Golden Age of Horror

Rating: 9/10 (4 December 2013)

Michael Myers kills his older sister Judith Myers when he was six. Fifteen years later, Michael escapes the sanitarium. He returns to Haddonfield, Illinois. It's Halloween and he grabs a white William Shatner mask. He starts stalking Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis). Her friends Annie Brackett (Nancy Kyes) and Lynda van der Klok (P. J. Soles) dismisses her concern. Dr. Samuel Loomis (Donald Pleasence) is on Michael Myers' trail.
It's the movie that launched endless sequels, and the careers of Jamie Lee Curtis and even John Carpenter. This is his first big hit. But there is more. It's the start of the golden age of horror. There are killers with name recognition. We get scenes from the killer's POV. Horror is moving into new territories. Michael Myers is possibly the first well known killer movie character. It's interesting that the adult Michael Myers really doesn't start killing until later in the movie. There isn't as much slashing in this slasher movie as most would expect. It is more creepy than gory. The iconic music just adds to the creepy atmosphere. It's also such an incredible idea that this low budget indie horror would become so iconic and have so much influence. Considering that Donald Pleasence is the most experienced of anybody on the set, it is truly amazing that this was so well made.