Greatest Horror Movie Sequels: Halloween 4

Ask any movie fan from obsessive horror movie freaks (like me) to casual film viewers what the best horror movies are and inevitably you will hear "Halloween". John Carpenter’s low budget masterpiece about babysitters being stalked by evil incarnate on Halloween night inspired a million knock-offs, and showed Hollywood that independent films can have a big impact at the box-office.

While Halloween H20 was the most successful sequel, quickly cashing in on the post-Scream slasher explosion, the most outstanding sequel in the franchise is Halloween 4: The Curse of Michael Myers.

THE STORY
Halloween II finished with Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasance) filling a hospital room with gas and sparking his lighter, creating a massive explosion which sets Michael Myers into a fire ball bigger than anything you’d find at a Richard Pryor free-basing party. Both Myers and Loomis survived, but Myers is left in a coma. Unbeknownst to Loomis, the people in charge at the institution holding Myers decide to transfer him on October 30^th (if only they’d waited until November 1^st!) During the transfer, the medics reveal that Myers’ only living relative is a niece in his hometown. When Myers learns about his niece, he kills the medics (watch for a great kill – a three stooges prank gone wrong) and escapes to Haddonfield. Dr. Loomis gives chase and sets out to stop Myers once and for all.

Meanwhile, Myers’ niece Jamie (Danielle Harris) is living with a foster family. She has constant nightmares, and is bullied and teased about her infamous uncle. Her foster sister Rachel (Ellie Cornell) is left to babysit Jamie on Halloween night. Myers slices and dices his way toward Jamie, and anyone that gets in his way.

WHAT MAKES IT GREAT
The pacing of this movie is fantastic. There are some great action sequences as well as some jump out of your seat scares. And, unlike many horror sequels, the main characters are well drawn out and not your typical slasher protagonists. The relationship between Jamie and her foster sister is very well developed, and having the child the target of Myers’ rampage makes the movie very suspenseful. This movie understands that the more the audience invests in the characters, the more suspense you create when they are in danger.

Dr. Loomis is great, as always. The sequel is a welcome return for horror fans following the completely unrelated Halloween III. The movie features a great script from Alan ("Wrong Turn") McElroy and solid direction by Dwight ("Anacondas") Little.

The movie also features the ending in the series, and it should have ended the series. The original Halloween ended with Myers escaping, telling the audience that evil never dies. In this film, after Myers is shot five-hundred times and buried in a well, we learn that evil never dies, but it takes many forms.

The DVD from Anchor Bay (easily the greatest DVD production company on the planet) is a good transfer, and has a seventeen minute look at the film, including interviews with the stars looking back on the project. The only missing piece is a commentary. You can probably still find a copy in the collector’s tin.

RATING: B+

HONOURABLE MENTION
Halloween II and H20 are probably the only other films in the series worth a serious look. Halloween II is pretty good, but suffers from seeing too much of Myers. H20 is a bit slick, and lacks a key ingredient (it’s just not a Halloween film without Donald Pleasance). Avoid the rest unless you are a real fan of the series.

Article by Tim Hannigan
MoviesOnline Columnist