See the Devil's Eyes for the first time

Rating: 10/10 (18 August 2009)

Ah, the granddaddy of all slasher flicks. Totally. 'Halloween' is a masterpiece on so many levels, it's a shame the current generation doesn't appreciate those who grew up before, during or slightly after its 1978 release. Obviously, they're used to ghosts with a 'Grudge,' 'Saw' or other torture-porn features, never realizing that despite 'Halloween' not being the first 'psycho-killer' film, it was certainly the most influential. This is proved with the countless imitators in the years that followed, including its own part 'II' and 'Friday the 13th,' which, no secret, literally stated they wanted to make "another 'Halloween' movie." 'Halloween' is suspenseful, original, scary and had an excellent theme (thanks, John.) Even with its incredible low budget, there was heart here, characters with real depth and one of my favorite aspects: simplicity. The movie relied on mood vs. gore, violence, nudity and a typical too-long background to explain why the killer Michael Myers is the way he is. You simply accepted he had the "Devil's Eyes" and went with his passion, stalking and drive. Curtis, "Scream Queen" #2 (loved the fact she inherited that from her mother) was someone you cared about, wanted to live – something sorely lacking in the movies that copied this movie's success. Halloween 1963: young Michael kills his sister for literally no apparent reason and gets locked up for 15 years, only to return and kill/stalk again. If you get a chance, you must simply watch the TV-version of this classic – it gives more depth to the young boy, Pleasence's (in a career defining/masterful role) plight to keep him locked up for good and Curtis's reasons for being scared. If only real film makers today could come close to capturing what 'Halloween' meant for Hollywood and for movie-goers. This should be taught in film schools. Totally.