The one that started it all.

Rating: 8/10 (23 June 2003)

There are a number of labels attached to this movie which have led to it being incorrectly classified. This is because the movie is so good at evoking terror that it accomplishes more than what is given.

The first one is that this is a slasher movie. Although it can be seen why this label became attached  a bogeyman with no motive killing teenagers  there are more than enough reasons why this label is false. Firstly the body count is low. Carpenter relies on keeping the audience in a state of high tension by suggesting something horrific is about to occur rather than having it actually occur. This is done by letting the audience know where Michael is and not the teens. He also lets Laurie sense the ominous presence and allows her to catch glimpses of him. The audience knows what is there and the knowledge that they have suspends them in horror as they see and know the evil that stalks Laurie. The unwitting heroine is heading for a terrifying encounter with Michael and the audience is along for the journey. A sense of powerlessness pervades them which accentuates their terror. Carpenter has thus created a movie that can be classified more as terror and horror rather than a slasher flick. It is not in the same class as Psycho' but parallels can be drawn.
Another label is that of the babysitter killer. Michael does not stalk babysitters in particular. He is motivated by a dark obsession to kill his sister Laurie. The fact that Laurie and one of his victims are babysitters is not central to his drive. As Dr Sam Loomis, his psychiatrist, diagnosed he is catatonic seemingly oblivious to the world around him existing only for one purpose  the right moment to stalk and kill his sister. This inexplicable drive is another source of terror for the audience. They have a fear for the unknown and when the unstoppable evil has no motive, this unknown element creates a more inhuman killer who will kill all who stands in his way.
The fact that Carpenter is the screenwriter, director and soundtrack composer is the most obvious reason why this movie is so good. He created the words and translated these into images. He then composed a soundtrack to accentuate what he was attempting to achieve with the images. Thus we do not have three separate visions of the movie and Carpenter uses his multiple talents very well here.
For me it is the soundtrack that lingers most on the memory. We have heard the same soundtrack effect in Jaws'. As the killer approaches it's victim, the soundtrack pitches in volume and intensity as more instruments are added at a greater pace. This accentuates the illusion of an ever closing killer which escalates with audience tension. The deep piano sound darkens the atmosphere. This is probably Carpenters greatest talent and the one he enjoys applying the most. The fact that some actors put in very weak performances is indicative of the fact that he pays more attention to other things  fortunately for us an excellent soundtrack.
Michael's mask has been the face of terror for years. The killer who does not show emotion and is almost featureless means that you cannot reason with this man or appeal to any source of emotion he may have. The mask makes him less human and thus detached from ordinary man. By referring to Michael as the shape adds to this effect of creating an evil entity rather than a mad human being. This same effect is evident in Jason and Freddie, other horror movie villains, but they are behind the most infamous mask of all  the Captain Kirk mask of Michael.
The performances range from good to mediocre. Donald Pleasance was the archetypal opponent for his evil characters. He gave believability to some of the cheesiest lines in movie history. Examples: `he had the blackest eyes, the devils eyes' and `he's gone, the evil has gone'. His contribution highlights our impression of Michael as pure evil. Jamie Lee Curtis is less convincing, but her weak performance makes he seem more vulnerable to Michael and thus indirectly adds to the illusion.
This movie is a horror classic and is wholly undeserving of the horrendously pale sequels that it gave birth to, with the possible exception of the first sequel. Things got worse from there. Anyone wanting to see how one person can combine the various elements of filmmaking should look to the original one as a great exponent.