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Halloween 2: The Nightmare Isn't Over! (1981)
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Movie Review by Jarrod
October 31st, 2007
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'Halloween 2' comes closer than any of the other sequels in capturing the atmosphere and intensity of the original, but that isn't really giving it much credit. It picks up right where Halloween left off, after Michael Myers has been shot by Dr Loomis and falls out of window, landing on the lawn below. Loomis heads outside to see if he is dead, but Michael is gone, walking around Haddonfield. Loomis trails him, while Laurie Strode (again played by Jamie Lee Curtis) is taken to the hospital. Michael follows her there. Here, it is emphasized that Michael is inhuman, and perhaps cannot be killed, Loomis shot him six times, and he is still alive. Again, Michael lurches about in the shadows, moving quietly, his expressionless white mask the only thing that can be seen. The hospital is strangely vacant, which helps to explain how Michael can walk through its hallways and rooms without being spotted by the staff or by the security guard who watches everything on TV monitors. 'Halloween II' has more gore and a higher body count, and existed only because the original Halloween earned so much money. Rick Rosenthal, the director, cannot replicate the original's suspense or style, but I do believe he tries. Pleasance is the real star here; Loomis is a gun-toting action hero of sorts, willing to blow himself up, if he can take Michael with him. Curtis basically just limps about, crying and screaming, but doing so effectively, the helplessness of her situation consistently evident.
There is a bit of backstory here, as we learn of Michael's compulsion to murder his last remaining relative, and Carpenter (as the screenwriter) keeps it simple thankfully, where later sequels would explore this in absurd and unnecessary detail, like those Psycho follow-ups that discussed Norman Bates's childhood and his relationship with his mother. Maybe if Carpenter directed it, it may have turned out differently, but I doubt it. At best, it feels like an imitation. It is much more of a traditional slasher flick, released a year after Friday the 13th, which itself was inspired by Halloween's success, and Halloween II seems content to model itself more closely on Friday the 13th than its predecessor. But, you still have that creepy, chilling, piano theme, which plays when Michael is nearby, and it is used to great effect here. Kind of a sloppy afterthought, but still technically accomplished, and compared to where this franchise would go over the course of the next decade or so, it stands as an impressive achievement.
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 | Andy
Oct 31, 2007 8:03 PM
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| I guess you're watching the series on AMC today? |
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Oct 31, 2007 8:07 PM