31 Days of Halloween: Day 1 Halloween (1978)

A movie about a man with a grudge against pumpkins. 

Yes, that's right, I'm starting with it. I want Halloween to be at each end of October! I can't get enough of it. It's the best way I could think to start this undertaking of bringing you a review every single day in the greatest month of the year. I did just say that. Every. Day. 31 reviews for your delight and terror. Halloween is likely my favorite horror film of all time. The total presentation just pulls me in and I can watch it over and over, it never gets stale. It's classic, made with vision and care. So here we go, back before Hollywood decided Michael Myers had to be seven feet tall.

A minimalist and oddly unsettling credits sequence. 

The plot of Halloween is pretty easy to follow. Michael Myers, also known as The Shape in the credits, killed his older sister as a child on Halloween night and was locked away in an institution. Years later though, on Halloween, he escapes to return home. Doctor Loomis (who is played by the incredible Donald Pleasance), Michael's caretaker follows, trying to kill the evil once and for all. The people of Haddonfield will never be the same after evil returns to their little town. Lorie Strode, played by an extremely young Jamie Lee Curtis is terrorized by The Shape while babysitting. It seems cliche, but this is the movie that invented that cliche in the classic American slasher.

Our villain, The Shape! No, really, I'm dead serious. 

Halloween was almost never made and was lucky to get picked up for production. Even then, it was made on a low budget, only 300,000 dollars. So low they couldn't film on location and had to settle for March in Pasadena. So, keep this in mind while you watch. Every single brown leaf you see in Halloween was hand painted by the crew, scattered for scenes and then collected by hand for use later in the movie. This is the kind of work and dedication the crew put in. This is why you get a film that's quality and genuine. Everyone believed in what they were doing. There are many great aspects to Halloween, but the one that means the most to me is camera work. Everything is shot with a lot of thought and images of The Shape fading in and out of shots and lingering just out of sight is chilling. You get the idea that an unseen monster is stalking these hapless young people. It makes you even wonder how often you're watched without knowing. The script writing is top notch too, the characters all sound very real and natural.

Nothing funny here, I just love this shot, it rules.

This is normally the part where I would talk about the kills, the blood, the cgi and all that tasty stuff. But, Halloween is really not all that violent or bloody. I can think of maybe two scenes with blood. A good chunk of the kills are by strangulation. Sure the violence is shocking, seeing someone choked to death isn't exactly ho-hum, but it's very tame when you think of movies going around today. I think where the horror comes from most is the monster stalking the character without their knowledge, it's just right there, if only they could see it. He stalks you in the dark and appears to kill in such an intimate way, with his bare hands, watching the light fade from his victim's eyes. So much more powerful than taking a power drill to someone's forehead in a spray of brain matter. You come for the atmosphere, not for the gore. Trust me, you won't even miss it.

Look at these two getting steamy in the car. 

I realize I could talk and talk about Halloween. I'd be here typing for hours. I'm even on my third viewing with commentary at this moment. There are plenty of other movies I have to get to and Halloween will always be there. Halloween is a treat, a tasteful, patient work of art. I mean, the first on screen kill doesn't come until 45 minutes in. In any other movie there would be a stack of bodies. Everyone should see Halloween, if you're a fan of the genre it's a must see and always great for this time of year. Go see it! Now, with that said, I'm off to the next movie, who knows which it will be off my list of terrors. I hope you enjoyed day 1 and until I return, don't be afraid to be a little scary.

30 days til Halloween, Halloween. 30 days til Halloween. Sil-ver Shamrock!