Reviews

In my opinion (being a die-hard Halloween fan, I think that ought to account for something, blast it) this is hands down the best sequel in the series. Michael recaptures the malice he had in the first one, and is in some ways meaner and more evil than he was in the first two since in this one he is after a little girl; his own niece no-less.

Donald Pleasance gives an outstanding performance as Dr. Loomis, who's crazier and more determined in this one. Danielle Harris did a fantastic job as little Jamie, the girl deserved an award for her performance, just like Mr. Pleasance. Ellie Cornell did a decent job as the older, protective foster-sister. Dwight Little gets two thumps up from me for this excellent entry into the story of Michael Myers.

If you don't remotely like this movie and claim to love slasher movies, there's something seriously wrong with you. This movie set the bar for the rest of the slashers to follow like Friday the 13th and Prom Night. There were no other movies before this one where a bunch of baby-sitters got naked, did drugs, and got knocked off one-by-one. John Carpenter took such a simple concept and made it one of the greatest movies of all time.

The following actors deserve awards for their performances: Donald Pleasance for making Dr. Loomis (at least in my eyes) the most likable guy in the film, Charles Cyphers for his role as the tough-as-nails Sheriff Brackett, Jamie-Lee Curtis for playing Laurie Strode and becoming perhaps the greatest scream-queen of all time. Little gore, great kills, a freaky score, and a terrifying villain, you can't go wrong watching this movie. It is truly one of the best horror flicks out there.

First off, let me say for the record that I AM NOT JOHN JOHNSON. I've been watching the man's work for 12 years now, and it still never ceases to put a smile on my face and make me let out a laugh. The first thing a person must remember when they are watching Skeleton Key, whether it be 1, 2, 3, etc. is that you should not take a moment of it seriously. As someone I know once said, it's "theater of the absurd." Besides, how can someone not love the moments with Nicapernocus such as "kick some zombie a**!!!" or "he just slapped you upside the head with a big d***!"? The whole bit with "The King" is flat out hilarious! However, there is one complaint I have... why did he have to pick a love interest with a man's face and virtually lousy looking tits???

This is not the first thing of Carlin's I've listened to, but it's in my top 3. No other comedian has had the nerve to start up with a line such as "Why? Why? Why is it that most people who are against abortion are people you wouldn't wanna **** in the first place?" Classic! Carlin sounds really ticked in this one, but nearly as much as he did in "You Are All Diseased." This one he wasn't but only so serious. The man is very insightful, and makes some very good points through-out the entire show. If you don't laugh at this one, you are either heavily sedated or have no sense of humor in any shape or form. He has jokes that anybody who knows what subjects he's tackling at can laugh at. It's just that great! His bit on "State Prison Farms" was pure gold. I have yet to hear a comedian with the imagination as George.

Oh, the humanity! I was hopeful of Rob Zombie's Halloween, and went with an open mind. What do I get instead? A swift, majestic kick to the groin by Rob Zombie and this monstrosity that he dares to name after John Carpenter's classic. Zombie almost completely changed the mythology of Michael Myers, and turned all of the original cool characters into sniveling wastes of skin. Why did he have to try and make Michael so that we'd have sympathy for him?! Huh?! We're not supposed to have sympathy for Mr. Myers! He supposed to be pure evil on two legs, not a tormented soul! He's supposed to break out of Smith's Grove to try and kill Laurie Strode, not to track her down and get on his knees for forgiveness!!! Oh my God, I wanna just puke in my soup after watching this pile of horse feces on screen! Rob Zombie: talented musician, horrible director. I knew the Halloween series on going downhill the moment I saw number 5, number 6 was a SLIGHT improvement, number 7 tried to let the series end with dignity, number 8 brought it back to take a dump on it like 5 & 6, and this one finally put a bullet in its head. It breaks the heart, it really does. If you are looking for a homage or loyal remake, don't even bother. If you're looking for a completely new story, disloyal to original mythology, go for it.

This was not the first movie in the series I saw ("Aliens" was the first one I saw), but it is my favorite, in the series and out of all movies I've seen. "Alien" caused more scares than most of the other horror movies of the 70's and 80's. I cannot remember hearing about the other horror movie classics, such as "Halloween" or "Nightmare on Elm Street", creating some of the reactions this one did right in the middle of the theater. It still scared me, even after I knew what I was in for after watching "Aliens" and "Alien Resurrection," (facehuggers and chestbursters considered mind you). Not many movies can do that. Certainly not some of the classic slasher films could. This film is far better than "Star Wars" or "Raiders of the Lost Ark." It makes sense, it could possibly happen in the future, and it has an actual story to it, not just some people trapped in an area getting knocked off one-by-one (it didn't rip off Agatha Christie's "Ten Little Indians," thank you). The scene where Kane has the alien fetus burst out of his chest was probably the most visually disturbing moment in the whole movie. They never did that in "Friday the 13th!" "Halloween" never had a creature who had a second mouth that snapped out and bit chunks off of you. Freddy Krueger never bled acid for blood and laid an alien embryo inside your chest.

I've watched this movie many times, and I still am amazed at the quality of the work Jim Cameron has put out here. "Aliens" does not surpass its predecessor, "Alien," in scares; but it beats it by a land-slide in the action department. I personally prefer the creature design in "Alien" over the ones in this one. In "Aliens", the creatures looked nothing more than like mutated, wing-less bees. It's always a pleasure to see Lance Henriksen on the big-screen. He excelled as Bishop, the android. Same for Michael Beihn as Corporal Hicks, the tough/nice guy of the bunch. He and Sigourney Weaver had great chemistry together. Sigourney herself portrayed Ripley beautifully in this one, just as she did in the original. Ripley is the role Sigourney was born to play, and this movie is proof. As for Newt, I personally am not a fan. I'll be honest, I never was. She came off as whiny, and most of her lines were just screaming people's names (and in that aspect of the role, Carrie Henn did a good job)! But, she was a necessary evil to give Ripley a daughter figure, since you find out her own daughter died earlier in the film. "Alien" IMO, is the best in the series, but "Aliens" is the best of its sequels. 3 & 4 do not compare to this one. "Aliens" was, and forever shall be, such a good sequel any future ones will not stand a chance in dethroning it.