Due to the pacing of the first film, there were multiple points where I kept thinking "wow, this Halloween night seems to drag on forever!" I got a seriously good chuckle when at the opening sequence I realized this entire film is a continuation of the same night. Pacing is again a bit of an issue with this one, but more distracting is due to the amount of different character's storylines taking place there are so many instances where they simply appear and reappear in different places. Due to it all happening on the same night, it's a juggling act trying to set the timing for everyone and there are points where it just doesn't work. Curtis is barely a main character in this one but it was kind of cool to see Last Starfighter Lance Guest. In addition, the amount of dumb character decisions is kind of off the charts, I guess it's almost setting the stage for Horror movies to come though, right? The arctype of those scores of hot to trot teenagers who always end up getting offed had to have a beginning somewhere.
Halloween II was always going to be judged against the success of the first film; as is often pointed out in many of the special features on the Blu Ray, this movie is inherently derivative of the first whereas the first one was an original. With all that said, this film succeeds where many of the latter slashers would fail.
The setting is a huge asset here, as the hospital at night is wonderfully eerie and spooky. Similarly, the other half of the movie gives us Haddonfield up in arms over Michael Myers’ invasion of their idyllic suburb; notice how many shots have citizens mulling around the streets trying to catch a glimpse of the carnage.
Donald Pleasence gives perhaps an even better performance here than the first film; once he realizes that Michael Myers is an unstoppable force of evil, you begin to see him lose his sanity and become more fevered in his actions and dialogue. Jaime Lee Curtis unfortunately has very little to do here, mostly lying in a catatonic state for the first half, than shuffling around the halls of the hospital in the second. The rest of the cast is a mixed bag similar to the first film.
Rosenthal’s direction is solid, helped along by Dean Cundey’s continuity as cinematographer from the first film. And credit to Alan Howarth, who takes Carpenter’s famous score and dials it to eleven with a gothic vibe that works well with the idea that Myers is publicly on the prowl.
Best scene: the final showdown in the surgery room. Suspenseful and brings our three main characters of the two movies together.
Still not anything amazing but I did find it more enjoyable that the first. It's a bit more intense, more realistic, and adds to the story really well. Gotta say though, that hospital being completely empty is laughably ridiculous.
This movie made me remember the Terminator saga. The Michael Myers stalking Jamie Lee Curtis scenes seem to have been used as a reference to John Cameron's Terminator.
The movie lost with Carpenter leaving the director's role, but it's still a good one. You gotta love Michael Myers.
Nowhere near as good as the first but it still was a pretty effective slasher. Scares were well handled, lots of suitably gruesome kills (this sequel ramps up the bodycount). Plot starts to become silly, and Michael Myers is inexplicably invulnerable. Jamie Lee Curtis is pretty good, but Pleasance seems as though he's just phoning it in after a much superior performance in the first film. Most of the other characters are underdeveloped slasher fodder.
It's not as good as the first Halloween film, but it's certainly a decent enough horror sequel. A little too much Myers though, which makes him less scary rather than more scary.
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Comments 1 - 14 of 14
Emiam
-3/5 or 5/10Better than part 1. Unlogical things the characters do makes you stop believe in what you're seeing. Happens more.
DynatiaCydonia
bullshitOn cinema at the cinema
So incredibly boringthestuman101694
Pleasence's presence in this picture is a profound pleasure . . . No, I'm just using sarcastic alliteration.Cassiodoro
Not badlordbeda
as good as the firstDisneyStitch
Due to the pacing of the first film, there were multiple points where I kept thinking "wow, this Halloween night seems to drag on forever!" I got a seriously good chuckle when at the opening sequence I realized this entire film is a continuation of the same night. Pacing is again a bit of an issue with this one, but more distracting is due to the amount of different character's storylines taking place there are so many instances where they simply appear and reappear in different places. Due to it all happening on the same night, it's a juggling act trying to set the timing for everyone and there are points where it just doesn't work. Curtis is barely a main character in this one but it was kind of cool to see Last Starfighter Lance Guest. In addition, the amount of dumb character decisions is kind of off the charts, I guess it's almost setting the stage for Horror movies to come though, right? The arctype of those scores of hot to trot teenagers who always end up getting offed had to have a beginning somewhere.CrumbThumber
turn off your brain type of moviexzynomorpher
I thought it was OK...tigh66
Halloween II was always going to be judged against the success of the first film; as is often pointed out in many of the special features on the Blu Ray, this movie is inherently derivative of the first whereas the first one was an original. With all that said, this film succeeds where many of the latter slashers would fail.The setting is a huge asset here, as the hospital at night is wonderfully eerie and spooky. Similarly, the other half of the movie gives us Haddonfield up in arms over Michael Myers’ invasion of their idyllic suburb; notice how many shots have citizens mulling around the streets trying to catch a glimpse of the carnage.
Donald Pleasence gives perhaps an even better performance here than the first film; once he realizes that Michael Myers is an unstoppable force of evil, you begin to see him lose his sanity and become more fevered in his actions and dialogue. Jaime Lee Curtis unfortunately has very little to do here, mostly lying in a catatonic state for the first half, than shuffling around the halls of the hospital in the second. The rest of the cast is a mixed bag similar to the first film.
Rosenthal’s direction is solid, helped along by Dean Cundey’s continuity as cinematographer from the first film. And credit to Alan Howarth, who takes Carpenter’s famous score and dials it to eleven with a gothic vibe that works well with the idea that Myers is publicly on the prowl.
Best scene: the final showdown in the surgery room. Suspenseful and brings our three main characters of the two movies together.
Jashezilla
Still not anything amazing but I did find it more enjoyable that the first. It's a bit more intense, more realistic, and adds to the story really well. Gotta say though, that hospital being completely empty is laughably ridiculous.JackBurtonNasGarrasDoMandarim
This movie made me remember the Terminator saga. The Michael Myers stalking Jamie Lee Curtis scenes seem to have been used as a reference to John Cameron's Terminator.The movie lost with Carpenter leaving the director's role, but it's still a good one. You gotta love Michael Myers.
ChrisReynolds
Nowhere near as good as the first but it still was a pretty effective slasher. Scares were well handled, lots of suitably gruesome kills (this sequel ramps up the bodycount). Plot starts to become silly, and Michael Myers is inexplicably invulnerable. Jamie Lee Curtis is pretty good, but Pleasance seems as though he's just phoning it in after a much superior performance in the first film. Most of the other characters are underdeveloped slasher fodder.BeasleyOnFilm
It's not as good as the first Halloween film, but it's certainly a decent enough horror sequel. A little too much Myers though, which makes him less scary rather than more scary.