this movie made the slasher genre. psycho invented it, but halloween perfected it and brought it into the mainstream. horror movie trying to emulate halloweens style continued to get made through the 80s into the early 90s, and it had a huge impact on the horror genre in general. a great film and worthy of being higher on the list. above re-animator anyway.
It is a mystery to me that John Carpenter's third movie, his most celebrated and most influential, the one movie that made him a director star, is also his most boring. It is slow, oh so very slow, slow even for Carpenter's trademark style of building atmosphere and tension. There is practically no gore or spectacle here, which means no appreciation for the special effects which normally are the bread and butter of the slasher genre, and that made Friday the 13th such a success two years later. There is also no comedy, nothing to amuse or distract. There are a lot of things this movie is not, which should not be held against it, of course, but we are only left with a blood-thirsty psychopath stalking teenagers - in slow motion - for 91 minutes. I was left deeply dissatisfied, even when I knew what to expect on the way in. I can appreciate the historical value of the movie in popularizing the slasher genre and introducing scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis. I can also appreciate Donald Pleasence's outstanding monologues and John Carpenter's moody synth score, but the picture as a whole, apparantly scary in 1978, can't hold a candle to some of the slashers that followed in its footsteps. It is definitly not scary and certainly not entertaining. It has simply been reduced, over the years, to a historical artifact.
The original that provided the blueprint for millions that have followed and none that have even come close as equals. I'm not a fan of the genre but this is excellent tension building. Carpenter is a wizard of cinema.
Absolutely masterly. The two girls are driving in the car, and talking casually, in broad daylight!, but I'm scared. That's because behind them, coming closer, is a beige car resembling the one that drives around the killer. The car is not pushing itself into view, but it's in every shot, in every frame. And it's approaching. Like I said: masterly.
If the soundtrack wasn’t so iconic this would be a 3/10. With the music into consideration I can give it a very generous 5 out of ten also taking into account the age of the movie. Meh
Can you believe I had never seen the original Halloween before? Well, it's true. Though Psycho is the granddaddy of the slasher film, Halloween is foundational to the genre, essentially the spark that lit the fire of a craze, and set up many of the tropes we associate with slasher flicks. What is most intriguing is that despite its fingerprints being all over the movies to come, it is also very distinctively UNLIKE its imitators. No jump scares, for one thing. Carpenter's score is perfect for building tension, but it doesn't cheat. The jump scare is a tool to STARTLE audiences, not scare them. Another interesting element is that we're often seeing things from Michael Meyers' point of view. We're in the psycho's head, then over his shoulder, and eventually third person and more with Jamie Lee Curtis' babysitter under siege. This may be why Michael is a faceless monster with inexplicable motivations (and why it was probably a mistake to dig into his back story, from what I hear of the sequels). He is a cipher, one that is initially us, until we, with the help of the camera, reject the murderous impulse. There's a lesson about horror film massacres embedded in this device: Most victims are unlikable if not dislikable, and it's the person the film makes us empathize with (Curtis' much more responsible and warmer teen) who survives.
Being a secret horror film fan, I only saw this one for the first time today, and I found the movie quite thrilling and exciting. However, the climax was just purely hilarious. Excellent film except for the last 10 minutes but all in all entertaining flick.
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greenhorg
Plot summary: A man disguised as William Shatner alarms neighborhood teens.Jazzy
No one saying anything about the soundtrack? I thought it was fantastic. Overall a really well made influential slasher.mittens
this movie made the slasher genre. psycho invented it, but halloween perfected it and brought it into the mainstream. horror movie trying to emulate halloweens style continued to get made through the 80s into the early 90s, and it had a huge impact on the horror genre in general. a great film and worthy of being higher on the list. above re-animator anyway.Zeltaebar
It is a mystery to me that John Carpenter's third movie, his most celebrated and most influential, the one movie that made him a director star, is also his most boring. It is slow, oh so very slow, slow even for Carpenter's trademark style of building atmosphere and tension. There is practically no gore or spectacle here, which means no appreciation for the special effects which normally are the bread and butter of the slasher genre, and that made Friday the 13th such a success two years later. There is also no comedy, nothing to amuse or distract. There are a lot of things this movie is not, which should not be held against it, of course, but we are only left with a blood-thirsty psychopath stalking teenagers - in slow motion - for 91 minutes. I was left deeply dissatisfied, even when I knew what to expect on the way in. I can appreciate the historical value of the movie in popularizing the slasher genre and introducing scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis. I can also appreciate Donald Pleasence's outstanding monologues and John Carpenter's moody synth score, but the picture as a whole, apparantly scary in 1978, can't hold a candle to some of the slashers that followed in its footsteps. It is definitly not scary and certainly not entertaining. It has simply been reduced, over the years, to a historical artifact.fonz
The original that provided the blueprint for millions that have followed and none that have even come close as equals. I'm not a fan of the genre but this is excellent tension building. Carpenter is a wizard of cinema.Punisher
Totally.nes1983
Absolutely masterly. The two girls are driving in the car, and talking casually, in broad daylight!, but I'm scared. That's because behind them, coming closer, is a beige car resembling the one that drives around the killer. The car is not pushing itself into view, but it's in every shot, in every frame. And it's approaching. Like I said: masterly.Sonny H
If the soundtrack wasn’t so iconic this would be a 3/10. With the music into consideration I can give it a very generous 5 out of ten also taking into account the age of the movie. Mehchunkylefunga
Not scary and quite frankly, not any good.Siskoid
Can you believe I had never seen the original Halloween before? Well, it's true. Though Psycho is the granddaddy of the slasher film, Halloween is foundational to the genre, essentially the spark that lit the fire of a craze, and set up many of the tropes we associate with slasher flicks. What is most intriguing is that despite its fingerprints being all over the movies to come, it is also very distinctively UNLIKE its imitators. No jump scares, for one thing. Carpenter's score is perfect for building tension, but it doesn't cheat. The jump scare is a tool to STARTLE audiences, not scare them. Another interesting element is that we're often seeing things from Michael Meyers' point of view. We're in the psycho's head, then over his shoulder, and eventually third person and more with Jamie Lee Curtis' babysitter under siege. This may be why Michael is a faceless monster with inexplicable motivations (and why it was probably a mistake to dig into his back story, from what I hear of the sequels). He is a cipher, one that is initially us, until we, with the help of the camera, reject the murderous impulse. There's a lesson about horror film massacres embedded in this device: Most victims are unlikable if not dislikable, and it's the person the film makes us empathize with (Curtis' much more responsible and warmer teen) who survives.Shidan
The first sequence is truly magnificent...It's definitely on the high side of slasher movies, although it's not my favorite slasher and not that impressive as a horror film.
Also, I think Jamie's acting was poor most of the time. Later she'll become a good actress, but not in this film.
junegoon
Favourable flickvendetta
first of the halloween series........refreshingOrjanB
Fun movie! Jamie Lee Curtis rocked in it, and her character is likeable. Cool n classic 70s horror, I recommend it.Robbimich
Being a secret horror film fan, I only saw this one for the first time today, and I found the movie quite thrilling and exciting. However, the climax was just purely hilarious. Excellent film except for the last 10 minutes but all in all entertaining flick.Showing items 1 – 15 of 30