On a cold Halloween night in Haddonfield, Illinois in 1963, six year old Michael Myers brutally murdered his teenage sister after she had sex with her boyfriend. Michael is then locked inside Smith's Grove Warren County Sanitarium where he is placed under the care of Dr. Sam Loomis who is the only one who sees the pure evil within the soul of Michael. In October 1978, Michael escapes from the sanitarium. After witnessing the escape, Dr. Loomis heads back to Haddonfield where he knows Michael will kill again on Halloween night. Michael begins stalking three teenagers, Laurie Strode and her friends Annie and Lynda. With the help of the town sheriff, Loomis hunts for Michael and hopes to put an end to his grisly murder spree.
Ok, I like the John Carpenter version more than the Rob Zombie version. The film was made in 20 days on a budget of a little over $300,000 (sounds like the first SAW film too). What really worked for this film was its simplicity. Released in 1978, standards back then would be pretty tame compared to today (see SAW or HOSTEL if you think I'm joking). No teenage drug use, not a lot of sex, gore or brutality. Just a classic film which scared the audience with a tremendous score and a superhuman killer. Compared with the first FRIDAY THE 13TH and NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, I think this film beats them out as the best.
