Story of movie Halloween Franchise : Halloween is an American horror franchise that consists of eleven films, as well as novels, comic books, merchandise, and a video game. The franchise primarily focuses on serial killer Michael Myers who was committed to a sanitarium as a child for the murder of his sister, Judith Myers. Fifteen years later, he escapes to stalk and kill the people of the fictional town of Haddonfield, Illinois. Michael's killings occur on the holiday of Halloween, on which all of the films primarily take place. The original Halloween, released in 1978, was written by John Carpenter and Debra Hill, and directed by Carpenter. The film is known to have inspired a long line of slasher films.
| Halloween | |
|---|---|
The original logo of the franchise. | |
| Created by | John Carpenter Debra Hill |
| Original work | Halloween (1978) |
| Print publications | |
| Novel(s) | List of novels |
| Comics | List of comics |
| Films and television | |
| Film(s) | List of films |
| Games | |
| Video game(s) | Halloween (1983) |
Seven sequels have since followed. Michael Myers is the antagonist in all of the films except Halloween III: Season of the Witch, the story of which has no direct connection to any other film in the series. In 2007, writer-director Rob Zombie made a remake of the 1978 film. A direct sequel to the 2007 remake was released two years later. A direct sequel to the original film that ignores all other films in the franchise was released in 2018.
The films collectively grossed over $434 million at the box-office worldwide. The film series is ranked second at the United States box office—in adjusted 2008 dollars—when compared to other American horror series. Both the original film and the 2018 sequel have received critical praise, while the other films have received mixed or negative reviews.
Screenplay
| Film | Director | Writer(s) | Story | Producer(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Halloween (1978) | John Carpenter | John Carpenter and Debra Hill | Debra Hill | |
| Halloween II (1981) | Rick Rosenthal | Debra Hill and John Carpenter | ||
| Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982) | Tommy Lee Wallace | Tommy Lee Wallace | ||
| Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988) | Dwight H. Little | Alan B. McElroy | Dhani Lipsius, Larry Rattner & Benjamin Ruffner and Alan B. McElroy |
Paul Freeman |
| Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989) | Dominique Othenin-Girard | Michael Jacobs & Dominique Othenin-Girard and Shem Bitterman |
Ramsey Thomas | |
| Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995) | Joe Chappelle | Daniel Farrands | Paul Freeman | |
| Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998) | Steve Miner | Robert Zappia and Matt Greenberg | Robert Zappia | |
| Halloween: Resurrection (2002) | Rick Rosenthal | Larry Brand and Sean Hood | Larry Brand | |
| Halloween (2007) | Rob Zombie | Rob Zombie | Malek Akkad, Andy Gould and Rob Zombie | |
| Halloween II (2009) | ||||
| Halloween (2018) | David Gordon Green | Jeff Fradley, Danny McBride & David Gordon Green | Malek Akkad, Jason Blum and Bill Block |
Overview
The original Halloween (1978), co-written and directed by John Carpenter, tells the story of Michael Myers as he stalks and kills teenage babysitters on Halloween night. The film begins with six-year-old Michael (Will Sandin) killing his older sister Judith (Sandy Johnson) on Halloween night 1963 in the fictional town of Haddonfield, Illinois. He is subsequently hospitalized at Warren County's Smith's Grove Sanitarium. Fifteen years later, Michael (Nick Castle) escapes from Smith's Grove and returns to his hometown while being hunted down by his psychiatrist, Dr. Sam Loomis (Donald Pleasence). Michael stalks high school student Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) and her friends as they babysit. Murdering Laurie's friends, Michael finally attacks Laurie herself, but she manages to fend him off long enough for Loomis to save her. Loomis shoots Michael six times, knocking him off a balcony; when Loomis goes to check Michael's body, he finds it missing. Halloween II (1981) picks up where the events of Halloween left off. Michael (Dick Warlock) follows Laurie to the local hospital, killing everyone who gets between him and Laurie. The story reveals that Laurie is actually Michael's sister: she was given up for adoption as an infant. Michael corners Loomis and Laurie in an operating theater, where Loomis causes an explosion as Laurie escapes. Michael, engulfed in flames, stumbles out of the room before finally falling dead.
Michael Myers does not appear in Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982). This installment follows the story of Dr. Challis (Tom Atkins) as he tries to solve the mysterious murder of a patient in his hospital. He, along with the patient's daughter Ellie (Stacey Nelkin), travels to the small town of Santa Mira, California. The pair discover that Silver Shamrock Novelties, a company run by Conal Cochran (Dan O'Herlihy), is attempting to use the mystic powers of the Stonehenge rocks to resurrect the ancient aspects of the Celtic festival, Samhain, which Cochran connects to witchcraft. Cochran is using his Silver Shamrock Halloween masks to achieve his goal, which will be achieved when all the children wearing his masks watch the Silver Shamrock commercial airing Halloween night. Challis contacts the television stations and convinces all but one of the station managers to remove the commercial. The film ends with Challis screaming for the final station to turn off the commercial.
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988), as the title suggests, features the return of Michael Myers (George P. Wilbur) to the film series. It is revealed that Michael has been in a comatose state since the fire in Halloween II. While being transferred back to Smith's Grove, Michael awakens upon hearing that Laurie Strode, who died in a car accident, has a daughter, Jamie Lloyd (Danielle Harris). Michael escapes and makes his way to Haddonfield in search of his niece Jamie. Dr. Loomis goes to Haddonfield after learning that Michael has escaped transfer. Eventually, the police track Michael down and shoot him several times before he falls down a mine shaft. Picking up directly where the previous film ends, Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989) has Michael (Don Shanks) surviving the gunshots, and the fall down the mine; he stumbles upon a hermit who bandages him up. One year later, and showing signs of a metaphysical connection to Jamie, Michael tracks Jamie to a local child mental health clinic. Using Jamie as bait, Loomis manages to capture Michael. The film ends with Michael being taken into police custody, only to be broken out of jail by a mysterious stranger, all dressed in black. Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995) picks up the story approximately six years after the events of The Revenge of Michael Myers. The mysterious stranger who broke Michael out of jail kidnaps Jamie Lloyd (J. C. Brandy) in an effort to obtain her child. Jamie escapes with her newborn son, with Michael (George P. Wilbur) in pursuit. Michael kills Jamie and continues searching for her baby; the infant is found by Tommy Doyle (Paul Rudd)—the young boy who was babysat by Laurie Strode in the first film—who brings it home for safety. It is revealed that Michael is driven by the Curse of Thorn, which forces a person to kill their entire family in order to save all of civilization. The mysterious stranger is revealed to be Dr. Loomis's colleague, Dr. Wynn (Mitchell Ryan), who is part of a group of people who protect the chosen individual so that they may complete their task. With the help of Kara Strode (Marianne Hagan), Laurie's adoptive cousin, Tommy keeps the infant from Michael, who slaughters Wynn and his followers. Michael is finally subdued by Tommy, who injects him with large quantities of tranquilizers inside the Smith's Grove Sanitarium. The film ends with Michael's mask lying on the floor of the lab room and Loomis screaming in the background, leaving the fate of both men unknown.
The events that transpire between the fourth to sixth films are effectively ignored in 1998's Halloween H20: 20 Years Later. This film opens twenty years after the events of the second film and establishes that Michael Myers (Chris Durand) has been missing since the explosion in 1978. Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) has faked her own death so that she could go into hiding from her brother Michael. Now working as the head mistress of a private school under the name Keri Tate, Laurie continues to live in fear of her brother's return. Her own son, John (Josh Hartnett), attends school where she teaches. Laurie's fear becomes reality when Michael shows up at the school and begins killing John's friends and eventually he and Laurie come face-to-face. Laurie manages to get John and his girlfriend (Michelle Williams) to safety, but decides to return to the school to face Michael once and for all. Laurie succeeds in stopping Michael, but not satisfied until she knows that he is truly dead, Laurie steals his body and decapitates Michael, finally killing him. Halloween: Resurrection (2002) picks up three years after H20, and reveals that Michael swapped clothes with a paramedic—crushing the paramedic's larynx so that he could not talk—and that was whom Laurie killed. Unable to deal with having killed an innocent man, and the fact that Michael was still out there, Laurie is committed to a mental institution. Michael (Brad Loree) shows up at the institution, but Laurie captures him. Her fear of making the same mistake twice gets the better of her, and when she attempts to remove Michael's mask he surprises and kills her. Michael travels back to his family home in Haddonfield, but finds a group of college students filming an Internet reality show. Michael proceeds to kill everyone, until he is finally electrocuted by the only surviving student, Sara Moyer (Bianca Kajlich), and the show's creator Freddie Harris (Busta Rhymes). Michael's body and the bodies of his victims are then taken to the morgue. As the medical examiner begins to inspect Michael's body, he awakens.
A remake of the original Halloween was released in 2007. This film focuses on the events that led Michael Myers (Daeg Faerch) to kill his family. It also identifies Laurie as Michael's sister early on, which was something not done in the original 1978 film. On Halloween, Michael murders a school bully, his older sister and her boyfriend, as well as his mother's boyfriend. Committed to Smith's Grove Sanitarium, Michael closes himself off from everyone. Fifteen years later, Michael (Tyler Mane) escapes and heads to Haddonfield to find his younger sister, with his psychiatrist Dr. Loomis (Malcolm McDowell) in pursuit. Michael finds his sister living with the Strode family, and going by the name Laurie. After killing nearly all of her friends and family, Michael then kidnaps Laurie and attempts to explain to her that he is her brother through the use of a picture that he has kept of himself and her as an infant. Unable to understand, Laurie fights back; eventually, Laurie uses Loomis's gun to shoot Michael in the head. In 2009, a sequel to the remake, titled Halloween II, picks up right where the latter leaves off and then jumps ahead one year. Here, Michael (Mane) is presumed dead, but resurfaces after a vision of his deceased mother Deborah (Sheri Moon Zombie) informs him that he must track Laurie (Scout Taylor-Compton) down so that they can "come home" together. In the film, Michael and Laurie have a mental link, with the two sharing visions of their mother. During the film's climax, Laurie kills Michael by stabbing him repeatedly in the chest and face with his own knife, with the final scene suggesting that she has taken on her brother's psychosis as she dons his mask.
2018's Halloween is a direct sequel to the original film that disregards Michael as the brother of Laurie Strode. Having been arrested following his killing spree in 1978, this film establishes that Michael (James Jude Courtney) spent forty years back in Smith's Grove Sanitarium before escaping again and returning to Haddonfield for another killing spree. Here he comes face-to-face again with Laurie Strode (Curtis), who has been preparing for his return. Michael is taken to Laurie’s home by his deranged psychologist, where he engages in a showdown with Laurie, who severely injures him and severed two of his fingers. Michael is ultimately trapped in Laurie’s burning house by Laurie, her daughter Karen, and her granddaughter Allyson.
Development
After viewing John Carpenter's film Assault on Precinct 13 (1976) at the Milan Film Festival, independent film producer Irwin Yablans and financier Moustapha Akkad sought out Carpenter to direct for them a film about a psychotic killer stalking babysitters. Carpenter and Debra Hill began drafting a story titled The Babysitter Murders, but the title was changed at Yablans' request, suggesting the setting be changed to Halloween night and naming it Halloween instead. Moustapha Akkad fronted the $300,000 for the film's budget, even though he was worried about the tight schedule, low budget, and Carpenter's limited experience as a filmmaker. He finally decided to finance the film after Carpenter relayed the entire film to Akkad, "in a suspenseful way, almost frame for frame", and opted not to take any fees for directing the film. The low budget forced wardrobe and props to be crafted from items on hand or that could be purchased inexpensively; this included the trademark mask worn by Michael Myers throughout the film. Production designer, art director, location scout and co-editor Tommy Lee Wallace created Michael's mask from a William Shatner Halloween mask, purchased for $1.98. The limited budget also dictated the filming location and time schedule. Halloween was filmed in 21 days in the spring of 1978 primarily in South Pasadena, California. An abandoned house owned by a church stood in as the Myers house. Two homes on Orange Grove Avenue in Hollywood were used for the film's climax.
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