This week marks the 45th anniversary of the release of John Carpenter’s Halloween, the 1978 film that introduced masked killer, Michael Myers, to the world.
Since we have now arrived at the last weekend before Halloween, with a few more nights left of horror-movie viewing, I figured I would offer a guide to watching the Halloween franchise, my favorite of all the horror movie franchises.
While not every entry in the series is worth a watch, the franchise taken as a whole is a fun ride that goes perfectly well with a cold, rainy night in October. And if you haven’t watched any of these movies, perhaps this will entice you to turn out the lights, pop some popcorn and put one on this weekend.
Rather than spend time explaining the plots, just know that the series focuses on a knife-wielding killer that stalks residents of the fictional town of Haddonfield, IL on Halloween night.
Here are a few brief thoughts/reviews of each episode in the franchise (excluding the Rob Zombie movies as they stand apart from this series):
Halloween
If you’ve never watched director John Carpenter’s original film, make that your moving-watching priority between now and Tuesday night. A low-budget, slasher masterpiece, the film features everything you want in a Halloween-themed horror movie: chilling music, a terrifying monster and seasonal imagery from top to bottom. This is my personal favorite horror movie.
Halloween II
A lesser quality film than the original and weakened by the makers’ desire to capitalize on the gory, teenage-centric sequels of the early 1980s. As far as entries in the franchise, it’s closest to the original and delivers on horror movie fun.
Halloween III: Season of the Witch
This movie was an experiment, a departure from the series, having nothing to do with Michael Myers. But it’s a playful nod to the ancient Celtic celebrations that provide the foundation for many of our current Halloween traditions. It’s worth a watch.
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers
After the failure of part III, as the title suggests, Michael is brought back to kill again. The movie opens with shots of smoky, rural landscapes under gloomy October skies, offering enough goodwill to sustain you through what is essentially a cookie-cutter teen slasher flick.
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers
If part 4 is a cookie-cutter teen slasher flick, then this movie is whatever is less than that. The iconic mask is replaced with some bizarre, poorly designed knock-off. You could skip this, unless you plan to keep going with the series.
Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers
While not a great film, it is noteworthy and worth watching for two reasons: 1. It’s the cinematic introduction to Paul Rudd (made before Clueless) and 2. The story attempts to connect Michael back to those Celtic roots with an imperfect but ambitious effort.
Halloween H2O: 20 Years Later
It’s the much-anticipated return of Jamie Lee Curtis and while it has some silly moments, it goes for the goods with big budget, Hollywood style.
Halloween: Resurrection
Michael Myers meets Busta Rhymes. Could probably skip this one.
Halloween (2018)
Better than it could’ve been, but most of the good stuff is in the trailer.
Halloween Kills
It’s not great or even good, but it is fun and referential and delivers on horror movie gore.
Halloween Ends
After more than 40 years, the “conclusion” to this story should’ve been handled better. It focuses on all the wrong things and ultimately leaves fans wishing it either was better or didn’t exist. Better off re-watching the original.
–Michael Williamson is a reporter for the Journal-Tribune.