The Halloween series has always been a mixed bag in my opinion. We have the pure greatness that is the original, then we get the decent, yet slow, second installment, and the dreadful stand alone third installment of the series. After the mistake that was the third feature of the series the filmmakers knew the only thing they could do to give the series some justice would be to bring Michael Myers back. I'm happy to say that in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers he comes back with a vengeance.
The 4th installment, and some may disagree with me, is way better than Halloween 2. If any of the sequels comes close to matching the pace of the original it's this installment. The film follows the firs film's pace by adding more suspense than a high body count, unlike the second film, and manages to make Michael Myers scary again.
The aspect that works best about the film are its characters. Donald Pleasance returns as Dr. Loomis, adding a slightly more deranged/mad scientist vibe to his role. In this film he is consumed with stopping Micahel. A trend that would continue, with less success, in the 5th and 6th installment. Danielle Harris is added to the series as Michael's niece, Jamie. Danielle gives a truly amazing performance for someone of such a young age at the time. It's not an annoying child performance, but a captivating one. Ellie Cornell plays one of the few not so annoying teenagers in the Halloween series. Her portrayal of Rachel starts out like this however but soon transforms into a strong character who is determined to protect her sister. There are other spporting characters but they mostly are just there to add to a relatively low body count. Even Michael Myers is given some life as portrayed by George P. Wilbur. Some say he moved at a snailspace but i thought he was truly menancing and almost as effective as the Michael in the original film.
The stalk scens are also another highlight. A chase through a house and eventually onto a roof is a huge highlight of the film. The climatic battle on the truck is also worth mentioning.
Halloween 4 works better than most horror sequels. i just wish the trend couldn't last throughout the entire series. 5-6 most definitely killed the series when they were released. My advice jsut watch 1,2,4, and H20 to find out what the Halloween craze is all about.
The 4th installment, and some may disagree with me, is way better than Halloween 2. If any of the sequels comes close to matching the pace of the original it's this installment. The film follows the firs film's pace by adding more suspense than a high body count, unlike the second film, and manages to make Michael Myers scary again.
The aspect that works best about the film are its characters. Donald Pleasance returns as Dr. Loomis, adding a slightly more deranged/mad scientist vibe to his role. In this film he is consumed with stopping Micahel. A trend that would continue, with less success, in the 5th and 6th installment. Danielle Harris is added to the series as Michael's niece, Jamie. Danielle gives a truly amazing performance for someone of such a young age at the time. It's not an annoying child performance, but a captivating one. Ellie Cornell plays one of the few not so annoying teenagers in the Halloween series. Her portrayal of Rachel starts out like this however but soon transforms into a strong character who is determined to protect her sister. There are other spporting characters but they mostly are just there to add to a relatively low body count. Even Michael Myers is given some life as portrayed by George P. Wilbur. Some say he moved at a snailspace but i thought he was truly menancing and almost as effective as the Michael in the original film.
The stalk scens are also another highlight. A chase through a house and eventually onto a roof is a huge highlight of the film. The climatic battle on the truck is also worth mentioning.
Halloween 4 works better than most horror sequels. i just wish the trend couldn't last throughout the entire series. 5-6 most definitely killed the series when they were released. My advice jsut watch 1,2,4, and H20 to find out what the Halloween craze is all about.