 |
|
|
|
Halloween 2: The Nightmare Isn't Over! (1981)
 email this review to a friend
Movie Review by Ben
December 23rd, 2007
|  |
"Halloween II" takes place at the exact moment the original ends. Michael Meyers is still on the loose, and even while he moves more slowly than ever, he is still threatening. Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasance) is still on the hunt for the man he tried to keep locked up, and Jaime Lee Curtis returns as Laurie Strode, and Michael is still on the hunt for her.
"Halloween II" was torn apart by the critics for being nowhere as good as the original, berating it as simply a rehash of the original, with nothing new to say about the character. Even John Carpenter, who did not direct this one but still co-wrote the script with Debra Hill, said that what got him through writing this one was a six-pack of beer a night.
Despite its flaws, I still enjoyed "Halloween II" on its own. Yes, it is a retread of the original, but what else are you gonna do with this character? Have him win the Nobel Peace Prize? Get rehabilitated? Make peace with his sister after killing so many people? Don't you remember? Evil never dies! But in "Halloween II," it is fun to see them try.
The one thing to note about this movie is that is much more bloody and gory than its original predecessor. When this movie came out, there had been many knock offs of "Halloween" with the psychotic and silent killer wearing a different kind of mask, and using a different kind of weapon (or maybe the same one). This one tries to be more creative in the way Michael kills his victims.
Even though the original "Halloween" worked much more strongly by not showing us too much, this one shows everything. While that quickly makes this one less effective than the original, I have to admit that I still got a kick out of it. John Carpenter came into to reshoot a lot of scenes because he felt the audiences would be demanding blood and guts on a high level. Whether or not that was the right decision or not will always be up for debate, but I think it does have some fun stuff for the Fangoria crowd.
One thing that this movie has to its advantage is that is made by the same team that made the original. Director of photography Dean Cundey came back for this one, and he gives the movie a dark and creepy look where you want to make sure you look through all the shadows to make sure you are not being watched.
The characters may come across as clichés after having seen the first one, but to me, they still felt real enough to where I wasn't snickering so much at their actions. The sequels that came after this one gave me plenty more opportunities to do just that. Among these characters is Jimmy, a paramedic played by Lance Guest, who ends up developing a protective crush on. It was kind of nice to see Laurie get something of a boyfriend in this one.
Donald Pleasance once again gives the most demonic and ridiculous of lines a lot of depth and heft that probably no other actor could have given at that time. His little speech on the festival of Sam Hain ("The Lord of the Dead") and how we are all afraid of the darkness inside of ourselves is a great moment. The unconscious mind can be a very frightening place indeed.
So okay, "Halloween II" is by no means a great movie, and is certainly nowhere as good as the original, as is the case with most sequels. But I have no shame in admitting that I enjoyed it for what it was, and that was enough for me.
email this review to a friend
Comment on this Review:
Sorry, you must be a member to add comments to reviews.
Join or Login. |
 Subscribe to MatchFlick Movie Reviews through RSS
|
