Terrible acting overcome by superb direction

Rating: 8/10 (17 April 2007)

Genre-defining horror film, but it's neither underrated or overrated - it's just good. It's pretty much the definitive Halloween film, and the one that I think of whenever I think of the holiday. Carpenter's direction is terrific; his ability with a camera is never questioned, as some of the shots are very impressive and the film is that much scarier because of it. The Shape is a terrifying horror icon, and the character is never scarier than he is in this film. Furthermore, the music is one of the best horror scores ever. But the film is merely good; the main reason is the acting and the dialogue. Pleasance is unremarkable, but he's easily the best of the cast: everybody else are terribly wooden, and their lines are cringe-worthy because of it. I don't know if its the writing or the acting, but the dialogue is incredibly bad. The superb atmosphere manages to overcome it, but this is not one of the best horror films of all time.