Tomorrow is Halloween and I figured it was time to take a look at the Halloween film series. So here are mini-reviews of all the films. All reviews out of 4 stars. Enjoy!
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Simple enough plot, but the movie is flawlessly made. Scary and suspenseful and extremely influential on the genre. A classic, I hope you seen this one, by now! ****
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Uneven pacing really hurts this one. The gore is upped, but little more is added. The climax is suspenseful, but to get there is kind of hard to stay awake. Not bad, but far from good. **
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This movie has zero to do with series and is sometimes dissed by fans because of it. But guess what? Even taken as it's own film, it is pretty bad. The over-the-top villain, annoying song, stupid plot, and overall silliness makes this one very much a not need to see. On the bright side, there is some decent gore and Tom Atkins is a great hero. And, guess what? There are far WORSE entries in the series! *1/2
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Well made slasher is by far the best sequel in the series. Suspenseful, well directed, and with tight acting from Harris, Pleasance, and Ellie Cornell. The ingenuous kill of busty and beautiful Kathleen Kinmont via shotgun impalement is a series highlight. Unlike, the tongue-in-cheek Friday the 13th series, this series takes itself serious, and it shows, in a good way, in this fine slasher film. Highly recommended. ***
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I don't think this movie is bad just uneven. On one side, the movie is stylishly shot and has a great use of shadows. Harris' performance is great, and the mean-spirited climax where in Myers chases her, gives the movie a rough edge. On the other hand, the characters suck ass. Cornell's character gets killed, and we have to put up with the WORST girl in slasher history in Tina, who is not even that hot. The blonde babe in the devil costume is hot, and we do get to see her tits. But, her boyfriend keeps wearing a Michael mask, in a played out and stupid joke. Oh, and the ending just plain blows. **
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This entry is not a bad film, but did we really need to know all this about Michael? Still, Rudd does pull in a good performance and there are a few stylish shots. The movie lets the gore fly high, with an exploding head and a thrilling slaughter in the hospital room. But, the ending is terrible, and the movie makes little sense. There is a superior producer's cut, but alas it can only be seen on bootleg. It cuts back on the gore, but makes much more sense, and is a solid movie. Sadly, that ending sucks, too. Still, if you can see the producer's cut, go for it. But, either way I like this entry.
Theatrical cut- **1/2
Producer's cut- ***
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A bigger budget and a bunch of TV kids get added, but do little to save this one. Josh Harnet is terrible, and quite frankly I could give a shit about anyone, other than Laurie, in the film. Plus, Jodi Lynn O'Keefe does not even get nude. She does die violently, and Laurie's battle with Myers at the end is OK. But, there is a lot of lame shit to wade through to get there. *1/2
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Terrible, terrible film has little to no redeeming qualities. There is no suspense, the acting is terrible, the movie is uninvolving, and filled with a bunch of people who need to die. Why is Tyra Banks in this? At least she dies, but then Busta Ryhmes disses good-old Mickey who does NOT kill him? Huh? Since when was he such a goddamn pussy?! A cool decapitation and some tits, keep this from getting a zero, but by the time you get to the end, you might wanna throw a pumpkin bomb at this filth. Fuck this movie! 1/2 a star
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The best of the recent wave of remakes, this a more brutal and violent take on the series and on Myers. While, the director's cut (the version on DVD) changes the escape scene, what it adds is really good and makes this movie even better. The acting is strong and the climax suspenseful. The humanizing of Myers is interesting and overall this one show that the genre is in good hands in Zombie. Plus, we get to see to see Danielle Harris' tits. Zombie should get props for that alone! In all seriousness, though, this is the best slasher film since High Tension, and the second best entry in the series. ****
BONUS REVIEW- The excellent docu Halloween: 25 Years of Terror.
Anyways, have a safe and happy Halloween!
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You have read this article Halloween /
horror films /
John Carpenter /
Michael Myers /
movie reviews /
Rob Zombie /
slashers
with the title October 2008. You can bookmark this page URL http://thestoryoc.blogspot.com/2008/10/spotlight-on-halloween.html. Thanks!