Halloween (1978):
D: John Carpenter
W: John Carpenter, Debra Hill
S: Donald Pleasence, Jamie Lee Curtis, P.J. Soles, Nancy Loomis
When I was fourteen-years-old, I had reached the point where I felt I was officially too old for trick or treating, so I decided to stay in for the night and checked out AMC’s horror movie marathon.
This was the year they stepped up their game. In previous years they had only shown stuff like “The Creature from the Black Lagoon” or “The Wolf Man,” but this year they started showing films like “Friday the 13th,” “Fright Night,” and the 1978 horror classic “Halloween.”
Watching the TV promo for it, I thought, in a typical “wannabe” macho tone, “Oh wow, look a guy in a mask. How scary. Whatever. Bring it on.”
Two hours later I was in my bedroom with all the lights on and my Red Ryder BB Gun in hand. To this day John Carpenter’s “Halloween” remains one of the scariest movies ever made.
It was this movie that helped set the standards for many future movies. It was also one of the movies that created the slasher genre, but this film did it best. One reason why I think this film works above a lot of others is that it had a low budget.
When people hear about a low budgeted movie, they automatically think of either cheesy B-movies or quirky indie films, but this little motion picture does not fall in either category. Its low budget helps give it an eerie and scary atmosphere, primarily in the night scenes. Then adding in the “blank, pale, emotionless face, and the blackest eyes” of the villain, Michael Myers, and you’ve got a legitimately scary motion picture, maybe the scariest of them all.
What also makes the film work is its setting, a regular suburban neighborhood. A lot of slasher films will take place out in the woods in a cabin or something similar, but this film’s location offers a sense that it could happen anywhere. Also given how it’s Halloween, a night not only chills of but also mischief, obviously, when someone is screaming bloody murder, no one in the film is likely to take it seriously.
There are many other great elements in the movie. The soundtrack, composed by the film’s director John Carpenter, is still haunting and memorable. Also the performances from Donald Pleasance and then-newcomer Jamie Lee Curtis are spectacular.
I could go on about how much I love these characters and this film, but I’ll let you experience it for yourself.
So on All Hallow’s Eve, as the sun is setting, pop some popcorn, turn off the light, settle in and remember, “The boogieman is coming.”
This review can also be found athttp://www.ucba-activist.com/news/view.php/852087/Movies-The-Scariest-Ever-Made
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