John Carpenter's Halloween. The film that started it all. It gave us the wonderful Dr. Loomis, Laurie Strode and defined Evil in the form of The Shape. It hit the world like a freight train and changed it forever.
Many have talked about the film. I, for one, have seen countless articles about it. What is it about the film that makes it so note worthy?
I would say that one of the reasons why it's considered to be such a classic is the story. When you take a minute and think about it, the story is very simple. Dr. Loomis is pursuing The Shape as he returns home to stalk a babysitter and her friends. It's definitely one of the large parts of what makes it work. It's the story of Good vs. Evil.
I mean sure, there are some other things that happen in the story. But that's the large picture of it. And I would say that it's all thanks to the characters that John Carpenter and Debra Hill created when they crafted this story. They made those characters memorable. Each of them have some thing that defines them. Whether it's Laurie's strong nature or Dr. Loomis' desire to keep pursing The Shape. They are all memorable in some way. And yes, that even includes Bob.
Then there is Michael Myers. The terrifying unrelenting force that is The Shape. He is very iconic. Not once during the film does he utter a single word. He's just there. Dr. Loomis does say it best when he talks about Michael, "I met him, 15 years ago; I was told there was nothing left; no reason, no conscience, no understanding in even the most rudimentary sense of life or death, of good or evil, right or wrong. I met this... six-year-old child with this blank, pale, emotionless face, and... the blackest eyes - the Devil's eyes. I spent eight years trying to reach him, and then another seven trying to keep him locked up, because I realized that what was living behind that boy's eyes was purely and simply... evil.". He is the personification of Evil.
Now, I know that there is a novelization to the 1978 film. A few years ago, I had the pleasure of reading it. It had a few things that were really eye opening not just for this film but the franchise as a whole.
In the prologue, it is the dawn of the Celtic race in Ireland. There was a young disfigured boy of 15, Enda. He was madly in love with the King's daughter, Deirdre. Enda is severely humiliated for attempting to win her love. On Halloween, he attacks and murders Deirdre and her fiancee. The villagers kill Enda and curse him to forever wander the earth, recreating these events.
Then we are thrown into 1963. We see a young Michael and his grandmother. It is very eerie. The grandmother is concerned as Michael has been admitting to hearing voices and having visions and nightmares (of Deirdre and Enda). It is further discussed that Michael admits hearing voices that tell him to say he hates people. And then there's the cherry on top. It is mentioned that Michael's great grandfather had committed some violent act and that Michael was very much like him. This alone added so much to explaining why Michael is the way he is.
I understand that there was a high chance it was added by the author of the novelization and not John Carpenter or Debra Hill. But it adds a lot of flavor to everything. I hope that makes sense. But if that is true, then there is a force that is trying to influence Michael. And further on in the franchise, we find out about the Cult of Thorn. Personally, in my head canon, I would agree that this all ties into The Thorn Trilogy of films. And honestly, it doesn't make that storyline seem like it comes out of nowhere anymore.
The music by Carpenter is amazing. It perfectly sets the tone of the film as well as adds tension to it. I remember hearing somewhere that there was a screening of Halloween without the score. And it didn't do so well. Then they went and added and returned, it worked like gang busters. That alone should help illustrate the power of Carpenter's music in the film. And it is a character in the film as well.
Now, the violence in Halloween. It's not something that I would consider to be super violent. There isn't much gore in the movie at all. So because of that, it allowed the film to hit with a much wider audience in my opinion. Those looking for a horror film, Halloween covers it. Those looking for a tense thriller, Halloween covers it. It allowed a large amount of flexibility. And I also know that because of there being not much gore that there are some parents that will use it as a way to introduce their children to the horror genre. I, for one, don't necessarily see anything wrong with that.
All of this works to make Halloween a classic. The characters. The setting. The tone. The music. All beautifully work together. It's a film that every spooky season is easy to throw on to watch whenever. Or throw it on the tv for background noise, but be prepared that you'll soon find yourself sitting entranced in the story.
Rating: 5 out of 5.
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