Class Review in 300 Words - Halloween

Rating: 9/10 (9 October 2009)

John Carpenter's Halloween is a horror classic that set the definition for the popular "slasher" genre of films with it's unique mix of gruesome death scenes and Hitchcock inspired suspense. The film Halloween takes place on October 31st, 1978 in the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois which was the setting of a grisly murder exactly fifteen years earlier. The murderer Michael Myers, who had been in a psych ward since the tender age of six, has escaped from the psych ward while on the way to trial. Myers' psychiatrist Dr. Samuel Loomis fears that Michael has the urge to return to the scene of the crime, and begins an investigation to locate and track down his patient. Myers does indeed return "home" to Haddonfield where a young babysitter by the name of Laurie Strode captures his attention. Eerily obsessed, Myers stalks Laurie incessantly, hacking to bits anyone unlucky enough to come between him and his prey.
Carpenter's use of suspense heavily borrows from that of Alfred Hitchcock and purposely pays tribute to Hitchcock's Psycho in a vast amount of ways, including casting Jamie Lee Curtis, daughter of Janet Leigh, as the lead role. In a strange sort of "moral of the story" way, Carpenter "cursed" promiscuous behavior, killing off nearly every character that engaged in sexual or illegal acts.
Halloween took the horror genre to the next level with the innovative and unique elements that the film established. The film's music is beautifully haunting and will stick with you for the rest of your life even after hearing it just once. Michael Myers' pure white mask can send chills down your spine with just one glimpse, thanks to it's emotionless, blank stare; it's so frightening that it's hard to even believe that the original prop was an just inside-out 'Captain Kirk' mask. The shaky, first-person camera that Carpenter used captures a grim, realistic touch that adds the viewer to truly feel like they are actually going through the hell that is happening in the film.