Letterboxd Reviews: Halloween II

I realized something when watching Halloween Kills in the theater: this validates what makes Halloween II so special. The opening prior to the meat of the film in Haddonfield hospital where Michael moves about the neighborhood like a phantom lurking in the dark, emerging in the light for us and victims to see, but seemingly only noticed, for the most part, when The Shape decides to make his presence felt. When David Gordon Green takes us back to 1978 in his film, I come to understand that no matter how much multiverse alternate retcons might disrupt and/or eliminate timelines altogether, the work Dean Cundy mastered in Halloween II cannot be erased...if anything, his legend is only magnified. And with how this new timeline seems to be divisive and polarizing, Halloween II seems to just gain further respect and renown. While I like certain aspects of both Kills and Zombie's H2, I seem to just appreciate how all these iterations and updates, reboots and retcons look to improve on this film and seemingly fail to do so.

This has my favorite Dr. Loomis of the any Halloween film, and I genuinely prefer his scenes with Deputy Hunt over Sheriff Brackett. There's Samhain and the brother/sister connections I don't really care one way or the other about. But there is a great scene where Loomis and Hunt are at the Myers house, and another at the school, a third at the dentist office. Funny, come to think of it, my jam is everything outside the hospital. Well, besides Pamela Shoop. I wish Anne Martin of Prom Night had a bigger role than just friend of Shoop needing a ride home.

Watched my Universal Blu featuring Terror in the Aisles. It looks fantastic. All of The Shape creeping about is the good shit I'm always here for. I will say, while the first film did its best to bring a presence of Halloween despite obvious limits, being set at night and eventually at the hospital, allows for better opportunities to use decor and holiday aesthetic, emphasizing what they couldn't before.

--Letterboxd reviews: Halloween II (1981) 

January 17, 2022

****/*****