HALLOWEEN II is one of the horror genre's better sequels. What is unique about this sequel is that it starts up right where the original HALLOWEEN ends - something that has not been done since 1935's BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN. We get the last few minutes of the original, with Dr Loomis firing 6 slugs into Michael Myers, who proceeds to plunge from the balcony of the home where Laurie Strode was babysitting. One moment, Michael is there; the next - gone!!! It is at this point that the audience gets what the movie's tag promises - "More of the Night HE Came Home"! Michael is up and about, bullet-riddled and driven to finish off the one that got away - Laurie Strode! Laurie is whisked off to Haddonfield Memorial while Dr. Loomis is still in hot pursuit of the masked killer. Michael eventually finds his target, but not without leaving a trail of bodies. There is a method to Michael's madness, but I won't tell - you have to see the film for yourself.
HALLOWEEN II, while filmed 3 years later than its predecessor, has most of the same production team that worked on the original. While it lacks some of the suspense and tension of the first film, it more or less makes up for that with a fair amount of gore. While terror and suspense were OK in 1978, it was now the 1980s. Due in part to Friday THE 13TH's success, movie audiences now wanted gore FX along with the death scenes. This movie certainly has them...
All in all, I like HALLOWEEN II. It really is one of the better slasher sequels out there.
HALLOWEEN II, while filmed 3 years later than its predecessor, has most of the same production team that worked on the original. While it lacks some of the suspense and tension of the first film, it more or less makes up for that with a fair amount of gore. While terror and suspense were OK in 1978, it was now the 1980s. Due in part to Friday THE 13TH's success, movie audiences now wanted gore FX along with the death scenes. This movie certainly has them...
All in all, I like HALLOWEEN II. It really is one of the better slasher sequels out there.