The perfect slasher film.

Rating: 9/10 (30 August 2000)

Halloween is considered by most to be the grandfather of slasher films. Although slashers existed before Halloween, John Carpenter created a truly terrifying film that caught the attention of the mainstream, which tended to dismiss horror films up until that point.
The plot follows Michael Myers, a man whom at a very young age, murdered his older sister, and was forever locked away in an insane asylum, never speaking a word. Fifteen years later, Myers escapes, and returns to the town he shocked many years before.
Donald Pleasence portrays Dr. Loomis, a psychiatrist that has been working with Michael in an attempt to reach the person inside. After 15 years, he knows that Michael is pure evil, and he most stop at nothing to prevent his terror from being released.
Jamie Lee Curtis gives an excellent performance as Laurie, a teenager in Haddonfield that catches little glimpses of Michael observing her in strange places. The tension slowly builds, through the expert use of the musical score, and perfect light and shadow combinations. When Michael starts to kill, you often are tricked into thinking you've just seen more than you have. The mood is so strong and compelling, that when we are given the suggestion of a knife stabbing somebody, our minds fill in the rest. This is a fascinating quality for a horror movie to possess, as the human mind can always dream up something more gruesome than even the best special effects wizard can produce.
During the scenes in the house, with Laurie fighting for her life against the seemingly unstoppable Michael, the use of light and shadow expertly hides the killer in unexpected places. When Michael abruptly sits up in the hallway behind Laurie, don't be surprised if you find yourself yelling "GET OUT" in a vain attempt to warn Jamie Lee.
The tension and pacing of this film is spectacular. All the movies that followed, from the Friday the 13ths, to the Nightmare on Elm Streets, to the Scream series, and Halloween's own sequels, all use this movie as the template. Some more successfully than others.