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Halloween 4 - The Return of Michael Myers (Limited Edition)

Halloween 4 - The Return of Michael Myers (Limited Edition)

List Price: $39.98
Your Price: $35.98
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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A great return
Review: Six yers after the biggist mistake in film history Halloween 3. Michael Myers was back and it was a great return. Danillie Harris did an awsome job in this movie but whats up with the mask in the movie.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An Excellent Sequel
Review: This was the first Halloween movie i saw and i loved it when i saw it and i still do!this starts off with a nice atmoshpere in the credits with pumpkings and old halloween stuff on a farm which gave it a good Halloween feeling.It had a great plot,it felt like a halloween movie,i just didnt like the mask.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: THANK GOD THEY DID THE RIGHT THING!
Review: IT'S A BLESSING FROM GOD THAT THEY NEVER CHOSE TO CONTINUE THE PLOT OF ''HALLOWEEN III; SEASON OF THE WITCH''. IN THIS THIRD SEQUEL, MICHAEL RETURNS FROM A 10 YEAR COMA TO KILL HIS NIECE. THIS ONE MANAGES TO CRANK OUT ENOUGH THRILLS TO MAKE THIS AN ACCEPTABLE SEQUEL. AS ALWAYS, DONLAD PLEASANCE SHINES AS DR. LOOMIS. BUT IT'S TOO BAD JAMIE LEE CURTIS DIDN'T RETURN FOR THIS ONE. SHE WOULD'VE BEEN GREAT FOR THIS ONE. THE NEXT TWO SEQUELS WOULD PALE IN COMPARISON TO THIS AND THE FIRST TWO HALLOWEENS. THIS MAY BE THE BEST SEQUEL THAT ''HALLOWEEN'' HAS TO OFFER.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Michael Myers lives again!
Review: Halloween 4: the return of Michael Myers continues exactly 10 years after the end of Halloween 2. Ignoring the totally unrelated 'Halloween 3: season of the witch', the plot retreads the now surely familiar Myers storyline. The plot, if you require one, is that whilst being moved from his secure mental institute via his ambulance transport, the insane boogeyman known as Michael Myers escapes from his comatose incarnation and goes back to, guess where, Haddonfield, on guess what date, Halloween night. He is searching for his niece, Jamie, the daughter of his previous victim Laurie Strode. On the way he creates a trail of destruction as unsuspecting members of the small community fall, one by one, victim to his evil ways. The only man who is capable of stopping his plans is his doctor, Sam Loomis. But will anyone believe Dr. loomis? And will anyone manage to stop Michael before it is too late for Jamie?
The plot is, unsurprisingly, very bare-boned. This worked very well for Halloween 1 and, to a lesser extent, Halloween 2. It also does OK for this film, although much of the terror of H1 is gone. This film is in many ways very similar to Halloween 2, it relies more on blood than shocks to scare its audience. I can't say that this is really makes it as scary as part 1 though. The killings become ever more gruesome as Myers becomes closer to Jamie, and viewers should be warned of some nasty deaths in this film, even compared with what has gone before it.
What saves this film, though, from simple mediocrity is the performance of leading actor Pleasance. He brings interest and experience to a genre that is all too often lacking in both. He is the best thing about this film, frothing with a maniacal zealousness as he strives to stop his ultimate nemesis from making yet more killings. The facial expressions are just perfect, and the film is always better when he is on screen. He acts his role with pure gusto. The other acting is better than you would expect for a horror film, the young Danielle Harris gives an impression of being supremely suited to her role, and the rest of the cast are little more than pawns for Michael to finish off.
Of course though, people don't come to see halloween films for world class acting, they come to see Myers and the way he bumps off his victims. Myers himself is as bad and loathsome as ever, which makes him a good villian for this film, and there are several scenes in this movie that do stick in the mind afterwards. Plus the lighting in the film makes for some creepy moments, and the film boasts some creepy opening credits. Besides, compared to many more recent horror offerings, Halloween 4 is great stuff. In fact, its a bona-fide classic.
So Halloween 4, for all its flaws as a movie, does itself justice as an addition to the series. Whilst it may not in it's own right be a classic, compared to the likes of H1, it's definitely better than Halloween 2 and is much better than you may expect a third sequel to be.To sum up:
PROS: Good music, great atmosphere, bad villian, Donald Pleasence. I won't say much about the ending, but it is both shocking and perplexing.
CONS: It's not as good as the first film. Acting is not always great, plot stretched slightly.

Overall rating: 3 and a half/5 (rounded up to four stars).
DVD notes: good sound and picture, but slim on extras.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Move over Freddy and Jason,the slasher king has returned!
Review: When "Halloween" was released in 1978,it was inevitable that a boat load of immitators would come along.First was "Friday the 13th" which introduces us to.....Jason's Mom!Then it was "Nightmare on Elm Street" which brought us Freddy,a dead child killer.Freddy was cool for about the first two movies then became a joke(You knew that when someone fell asleep..they were a goner.)Jason was stupid and gory.But nevertheless,they were money makers.So,it seemed only right to have Mikey make a return.Though it was disappointing not to have Jamie Lee,we did have Donald Pleasance back as Dr. Loomis(Hey!didn't he die in that fire with Michael?) and,of course,that theme song.It's just a novelty piece.But it's a good one.And say....what genius it was to have Danielle Harris's character,the daughter of Jamie Lee,to be named.....JAMIE!I hope that guy got a raise!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Bogeyman payday
Review: Michael Meyers and Dr. Loomis were (presumably) blown to bits at the end of Halloween II. Then in Halloween III Season of the Witch, they tried out a whole new story line with nothing at all to do with Michael Meyers and the first two films. But nothing can stop financier Mustapha Akkad (the only person to be involved in every single Halloween film) from grinding out another dollar...

Using some (questionable) horror movie logic, turns out Michael Meyers and his obsessed doctor / hit man Sam Loomis actually survived that massive explosion and inferno at the end of II. Meyers went into a coma and the good doctor suffered only some scarring. Oh, and he needs a cane, too.

Ten years after the original nightmare, Meyers wakes up from his coma and escapes from the hospital. (To prove he hasn't lost a step, he even pokes his thumb through some guy's skull!) Once again, Meyers returns to Haddonfield and proves that he's the only horror movie icon who is also a skilled driver. Can you imagine Pinhead or Freddy behind the wheel?

This time he's after his niece Jamie, the daughter of Jamie Lee Curtis' character from the first two films. Turns out Laurie Strode died in a car accident (a convenient way of saying that Jamie Lee had had enough of horror films by 1988). This gives Michael ample opportunity to dispatch a few Haddonfield residents, including a bloodthirsty lynch mob as well as a few hapless cops. Michael does what he does best: walks slowly, uses a large kitchen knife, and wreaks havoc.

Something to keep in mind:

Halloween 4, 5, and 6 (The Curse of Michael Meyers) were basically disregarded by the producers of Halloween H20 and Resurrection. They treated the three films like they never happened in order to resurrect the franchise. Again. So there are parallel universes or something like that happening across the Halloween series.

This is a pretty serviceable slasher movie in the end. A major point of recommendation is, of course, Donald Pleasance. He's got the raincoat, he's got a gun, and he's losing his mind in the hunt for Michael Meyers. Don't miss a chance to hear him talk about "evil on two legs", trying to convince another sheriff that death has come to town. Again.

Excellent score by frequent John Carpenter collaborator Alan Howarth. This is not your typical Halloween score by a long shot. The focus is on atmospherics, and the famous theme is rather subdued in favor of more subtle soundscapes. Highly recommended disc.

Overall, I liked it. I mean, it was inevitable. There had been about five Friday the 13th sequels, four Nightmare on Elm Streets and two Hellraisers out in between Halloween II and 4. Whose going to blame Akkad for cashing in? All in all, they did a pretty capable job of updating the story and of killing off another cast of unwitting fools.

Best of all is Bucky the power station worker.

I'll give some credit on the DVD. At least we get a making of (rather short) and some theatrical trailers. It's a decent enough DVD transfer, though a bit more pricey than other films of its ilk.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: HALLOWEEN 4 EVER
Review: The best in the series has Michael Myers returning to Haddonfield where he attacks his neice and anyone in his path.This is the most bloodiest since Part 6.this one is suspenseful and full of scares.the cast like Donald Pleasence,Ellie Cornell,Danielle Harris,Michael Pataki,George P.Wilbur,Beau Starr,Kathleen Kinmont,and Sasha Jenson give wonderful performances.Rated R for Strong Violence and Gore,Language,Brief Nudity and Sexuality.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: THE BEST OF THE SERIES!!!
Review: For any horror movie collector this is a must have!This is better than them all!This shocking thriller stars the beautiful Ellie Cornell and the very talented Danielle Haris.While transporting him to a maximum security,Michael hears about a neace in his home town and kills every one in the ambulance.He then sets out to find his neace Jamie leaving a bloody trail behind him.Jamie is Laurie Strode's daughter, giving him more of a reason to kill her.With the power in the whole town out, Rachel(Cornel) and Jamie must strive to stay alive.The late Donald Sutherland returns as Dr.Loomis and gives an amazing performance!Dr.Loomis,Jamie Rachel,Rachel's boy friend Brady,Sherrif Meaker,his beautiful daughter Kelly,and Dept.Logan must board up the house and keep him out. The best scene was when Michael shoves a shotgun through Kelly and pins her to the door.If you enjoy John Carpeter movies you'll love this one!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Not the worst in the series
Review: Taking place ten years after Michael Myers terrorized Laurie Strode, Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers is the first film in the Halloween series to not have anything to do with creator John Carpenter. After the backlash at Halloween 3: Season of the Witch, Carpenter abandoned the series because he didn't want to see it become a series of recycled slasher films a la Friday the 13th. In this installment Myers awakes from a coma after it is revealed that he has a surviving niece, and yes, you guessed it, Mike goes on a bloody rampage killing anyone who comes in his way. Donald Pleasence also returns as Dr. Loomis and adds a great presence to the film as the slightly mad doctor trying to bring an end to Myers' reign of terror. Although the film is not without it's flaws, and Carpenter's stylistic presentation is sorely missed, Halloween 4 is one of the better installments in the series.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Greatest of the Series.
Review: In my opinion, Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers is the best so far our of the 8 movies. After several years of the hospital explosion that nearly claimed the lives of Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasense), Michael Myers, and sister Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis), Michael is back. After escaping from an ambulance transporting Michael to a new facility, Michael soon begins stalking niece Jamie Lloyd (Danielle Harris) and her step sister, Rachel (Ellie Cornell). I'd have to say, Danielle and Ellie did a great job in Halloween 4. It was suspensful, it was horrifying, it was scary, it is a classic. I feel that this is the best out of the entire series because it had the best storyline and a great cast of characters. Thumbs up to this thriller. This fits nicely in with the storyline, because Michael believes that Laurie Strode was killed in a car crash and is now out to eliminate her daughter. Donald Pleasence, the hero of the series, it at his best in this one, trying to prevent Michael from doing anymore harm in Haddonfield. Although it's hard for me to write a review for the best horror film I've ever seen, I'll just say that everyone did their part, and it paid off.


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