Review of Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989) by Carl M — 31 Jan 2013

After the traumatic events that occurred last Halloween, Jamie Lloyd has been sent to live in a children's psychiatric clinic, but Dr. Loomis is convinced that the girl now possesses a psychic link to her murderous uncle.

Loomis attempts to use young Jamie to bring Michael out in to the open for a final confrontation! HALLOWEEN 5 is the first major lull in the series. Although it uses many of the same devices from HALLOWEEN 4, they produce much lesser results.

The character of Jamie that audiences had fallen in love with from before is now left psychic and mute, as if she had been ripped away from some poorly-scripted B-Movie. Michael's motives seem much more muddled here, as well.

He is reduced to being just another faceless villain from any old Slasher film as he takes off after drunken, sex-crazed teenagers at a local party. The suspense is minimal, and the deaths provide little satisfaction or significance.

Danielle Harris still succeeds despite the flaws that have now been written into her role, but Donald Pleasence is forced to call in a cold and considerably darker performance that seems unbefitting of his character.

The one scene that truly stands out in this entry is shared between Michael and Jamie, where Michael momentarily forgets his murderous rage when confronted by his young niece. HALLOWEEN 5 points the series in a regrettable new direction that would continue to spin out of control in the next installment.