HALLOWEEN II (1981) - Episode 205 - Decades of Horror 1980s
“He was my patient for fifteen years. He became an obsession with me until I realized that there was nothing within him, neither conscious nor reason that was… even remotely human. An hour ago, I stood up and fired six shots into him, and then, he just got up and walked away. ” He shot him! Six times! …or was it seven? Join your faithful Grue-Crew – Chad Hunt, Bill Mulligan, Crystal Cleveland, and Jeff Mohr – as they count the shots The Shape takes from Dr. Loomis in Halloween II (1981).
Decades of Horror 1980s
Episode 205 – Halloween II (1981)
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While Dr. Loomis hunts for Michael Myers, a traumatized Laurie is rushed to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, and The Shape is not far behind her.
Director: Rick Rosenthal
Writers: John Carpenter, Debra Hill
Music by: John Carpenter, Alan Howarth
Cinematography by: Dean Cundey (director of photography)
Film Editing by: Mark Goldblatt, Skip Schoolnik
Selected Cast:
Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode
Nichole Drucker as Young Laurie Strode
Donald Pleasence as Dr. Sam Loomis
Dick Warlock as Michael Myers / The Shape / Patrolman #3
Adam Gunn as Young Michael Myers
Nick Castle and Tony Moran as Michael Myers (archive footage)
Charles Cyphers as Sheriff Leigh Brackett
Lance Guest as Jimmy
Pamela Susan Shoop as Nurse Karen Bailey
Hunter von Leer as Deputy Gary Hunt
Tawny Moyer as Nurse Jill Franco
Ana Alicia as Nurse Janet Marshall
Nancy Stephens as Marion Chambers
Gloria Gifford as Nurse Virginia Alves
Leo Rossi as Budd Scarlotti
Ford Rainey as Dr. Frederick Mixter
Jeffrey Kramer as Graham
Cliff Emmich as Bernard Garrett
John Zenda as Marshal Terrence Gummell
Anne Bruner as Alice Martin
Lucille Benson as Mrs Elrod
Catherine Bergstrom as Debra Lane
Anne-Marie Martin as Darcy Essmont
Dana Carvey as Barry McNichol
Billy Warlock as Craig Levant
Nancy Loomis as Annie Brackett (corpse cameo)
Brian Andrews as Tommy Doyle (archive footage)
Kyle Richards as Lindsey Wallace (archive footage)
Jonathan Prince as Randy Lohnner
Jack Verbois as Ben Tramer
Halloween II, the sometimes denigrated sequel to the original, is Jeff’s pick. The film picks up right where Halloween (1978) left off but with much more of an 80s slasher feel than the first entry in the franchise. Jeff laments the “apparent” loss of Dr. Loomis and thinks Laurie Strode is more of a target than an active participant. Crystal advises viewers that if they watch Halloween II without thinking too much, they’ll have a good time. She doesn’t care one way or the other about the reveal that Laurie is Michael’s sister and points out Michael’s move into the realm of the supernatural with his ability to survive umpteen point-blank gunshots.
Chad is glad Halloween II is different from the first entry in the franchise. To his mind, it would have failed if the filmmakers had tried to copy John Carpenter’s seminal work. He agrees that the filmmakers beefed up the gore and the violence to compete with early 80s slashers. He liked it coming out of the theater in 1981 and he still likes it. Though admittedly not fond of the Halloween franchise, Bill enjoys Halloween II more now than when he first saw it. He still doesn’t care for the Laurie-is-Michael’s-sister twist, pointing out that the idea doesn’t really go anywhere in this specific movie.
Collectively, your 1980s Grue-Crew enjoy Halloween II and though admitting it doesn’t reach the heights of its predecessor, give it a hearty recommendation. Hey! It’s Halloween! At the time of this writing, Halloween II can be streamed from Shudder and Tubi (w/ads) and is available on physical media as a SHOUT! Factory Collector’s Edition [4K UHD] and on Blu-ray as a stand-alone or in a variety of box set combinations from multiple companies.
For more Halloween franchise-related podcasts, check out these episodes from the Gruesome Magazine family of podcasts:
Halloween (1978) — Episode 82 — Decades Of Horror 1970s
HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH (1982) – Episode 198 – Decades Of Horror 1980s
Monster Movie Podcast – Episode 63 – Halloween III
Halloween – The Haunting Of Hill House – Episode 295 – Horror News Radio
HALLOWEEN KILLS (2021) Spoiler Review | A Brutal Sequel to the 2018 Reboot – HNR 471
[Interview] HALLOWEEN KILLS – Jamie Lee Curtis and Andi Matichak
[Interview] HALLOWEEN KILLS (2021) – MALEK AKKAD, Producer
[Interview] – David Gordon Green and Jason Blum – HALLOWEEN KILLS
Every two weeks, Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror 1980s podcast will cover another horror film from the 1980s. The next episode’s film, chosen by Bill will be Tobe Hooper’s Lifeforce (1985).
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