Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers

After the success of HALLOWEEN 4, it was predictable that the studio would go on with another sequel. The only good thing about this one is that it picks up the story exactly where the last film left off, giving an explanation for the fact that little DANIELLE HARRIS is behind bars in a clinic for disturbed children. But within the first half-hour of the story, it's obvious that this is no HALLOWEEN 4.

As someone else pointed out, DONALD PLEASANCE is just about as psychotic as Michael Meyers in his quest to find the serial killer who seems to be eradicating all the citizens of Haddonfield every time it's Halloween. ELLIE CORNELL as Rachel is killed off early in the story and, unfortunately, there are no other likable members among the youthful cast to root for. It's as if they were scripted, all of them, to deserve their fate.

Without a good plot structure and much too much repetition, this one begins to sink before the midway point. All of the fright sequences are done competently enough but just don't have the same tension or creepiness of the better ones in this series.

Summing up: Not helped by Donald Pleasance's decision to ham it up unmercifully to draw attention--but it doesn't work. They should have quit after HALLOWEEN 4.

'Halloween 5' begins immediately where part 4 ended. We see that Michael Myers has indeed survived being shot by state troopers, and has fallen down a mine shaft. He travels along a small river and makes his way to some tent that a homeless person is living in. He falls unconscious for an entire year, until Halloween 1989. Jamie meanwhile has spent the entire year in a state facility for children. She has not spoken one word the whole time. She can now however sense when Michael is near or when he is ready to strike. Anyways,Halloween night approaches and Michael is back in Haddonfield ready to hack and slash anything that gets in his way of murdering Jamie. We meet a younger set of characters (only there to add to the body count) which connect to Rachel from 'Halloween 4'. The film follows them along with Jamie/Loomis leading to an interesting conclusion.

'Halloween 5' is definitely the weakest of the original series. So many things that separate it from the rest, and make it less of a worthwhile watch. First of all, this one was scary or even that creepy in the slightest. The previous instalment actually did a great job at creating and establishing an eerie atmosphere. This was a rushed attempt at scary in my opinion. The acting was questionable (to say the least) from the supporting cast. Other than Pleasance and Harris, it wasn't anything to write home about. They also kill off an important character (to me anyways) EARLY on which I hated.

Michael Myers himself is also not intimidating at all. Don Shanks did a lackluster job in the role of the shadow. And the Myers house looked like some mausoleum/crypt mansion, nothing like the original. It's an insult to viewers to not even attempt to make it similar. And the kills were not well done, they felt cheap when compared to the first four films (even 'Halloween III' did a greater job...). It's still one that should be seen by all horror and 'Halloween' fans. It has it's moments plus establishes a storyline (the man in black) that carries on into the sixth film.

5/10

One of the worse Halloween sequels. The plot went a little off the original plot from the first two movies. The mask in this one looked weird and the man in the black suit was introduced in this part. (THORN) Also I didn't like how Jamie knew what Michael was going to do, that was really bad. the whole THORN thing should have been brought into the series, although that does make Michael's motive make more sense. All up an average sequel but still watch it because Michael Myers is in it.

There are some cool scenes in this movie. And there are some neat ideas. But it falls flat because of large number of plot holes and it's too fast for it's own good. I feel the movie would have been better if it focused more on the children. Scenes where the kids are in danger are one of the best in the movie. Danielle Harris is perfect in her role as little Jamie and Donald Pleasence gives his best, but it's not enough to save this movie from being a little more than a regular slasher, which is a shame given the greatness of character and setting. It's not the worst thing you will watch, it's just OK. Sadly, though I still haven't watched the rest, I feel that story elements introduced in this movie will take things too far. But I digress. 6/10 from me. If you are horror movie fan, watch it for fun :)

Though episode 5 is probably my least favourite of the Halloween saga (not counting H3) i still really enjoyed watching it, because i love the series as a whole and took it for what it was, something most people don't seem to do. Sure, there's some mediocre acting and the usual holes in the plot, but it's an 80's slasher film, what else would you expect? I think its obvious imperfection is its charm. Besides that, it has a few original killings and the scenes where Michael chases Jamie in the Myers house are chilling. The last half hour makes it worth watching. I'd say give it a try if you've seen other Halloween movies and liked them, if not then don't start with this one because it's certainly not one of the best. 6 out of 10 =)