Undeniably A Horror Classic.

Rating: 10/10 (11 December 2004)

John Carpenter's "Halloween" is one of the best horror films of all time. By far. You can't call yourself a horror fan and not have seen "Halloween". Among all of the past horror films, "Halloween" is among the classics that still stand out to this day and are as good as they were when they were first released.
"Halloween" is about a man named Michael Myers, who in 1963 murdered his sister with a butcher knife at the tender age of 6 years old. He was then locked up in a high-security asylum and watched over by Dr. Loomis, and now, 15 years later, he has returned to the quiet community of Haddonfield, Illinois. Laurie Strode and her friends Lynda and Annie plan on having a low-key evening, Annie and Laurie are both babysitting and Lynda plans on a romantic evening with her boyfriend. But what they don't know is that Michael is stalking them - following them down the streets, watching them through the windows, prowling around the houses at night. And he plans on turning an otherwise ordinary Halloween evening into a night of pure terror.
"Halloween" builds up suspense and displays true, classic horror at it's best. The score is the most remarkable thing about the film. It's perfect, the theme is eerie and creepy, and is now what the film is best known for. Jamie Lee Curtis and Donald Pleasence give excellent performances, and PJ Soles "totally" brings life to the Lynda character. The film has some great scenes, including the infamous closet scene which is scary as hell, and Lynda's death particularly. The feeling that Michael could be creeping around any corner, lurking in the dark shadows of the streets is very creepy. The entire setting of the movie is authentic to begin with, Haddonfield could be your town or my town. With minimal violence and gore, this movie manages to be insanely better than the sequels which mostly were gorefests, and is much more effective in doing so.
If you have yet to see this movie, see it. I've made it a bit of a ritual to watch this every time October 31st rolls around, and I'm sure many other horror fans do also. I do the same with "Black Christmas", another horror classic that I'd strongly recommend if you like this film, plus, it did come first. Anyways, "Halloween" goes to show you what can be done with such a low budget. I have seen all of the "Halloween" films and let me tell you, this one is still the best. 10/10.