The Honeycut: Is ‘Halloween II’ a worthy sequel?

Checking in to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital

I rewatched the first six “Halloween” movies a few years ago. While the second one always scared me growing up, and I always liked it as an adult, the last time I watched it, I was underwhelmed. With it being the Halloween season, I decided to watch “Halloween II” again this year. So, did I enjoy it more this time? Or does it still live in the shadow of the first film?

Honey’s Cut

I could write a separate article on what a mess this movie’s production was, but I don’t feel like doing that. Basically, the head guy wanted more Michael Myers and “Halloween,” while everyone else wanted to move on in some form or fashion. Cue the bickering and lawsuits.

Now that that’s covered, I’ll give you my thoughts on “Halloween II.” Let’s start with the positives.

I like it when a sequel picks up directly where the first film left off. “Halloween II” does this seamlessly. We get a quick recap of the first movie, then it dives right into the aftermath of Michael’s killing spree.

The atmosphere of this movie is so cool. It begins as trick-or-treating is winding down. We spend the night in Haddonfield Memorial. Halloween is over; the party has ended, almost everyone is asleep, but Michael is still lurking. Then, in the dreary morning, it’s November. What a vibe!

It's nice to see the returning characters as well, such as Laurie Strode, Dr. Loomis, and of course, Michael Myers. Although Laurie Strode doesn’t do a whole lot. She just kind of lies in a hospital bed and runs away from Michael for much of the movie. I did like seeing more of Loomis. With him and the police trying to track Michael down, we get to see more of Haddonfield, like the elementary school and shopping district.

In one scene, a police cruiser slams into Ben Tramer, who’s dressed as Michael Myers, and rams him into a van that explodes. Man, that really unsettled me as a kid.

The overnight hospital setting also works. Most of the staff has left for the night, leaving only a skeleton crew, much like the overnight jobs I’ve worked. The night shift alone brings its own eerie feeling. This setting has become pretty iconic. Whenever I see a horror movie set in a hospital, I always think of “Halloween II.”

Now to the negatives. Aside from Michael shoving a nurse’s face into boiling water, a lot of the kills are just kind of lame. Many either cut away before the good stuff or are done off-screen. When we do see Michael kill someone, it’s with this dinky scalpel, including when he stabs Dr. Loomis. What a letdown.

As I said, Laurie Strode doesn’t really do much until the last few minutes. She does shoot out Michael’s eyes, which gives us an awesome visual of his mask crying blood. She also has this weird romance thing with an ambulance driver that just did not do it for me.

Honey’s Final Thought

While John Carpenter didn’t direct this one, he did co-write it with Debra Hill and produce it, so a lot of the magic is still there. But I’d be lying if I said this isn’t a step down from the original. As a sequel, though? Yeah, it works. It’s a solid continuation of the story and a nice way to wrap things up after the first film’s cliffhanger ending.

The idea was to make “Halloween” an anthology series. However, when “Halloween III” came out and Michael Myers wasn’t in it, people hated it. So, the franchise became the Michael Myers movies.

I always say this. If you’re curious as to what other stories would have been told in the “Halloween” anthology, just look at Carpenter’s other works. They all have horror or sci-fi elements to them. I could easily see “Halloween: The Fog” or “Halloween: The Thing,” or even “Halloween: Escape from New York.” Just pretend they take place on October 31, and there you go.

Wow, I got off track. “Halloween II” is a decent sequel, so go watch it if you haven’t seen it in a while.