Halloween II (1981)

[Abishai100]

Halloween II (also known as Halloween II: The Horror Continues) is a 1981 slasher horror film directed by Rick Rosenthal, and written and produced by John Carpenter and Debra Hill. It is the second installment in the Halloween series and is a direct sequel to Carpenter's Halloween, immediately picking up where it had left off. Set on the same night of October 31, 1978 as the seemingly immortal Michael Myers continues to follow Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) to a nearby hospital while Dr. Sam Loomis (Donald Pleasence) is still in pursuit of his patient (source of information: Wikipedia).

This satisfying sequel was not directed by John Carpenter but still featured the same characters as his original iconic "Halloween" [1978]. We see Michael Myers, the infamous child psychopath grown up as a masked serial killer stalking Americans on Halloween Eve, continue his relentless and obsessive pursuit of Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis).

Myers follows Strode to the hospital where she is taken after the events of the first film, and Dr. Sam Loomis (Donald Pleasence) goes there too to make sense of the events and finds Michael Myers lurking there.

"Halloween II" [1981] may not be as fresh or searing as John Carpenter's original masterpiece, but it offers a nice plot in Michael Myers terrorizing a hospital manned by a night-shift staff including a guardsman, ambulance drivers, and nurses. A few policemen (some from the first film) also make appearances, attempting to help Dr. Sam Loomis track down Michael Myers.

The focus on the hospital as the site of the terror and bloodshed accentuates this film's presentation of horror atmospherics, making it a creatively eerie sequel. No one wants to feel uneasy at a hospital.

I think Rick Rosenthal's "Halloween II" [1981] sequel to the John Carpenter 1978 original is superior to Jack Sholder's "A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge" [1985] sequel to Wes Craven's 1984 original.

This is a great Blu-ray purchase for Halloween 2015.






Halloween II (1981)

Halloween II (1981) on Blu-ray.com

[Morningriser]

I really enjoyed Halloween 2 and still like it to this day. I honestly thought Carpenter directed it. I guess you learn something new every day.

You mentioned ANOES 2 above and how you prefer Halloween 2 to it. I do as well. I also prefer it to F13 part 2 as well.

[SerialKiller]

Halloween 2 is one of my favorite horror movies of all time.

I've always been curious as to the fate of Laurie's parents though. Did they just get drunk & pass out after the party, or did Michael kill them off screen?? I like to think the latter. Also the knife in the back scene is one of my favorite kills in the Halloween franchise.

[simonleezombie]

I always felt bad for the nurse that Michael lifts off the ground when she finally finds Laurie. Don't know why.

[Oro13]

Originally Posted by simonleezombie

I always felt bad for the nurse that Michael lifts off the ground when she finally finds Laurie. Don't know why.

Man, every time I think of Halloween II, I always feel bad for that actress who got dunked in the " boiling " water. It was actually cold and dirty, and she got very ill from doing that scene :(

What a trooper!

[simonleezombie]

Originally Posted by Oro13

Man, every time I think of Halloween II, I always feel bad for that actress who got dunked in the " boiling " water. It was actually cold and dirty, and she got very ill from doing that scene :(

What a trooper!

Yeah I remember hearing that too. I'll be honest, I'd make the worst slasher movie probably if I was ever handed the keys to a horror sequel. I wouldn't have it in me to off a bunch of women, especially punishing the promiscuous ones. A lot of the horror writing I've done, I suppose, has been in response to the kills in movies like Halloween 2 (TCM, F13--the first 4) where I feel like nice people are horribly murdered. I know that's part of the formula, but the further the sequels went, the more I think hack writers thought "oh, those stupid kids deserve it! The fans want to see them die!" The early characters in the early slashers had some depth, and it always bugged me.

I could never really side with the killers. I needed something like the Hills Have Eyes to give me a bit of cathartic release at the end if I'm going to sit through nice people being murdered. For Halloween, I guess Loomis always helped balance the scales just a bit.

[Repo'd]

Originally Posted by simonleezombie

Yeah I remember hearing that too. I'll be honest, I'd make the worst slasher movie probably if I was ever handed the keys to a horror sequel. I wouldn't have it in me to off a bunch of women, especially punishing the promiscuous ones. A lot of the horror writing I've done, I suppose, has been in response to the kills in movies like Halloween 2 (TCM, F13--the first 4) where I feel like nice people are horribly murdered. I know that's part of the formula, but the further the sequels went, the more I think hack writers thought "oh, those stupid kids deserve it! The fans want to see them die!" The early characters in the early slashers had some depth, and it always bugged me.

I could never really side with the killers. I needed something like the Hills Have Eyes to give me a bit of cathartic release at the end if I'm going to sit through nice people being murdered. For Halloween, I guess Loomis always helped balance the scales just a bit.

Very well said.

[norseg]

Freddy Krueger, is No.1 of the hornor movie.
เซรั่ม

[Lord Voldemort]

Aight after reading this thread I had to watch Halloween 2 again. The first time I ever saw it was in primary school, in my third or fourth year. As a kid it was scary as crap. Watching it again as an adult it's not a bad movie; very enjoyable.

[Toddallthingshorror]

Halloween 2 is one of the best sequels of all time. My favorite aspect is the immediate continuation of H1...man....I feel like watching this bad boy now.