Halloween

HALLOWEEN (1978): Starring- Donald Pleasance, Jamie Lee Curtis, Nancy Loomis, P.J. Soles, and Charles Cyphers.

Directed by- John Carpenter

First off, Happy Halloween to all! I hope everyone enjoyed my favorite holiday! I know I did...

Secondly, it has been several weeks since my last posts. Sorry about that, but I have just been so busy that I didn't get a chance to watch or review anything.

But now, I'm back, and it is Halloween after all... So I decided to review.... um, "Halloween"!

Boy, do I love this movie. I really don't know what I have to say. It's a classic. It's a Halloween tradition here in the crypt. Everybody knows who Michael Myers is. If you don't, get off of my blog and don't come back until you see this movie! (And, no, the Rob Zombie remake doesn't count!)

All I can think to say is that this movie isn't the high-body-count, gory, nasty slasher film that the remake and all the sequels and rip-offs make it look like. Rather, this movie is a suspenseful, plot-driven thriller. In fact, in this one, Michael only kills four people. Of course, I'm not going to tell you who they are.

Also, this movie is not the original slasher film. Sorry, but it just isn't. "Black Christmas" and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" both pre-date this movie by several years. And they'd been making movies like this in Italy for years.... But I digress. None of that matters, anyway. This movie is still a classic.

The plot begins with one of the longest point-of-view shots in film history. Young Michael Myers kills his older sister on Halloween night, and then goes comatose. He taken and put in an institution where he is studied by Dr. Sam Loomis (Pleasance, who will never be topped by Malcolm McDowell, NEVER!!).

Years later, Michael escapes and drives away to Haddonfield, Illinois. Dr. Loomis sets off after him, hoping to stop another massacre.

Once in Haddonfield, Michael targets young babysitter, Laurie (Curtis) and her two friends (Loomis and Soles). On Halloween Night, he decides to make his move. For Laurie, her friends, and Dr. Loomis, Halloween will be a night of sheer terror, one that they won't soon forget (at least, not until after the eight sequels, the remake, and its sequel).

It's a deceptively simple plot that offers much more than I just wrote. It's also a plot that has been the inspiration for just about every slasher film made after it.

I guess i should talk about that oh so famous soundtrack, shouldn't I? Well, it deserves every praise that it gets. This movie's soundtrack (composed by John Carpenter) is absolutetly perfect. It's bone-chilling and completely sets the tone for the film.

All of the performances are great. Donald Pleasance is perfect for the role of Dr. Loomis, and he gives one of his best, most memorable performances. Jamie Lee Curtis is the queen of the slasher film scream queens. I love her scream, for one thing. P.J. Soles and Nancy Loomis are both very entertaining in their roles, if a little forgettable. The cast is rounded out by Charles Cyphers ad Sheriff Brackett, giving a good performance, although he's not that central to the film's plot.

But I don't need to say all of that, do I? Everybody knows this movie, whether they know it through the any of the sequels (Maybe I'll get to those next year...) or the new remakes. But let me say this: If you only know this movie through the sequels or remakes, then please go see it now. Buy it, rent it, see it online, look for it on T.V., just give it a chance. You won't be sorry, and you might even get scared by it.

My rating: * * * 1/2 out of * * * *