Review of Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988) by Jason N — 17 Mar 2011

Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Meyers.

Note: I originally gave this film 3/5 (C+) in the old system, but after seeing Rick Rosenthal's Halloween II, it went down to C- (new system).

1978 changed Halloween forever. John Carpenter released his biggest film of all time with writer and producer Debra Hill. Since then, Halloween was at its peak with the introduction of iconic and horrifying killer Michael Myers. Michael, as we see him, is tall and wears a pale white mask based on the face by William Shatner. Also, his film received critical acclaim, but had a lot of backlash among folks who found the idea of a killer stalking and murdering teenagers sick. Heck, this film became a gateway that would lead to a number of other films like these called slasher films. The films would feature 3 types of people: the murderer, the victims, and the final girl. However, unlike Halloween, these films thrived on formulaic screenplays, cheap bloody scare tactics, and incompetence to tell a story. Even worse, a lot of these films spawned sequels and led to a better name known as Dead Teenagers (from Roger Ebert).

Unfortunately, Halloween fell to this travesty as Halloween II was made, and then came Halloween III: Season of the Witch. Both films receive negative reviews, but none so much as fan backlash towards Halloween III. I haven't seen either films, but will one day. 10 years after the first Halloween came out, producers decided to make a sequel and make it special. For this one, the producers brought back from Michael Myers after being absent, from what I've heard of, in the third one. Alan B. McElroy wrote the film while Dwight H. Little directed it. The movie stars Donald Pleasence as Dr. Loomis and has Ellie Cornell, Michael Pataki, and a very young Danielle Harris.

The opening scene in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers starts off with a windy morning as Halloween approaches. We see decorations, view of the weather, and other shots that symbolizes a time of harvest and is done with a beautifully. This scene is possibly the best scene of the entire film as we see this marvelous background that takes you in to the movie and sets up a mood. Moving on to night, the film takes us to a rainy ominous night as we see a mental institution and once there, we are manipulated by a couple of characters. One of them is a guard who tells us how glad he is that Michael Myers is being transferred. I had mixed feelings when I saw this, but thought not bad. The shots move to a room where Dr. Hoffman (Pataki) is looking over his comatose patient. I found Dr. Hoffman pretty interesting as he adds aliveness and arrogance to his personality. Anyways, he gives orders to have Michael transported despite the ominous rain and theme song, and without having Dr. Loomis around. Note for those who haven't seen the first one, Dr. Loomis is Michael Myers's former psychiatrist. Once Michael is loaded up to the ambulance, we leave the manipulative hospital and go off to the road. While driving to their destination, one of the paramedics mentions something about Laurie Strode's niece, and if you haven't seen any of the films, Laurie Strode is Michael Myers younger sister. Anyways, consequently, the name and mention of niece wakes up Michael and he goes on a tirade and kills everyone in the ambulance. From there, he crashes the ambulance and goes to get clothes and the iconic mask. This incident sparks up a nightmare in a young girl.

Jamie (Danielle Harris) wakes up to the sight of Michael Myers. She screams and tries to hide, but Michael is a step ahead. Pause, I want to mention a few things here. In the main menu of Halloween 4, we see an excellent shot of shadowy figure only to be shown once as lightning strikes while the theme song by John Carpenter (director of the first Halloween) plays. I found this scene very great and am my second favorite shot. Continuing, we see Michael with a cheap mask and shoulder blades, but that doesn't mean it scary to a 10 year old girl at least. Sure, it is somewhat cheap to use a kid in horror film, but I found Danielle Harris acceptable because she adds sympathy in making you care about the characters. Anyways, not to worry, the scenes turn out to be a dream as Jamie is suffering from a nightmare. Anyways, she is given counter reassurance that it is only a dream and nothing more. Little do they know?

We see Dr. Loomis next as he is bitter and old and grumbles as he learns about the transportation of Michael Myers without his knowledge. However, what makes him madder is the fact that the ambulance is found with all dead paramedics and no body of Michael Myers. He mumbles with the doctor and heads to Michael's hometown Haddonfield to confront Myers since he knows about the evil in two legs. He heads to a gas station and won't describe what happens next, but I will say its shot well. Pause, at this point, I like what Little and McElroy have done with the film. Through the film, there are some nice scenes that are shot or well done and pretty cool because by watching it, it puts you into the film and you can feel it. A lot of this has to with camera shots, angles, and movement. Continuing, the scene leads up to a close encounter between and lands Loomis in a pick up truck with a preacher who's been 'chasing it' (evil on two legs). This scene was another great scene because it's putting a mood and theory in the flick.

After that excellent scene, we move to the relationship between Jamie and her older (by adoption) sister Rachel (Cornell) and know what's going on. After that, we move to two teenagers with one ugly douche trying to score and thus, kill the entire momentum Halloween 4 had. I was disappointed by this and the next scenes are done with the same style you see in a slasher formula as you see one teen dying and the other being stalked. We get to see a love rivalry and whining teenagers which could have been a little more interesting and the future victims. By then, this movie should have been dead, but something happens. The direction and script puts pieces of the broken down momentum and suspense back together one by one. We see Michael killing couple of folks and causing terror among some trick-o-treaters. This launches pranksters and minutemen (led by Gene Ross) to come out for a trick-or-treat on Halloween night. I like the whole cause and effects in the flick afterwards. Anyways, Loomis arrives to town by night and links up with Sheriff Meeker (Breau Star) and head to find Michael's niece Jamie. By then, the parents go to a party and communication is shut off and we get scenes of stalk and chase that are done mildly well. Close encounters happen and close calls happen, but just when the backs are turn, Michael appears. No one seems to see him and head home to the sheriff's house. The place is barricaded, but wouldn't you know, Michael is there too. Before we can listen to Bang Pow Boom, couple of the folks make bad decisions and leave the house to Michael and some of the unarmed folks. Around here, we see scenes that aren't scary or suspenseful, but annoying. As this, I will feature a new word for reviewers and future filmmakers to learn, 'male martyr'.

Male martyr: when a male character decides to offer himself as sacrifice even though he has good chance to run and survive or kill his attacker.

Male martyrs in films are usually useless and unnecessary when it comes to films because it only stalls for a few seconds. Halloween 4 has it and I was pretty annoyed by that scene. Sure, there are some flicks where male martyrs happen and are done well like Last Man on Earth, Day of the Dead, or Inglorious Basterds, but when added to an unnecessary scene like this one, Hell Night, and Friday the 13th Part IV- Final Chapter, it's annoying.

Anyways, back to the film, we get to Michael chase the heroine and Jamie, but unlike most slasher films, the chase is scene interesting to watch as Michael goes to heights to catch her. The movie continues on with the chase scene along with several surprises that lead to an almost provocative ending. When it ended with its rolling credits and theme song, I quickly thought not bad.

Although Halloween 4: the Return of Michael Myers isn't scary or great as the first one, it still is very moderately fine film. It offers some action scenes that put a little edge to the film. We get characters that help the film, but also hurt it as well. I found Danielle Harris character great and loved her in the film. I thought she was great as we care about her as she runs from Michael Myers. It wasn't until 20 years later that she would return as the beautiful daughter of Sheriff Bracket in Rob Zombie's epic failure, but stronger Halloween I & II. I found Ellie Cornell, the main heroine, somewhat likeable. I had no problem seeing her and she was an alright actress. Donald Pleasence was great as Dr. Loomis and does a nice job here. The dialogue and lines he has are great as he interacts with all the characters. I love the interactions he has with Meeker and Hoffman in the film.

And of course Michael, he does well in the movie as he stalks and kills, but I had problem with his image, mask, and role. There wasn't a lot of new stuff with Michael Myers because he was flawed in a lot of ways. The mask is flat and isn't convincing as in terror and I had problem with his shoulder pad. By far, this is his most disappointing image of entire franchise, but I was glad to see Michael's image upgraded when Zombie gave him a makeover. I thought I saw shoulder pads in him because he was weirdly shaped. The main menu features, as I said before, a great shot of Michael in the shadows as he stands there and is only scene when lightning flashes. In the flick, Michael does that throughout the film as he stands there looking at the folks. He moves only when he kills.

Although not the best Halloween film, Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers is an exceptional film that is done well. The credit goes to everybody, but director Dwight H. Little deserves a little more due to the skills as a director. Alan B. McElroy did alright job with the screenplay, but could have added little more to it, so it won't stir into formula. H4 is a nice flick that should be considered for renting in case you're interested.