After Halloween was so successful, it was only a matter of time before a sequel was made. Halloween II is the first of many sequels.
Halloween II picks up immediately after the end of Halloween. There are spoilers for the first movie, so it is best if the movies are watched in order. Some things won’t make as much sense if the movies aren’t watched in order since the plot for this one is so closely tied to the plot of the first movie.
After surviving being attacked by Michael Myers, Laurie Strode is taken to the hospital. Michael has disappeared, so Dr. Loomis is convinced that more people are going to be killed. Dr. Loomis and Sheriff Brackett search for Michael, who has managed to find out that Laurie is in the hospital. Michael continues trying to get to Laurie, killing other people he encounters along the way.
There is a short recap for the events that took place during the first movie at the beginning of Halloween II. Once that is done, the movie picks up immediately after the end of the first movie. The plot is directly tied to the first movie, though it isn’t as strong overall. This movie was originally intended to be the last movie featuring Michael. The next movie, Halloween III: Season of the Witch has a completely different plot. The plan was to have different stories tied to Halloween for future movies. The third movie didn’t do very well, so that idea was scrapped, and Michael Myers was brought back for the fourth movie.
It is clear from very early in Halloween II that Michael is still determined to kill Laurie. The reason for his obsession with killing her isn’t known for a while, so that does add a small amount of mystery to what is going. More about Michael is shared over the course of the movie, and that does answer some of the questions about what is going on. The information does sort of explain why certain things happen while some other things remain unanswered.
The plot for Halloween II is really rather simple. Laurie has been taken to the hospital, Michael is still determined to kill her while Dr. Loomis and the Sheriff try to find Michael. Most of what happens is somehow tied to Michael trying to find Laurie. There really isn’t much mystery to what is going on though there are a few suspenseful moments. The movie does end up being mostly predictable overall, which will disappoint some viewers. I still thought the movie was entertaining overall, though it would have been nice if some things weren’t so predictable.
Violence turns up in many scenes of Halloween II, which is a bit different from the first movie. That one relied more on building tension and leaving more things to the imagination of the viewers. In the years between the making of the two movies, more slasher movies were made containing more graphic violence and it seems that did influence the makers of this movie. There is more violence overall in the movie and it is more graphic and gory. In many ways, I think that made certain things less effective than they had been in the first movie when more was left to the imagination. Several more characters are killed, some in unique ways. The idea of sexually active people being killed continues, though there isn’t a lot of sexual content to the movie. The movie does deserve the R rating and it definitely isn’t one for children. Many scenes take place at the hospital during the night, and that is a suitably creepy setting. It, along with the creepy movie, adds to the atmosphere of the movie, making everything have a creepy feeling.
Halloween II has a mix of returning characters and a few that are new. Laurie is still an important character, though she spends much of the movie heavily medicated in the hospital, so her actions are more limited. Jamie Lee Curtis is fine in the part, though she really doesn’t have a lot to do. She does look a little older to me, possibly because of the wig she had to wear since she had changed her hairstyle by the time this movie was made.
Dr. Loomis continues to search the town for Michael, convinced that more people will be killed. He does face some resistence and is even supposed to return to the hospital where he works, but he is determined to deal with Michael. Donald Pleasence does fine with the part. Sheriff Brackett is only around in a few scenes before vanishing. One of the deputies actually works more with Loomis to find Michael. Jimmy is an EMT who takes interest in Laurie. He turns up every so often. He seems nice enough, but he isn’t around much so Lance Guest doesn’t have much to do with the part. The other characters that turn up seem to just be there to serve as new victims and they really don’t do much of anything.
Michael Myers is the same as he was in the first movie, wearing a creepy looking mask and being focused on killing. There really isn’t any development for the character even though a few more things are shared about Michael. I think the fact that not much about him is shared helps to make him scarier. Michael isn’t identified by name in the credits. Instead, he is called The Shape, like was done in the first movie, even though it is clear from the beginning that the killer is Michael. Dick Warlock takes over performing as Michael.
Main Cast
Jamie Lee Curtis - Laurie Lance Guest - Jimmy Donald Pleasence - Dr. Loomis Dick Warlock - The Shape (Michael Myers)
Rick Rosenthal - Director
DVD Information
I think that Halloween II has been released on DVD in different versions, but I might be wrong about that. I picked up a set that includes the movie with Halloween III: Season of the Witch. I think the version of Halloween II in the set I have has been released as a single title as well, though I may be wrong about that. There are production notes and bios as well as the trailer and that is it for extras. I’m not sure if there is a version that has more extras or not.
I enjoyed Halloween II overall and think it makes a decent sequel. People who enjoyed Halloween should give this one a chance.
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