Halloween II (1981).

Having now seen all of the (original) Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street films, it's time to get to work on Halloween.

Taking place directly after the first, Halloween II is set almost exclusively in the local hospital Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) is taken to.

A very quiet, understaffed hospital, considering everything that has just happened...?

Michael continues to stalk Laurie and kill anyone unlucky enough to cross his path, while Dr. Loomis trails behind until the finale. So, more of the same and nothing remarkable from plot or actors here.

There are some interesting (though logistically shady) kills, I suppose. Boiling a woman's face off:

Bleeding a nurse to death:

He slips and bangs his head. Such a hero.

These are kind of fun to watch as they are being set up, but that's about it.

The strength of Halloween II then, even if in the grand world of horror, it's only equivalent to kitten-strength, is that every so often this movie seems to - almost accidentally - present a really satisfyingly crafted shot.

My favourites were plays with perspective, and the "he's behind you!" work.

We also have Laurie cornered in an elevator. I just love the colours in this:

Michael, having been shot in the face, crying bitter bloody tears. Then being set on fire.

And that is what I took away from this second installment. It's dull but for occasional eye candy.

Next up, Halloween III: Season of the Witch!

That's a pretty special trailer right there.

scaredy-cat.

Still so busy... No time to envelope myself in horror. Therefore, only a mere handful of entries into this new blog, I am going to cheat.

Here's a post I did in April of this year, elsewhere online. I like it though, so it can rest here as well.

"I watched Switchblade Romance (or Haute Tension, if you'd prefer) last night. It was as good as its reputation suggested. It didn't give me nightmares - although I did dream of a deleted scene for it this morning. Geek.
Yes, perhaps I do now have a bit of a crush on Cécile De France; there's something very attractive about a beautiful woman who looks like she could completely kick your arse, I think.

As a horror fan I am always being asked what the scariest film I have ever seen is. I almost get embarrassed when I reply honestly by naming The Blair Witch Project. The thing is, I saw it at the cinema and got totally sucked in. By the end of the film I felt I was on the brink of cardiac arrest, I was so scared. Certain parts of 28 Days Later - why does it have ellipses in the title there? - produced similar results (again, at the cinema. I think that is a big factor).

I also had to turn off - as it was recorded off of the TV - The Shining at the point the rotting old lady in the bath appears. That film really got to me mainly because it was so cold. I can't remember how old I was when I watched it, but I suspect I wasn't yet fifteen, which was its rating in the UK. It just seemed so harsh, and was one of the first films I saw where I felt I couldn't trust the film maker. You weren't in safe hands anymore, he wouldn't protect you. Anything could happen. *shivers happily*
And, haha, speaking of TV: Ghostwatch on the BBC all those years ago also made me so scared I had to turn it off.

These aren't great answers, but having seen so many films now, and so very many horrors, it's hard to really scare me. To be honest I'm undecided as to whether I want to see something as scary as it'd have to be to really scare me, if that makes sense?

It's simple enough to make me nervous, and make my heart beat faster (Switchblade Romance did that last night) but to properly terrify me? I don't know what it would take. And once seen, I couldn't un-see it. Would it be like In the Mouth of Madness (or the less well known and slightly pants Cigarette Burns, god bless yer John Carpenter ♥), where I'd finally find the scariest film... but the price would be my SANITY?

I don't know where I'm going with this. I'm just musing. With my fella away I am taking the opportunity to watch films I know he wouldn't be interested in. Having a gander at the listings for the lovely Greenwich Picturehouse cinema, I'm told that The Orphanage is showing.

I suppose this post grew from the fact I was wondering if I felt in the right kind of mood to go and watch something in the cinema I know to be really chilling. I'll see how I feel come home time."