My Own Private Halloween Session

[dotinthesky]

I had a tough day yesterday -- killer yoga class, office work till 9pm -- so when I got home, it felt perfectly natural to turn down the lights, get comfy on the couch and pop Halloween into the DVD player.

It was the second time I saw the film; the first time was a long time ago, in a galaxy country far far away. I must have been 12 or 13, at the summit of my horror obsession.


On a superficial level, Halloween is about a psychopath obsessed with his neighbourhood, in particular a young woman called Laurie (played by the hermaphrodite Jamie Lee Curtis.) He stalks, kills, takes a beating, gets shot, then disappears (thus leaving space for the appropriate sequel.) For a person who has never seen any of the films in the franchise, the story is a complete mess: why is Michael Myers obsessed with Laurie? What happened to his parents after he killed his sister and was put away? Why does he have so much strength, to the point of surviving a crochet needle stuck in his neck, a clothes hanger piercing his eye, shootings and so forth? And why is his face disfigured as an adult when he was a perfect-looking boy at the beginning of the film (abuse in his psychiatric ward perhaps?) The idea that Myers is pure evil, and thus motivated beyond human powers, isn't strong enough to explain away the plot holes.

The film's soundtrack has become one of those recognizable tunes in pop culture, like the soundtrack to Psycho or Jaws. And there is that famous scene of Laurie being attacked inside the closet, reminiscent of Psycho's shower scene (who hasn't fantasized about hiding in the closet after a criminal breaks into the house?) One of the scenes which I quite liked was when the little boy, under Laurie's care, sees Myers carry Annie's corpse into the house. It's just one of the many scenes in the movie where our distance from Myers is used as a suspense tool because we can't see his face or what he is holding in his hands. Another great moment involved Laurie and her friend Annie driving to their babysitting jobs, smoking pot, listening to "Don't Fear the Reaper", while Myers trailed behind them on a stolen car. If they hadn't been high on pot, they might have noticed him tailing their car, called the authorities, and none of the killings would have taken place. Awww, the evil ganja...

Halloween is not a perfect film: a few plot holes go along way into pulling me out of a film. Having a main character behave in an irrational manner when she's being attacked pisses me off to no end (but maybe that's how people behave in real life under panic? I'm not sure.)

Here are a few questions for anyone who has seen the film: is Halloween a commentary on the modern American nuclear family? Think about the fact that Laurie has two children under her care in one house while, across the street, is the house where her friends have sex, drink, smoke and get killed by Myers. Why is Myers so obsessed by the virginal, not-interested-in-sex-much-rather-spend-time-with-children Laurie? If Myers is so evil, why doesn't he attack the kids aswell? Does the red light emitted by the Halloween pumpkin indicate blood... or passion?

Comments

[yaruar.livejournal.com]

he's obviously drawing strength from shatner :)
http://www.geocities.com/madnessmike/kirk.htm

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

As long as he doesn't sing "Common People" in the next Halloween movie, I'm cool with that.

[llivejournal.livejournal.com]

I just want to point out the coincidence that the actor who played Michael Myers in the original Halloween is today's dailydirector. Weird.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

Well, I'll be damned!

[oatmeal-texas.livejournal.com]

I think what was so scary about Halloween is that horror films before it usually take place in a secluded haunted house or some such place. American audiences were unaccustomed to the idea that something truly frightening could take place IN THEIR SUBURBS.

What I like best about Halloween is the glamour. The wind, the leaves, the bell bottoms. I did a post about a year ago about how I sometimes like to pretend I'm Laurie Strode when I'm all alone. i was surprised how many gay boys on my flist do the same thing.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

When I was watching it last night, I couldn't help thinking that Myers's outfit looked abit like Gary Numan's look at the time. So, if we think of Laurie as representing The Carpenters and other wholesome pop music from the 70s, the film could be seen as a metaphor for the appearance of punk (a cautionary tale?)

And remember, Laurie's friend was listening to "Don't Fear the Reaper", so she was pretty much a hippie on her way to a premature death.

Now, for the gay angle... hmmmm... that blonde guy did look kinda hot after he had sex (before he put his glasses back on.)

[hunterjr.livejournal.com]

You know I love horror movies, but lately they're SO predictable I feel like I spent money with something it's not worthy. The last horror movie I saw and scared me was The Ring (that part when she came out from TV). Nowadays I feel like I can't be scared by horror movies at all x_x

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

I feel the same way; it's hard to find anything original in the genre... but I think there are always new directors willing to experiment, and maybe there will be an insurgence of interesting films soon.

[hunterjr.livejournal.com]

I really really really hope so!