Great!

Rating: 7/10 (10 May 2020)

A young Michael kills his sister. Now, fifteen years later, he's escaped from a mental hospital... and he's coming home.
This film undoubtedly kick-started the "slasher" trend as we know it to be today. It was relatively low budget and proved to be rather successful with minimal advertising.
This is a slow-burn horror movie. It doesn't rely heavily on the number of people killed, nor are you watching the movie to root for the bad guy. This, quite simply, is what horror should be. There's been no demystification of the villain, so you're not rooting for the character, and there's a degree of fear when contemplating the character.
This film - perhaps as a result of desensitization, which is always an issue with horror movies - doesn't pack the punch it may once have offered, but it's not hard to see what made this movie so effective and scary back in the day. The low budget filmmaking made it a more frightening experience and, perhaps, continues to this day with the imperfections in the digital transfer from 35mm film.
It's a certified horror classic and, despite its flaws, is well worth its place in horror history.