having to watch another round of pretty-faced cardboard adolescents wandering around the Myers House with Busta Rhymes!
Besides, I found Donald Pleasence being forced to portray Loomis as a raving madman in "Halloween 5" far more out of sync with the character than Malcolm McDowell's "new" Loomis' rise and fall as a media whore in "Halloween II", which got already hinted at in the 2007 remake.
Scout Taylor-Compton is NOT Jamie Lee Curtis...and thank God she isn't, as the original Laurie would have been an almost unearthly creature in the 21st century.
And for those wondering if there's anybody left to sympathize with in Zombie's world of traumatized, desensitized teens and white-trash canon-fodder for Myers, count on regular movie-weirdo Brad Dourif to deliver a moving performance as Sheriff Lee Brackett, a middle aged man having to face a father's worst nightmare in a haunting scene far extending the slasher genre's usual conventions...
Love it, hate it, but don't ignore it- because this will be back with a vengeance when fans and critics alike will look back at the "decade of strong horror" in the years to come....
(If the same can be said about the studio's knee-jerk reaction of doing "Halloween 3D" next to meet the current tastes remains to be seen...)
Written By Markus Duschek
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