Plot: What’s it about?
Halloween
It’s become something of a cliché in and of itself to say this, but John Carpenter’s original Halloween really did invent all of the clichés we’ve since come to associate with nearly all modern horror films. Before 1978, we simply didn’t have the typical tropes of the genre such as the virginal heroine, the parade of doomed, promiscuous teens, or the unstoppable, faceless monster lurking around virtually every corner. It’s not that Halloween reinvented the wheel – it invented the wheel to start with. As such, the film does, interestingly, tend to play far campier – and slower – to a more modern crowd than perhaps it once did, relishing (or perhaps, one could argue, languishing) in all of the same filmmaking styles and character stereotypes that the film itself created. For my part, Halloween is more of a staple of the season now than it is a truly frightening experience. I’m far too familiar with every nuance and jarring bit of musical score to actually be scared by the film these days. And yet, I still feel that I know all of these characters. I still get caught up in what’s going on, even if I know exactly how it’s all going to turn out. And somehow I return to it each and every October 31st. I’m not sure why that is, but it certainly has to count for something.
Halloween II
There’s a certain feel to the first few Halloween films that I don’t think ever really came back to the franchise later on. Halloween II captures more or less the same mood of Carpenter’s original, even if it does so at the expense of replacing the magnificent score arrangement of the 1978 classic with an atrocious synthetic version that has dated worse than virtually any other element of the film. All of the major players (who survived the first film) return here, and you can definitely see that a genuine effort was made to continue a story logically that didn’t exactly scream out for a continuation. Setting the second film on the same night as its predecessor was something of a novelty at the time and, having just seen the first and second movies back-to-back, they do make for quite a nice double-feature. It’s been said many times before, but much of Halloween II’s lack of impact can sadly be placed at the feet of John Carpenter who, reacting to the perceived expectations of the time, inserted far more gore during reshoots than he had into his own film three years before. He’d have done well to remember that, in the world of Halloween (and typically in horror movies as a whole), less is more. This collection also includes the interesting but ultimately problematic Television Cut of Halloween II, which eliminates much of the gore inserted by Carpenter and adds several intriguing bits of footage – but also contains all manner of narrative problems due to footage being haphazardly juggled around for network broadcasts and edits the film for content.
Halloween III: Season of the Witch
Abandoning the slasher genre momentarily, the Halloween series gave us this entry in 1982. The result understandably upset filmgoers of the time, who were eager to see yet another Michael Myers outing. Gradually, though, the movie has gained something of a cult following on home video. And I have to say, I think it’s fairly well-deserved. The film casts a very dark shadow – in fact, it’s one of the very bleakest chapters in the entire series. The score is effective, the story (as wild and crazy as it is) is entirely original, and the climax is one of the most memorable sequences in horror film history. Sure, the movie is a bit laughable these days, but so are nearly all of the Halloween films if we’re being honest about it. Halloween III likely would have done far better had it not been called Halloween III, yet ironically, it probably never would have been seen by so many fans had that been the case. The next entry would alter the course of this film series yet again, but for my part, I don’t think the franchise ever quite recaptured the eeriness of the first three Halloweens. There’s something about these older, initial entries that just drip with an almost unbearable atmosphere. It’s a combination of creepiness and 80’s charm/cheese that I feel horror movies have by and large lost today.
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers
By the time Halloween 4 rolled around, the powers-that-be were determined to right the boat that Halloween III had nearly capsized. The decision was made to go back to the basics. Michael Myers was back, Haddonfield was back, and most of the main narrative thrust that made the first film work so well was re-employed to surprisingly strong effect. Even the score was brought back to something more closely resembling the first film than the second installment. A cast of largely memorable supporting characters helps things immeasurably, as does the return of Donald Pleasance as the irrepressible Dr. Loomis, determined as ever to stop Michael’s seemingly endless killing spree. Throw in an appropriately shocking ending and a rather hilarious subplot involving a redneck lynch mob caravanning around in pickup trucks and you’ve got the makings of a certified camp classic. It may not be Shakespeare, but Halloween 4 managed to provide enough of what fans of the series were expecting to remain am oft-cited favorite for years to come.
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers
A lot of fans take issue with Halloween 5 for a whole myriad of reasons (a patently annoying supporting character and a particularly bad-looking Myers mask usually top the complaint list), but to be honest, I’ve personally never found this entry to be all that more poorly-executed than any of the others in the series. If you’re still with the Halloween franchise to watch a film with a “5” suffixing its title, you know precisely what you’re getting: annoying characters nicely dispatched by everyone’s favorite fall-themed serial killer. And that’s what the film delivers…yet again. Now admittedly, this fifth film was rather inexplicably marketed. There’s really no “revenge” to be seen here, nor are any of the characters “ready” for Michael’s return as the poster suggested. But as a standalone Halloween movie, it provides just as much (or as little) as one might expect from this type of thing. In any case, a film that features a Fonzie clone having his prized car vandalized before being viciously impaled through the head by a gardening tool has to hold a special place in this horror fan’s heart.
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
This past Halloween, I finally watched the so-called Producer’s Cut of Halloween 6. While I can’t speak intelligently on the specific differences this version has with the theatrical version, it’s safe to say that neither edit of the film is a particularly great movie. The ending of The Producer’s Cut really goes off the rails, reducing Michael Myers to a cult-created zombie who can be stopped by magic rune stones. Any way you slice it, that’s a rather embarrassing place for the series to find itself after six installments. Granted, there wasn’t much else to be done with the basic concept, so I don’t fault the film’s creators for trying to inject a little creativity into the formula, but it really just doesn’t work. If I were forced to recommend one version of the movie over the other, I’d begrudgingly have to advise newcomers to check out the theatrical version first and then watch The Producer’s Cut if they deem it worthy of revisiting from a different perspective. This sequel was Donald Pleasance’s final film, and he does his level best to inject as much energy into Loomis’s last outing as possible, given the obviously limited resources at his disposal. The Curse of Michael Myers is, in the end, an interesting but ultimately failed experiment.
Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later
Talk about a movie that had no business being anywhere near as good as it turned out. Halloween: H20 somehow does just about everything right – a near-miracle for a seventh installment of any series, let alone one that was already going pretty stale by this point. Sure, there’s a very Scream-esque vibe to the proceedings (the movie was made in 1998, after all), and yes, some of the score is even recycled from that film…but the campy fun and all-important simplicity of the earlier films makes a decidedly triumphant return here that makes H20 a winner. The cast is a veritable who’s who of “who-would-be-big-in-two-years” teen actors, and Jamie Lee Curtis really gives her all to what everyone now concedes should have been her final appearance in the series. It all builds to the confrontation – and resolution – that fans had been clamoring for, and things coming together as well as they did here was likely just dumb luck (especially in retrospect). The last scene of H20 is so effective, in fact, that many fans have deemed Halloween, Halloween II, and Halloween H20 a canonical trilogy of sorts. 16 years on as of this writing, H20 is still loads of fun.
Halloween: Resurrection
And then it all went horribly wrong. Poor Laurie Strode. After battling the specter of The Shape all of her life, she’s reduced here to a glorified cameo that only serves to have her go out like a total and complete moron. It’s an opening sequence that should immediately impart to the viewer just how little Halloween: Resurrection really cares about the entire franchise. Now that we can move beyond Curtis’s iconic character (and the motivation that character gave to Michael’s madness), we’re free to pursue inexplicable territory and tack on the trendy “found footage” filmmaking technique to boot. Throw in a rapper to round out the otherwise abysmal supporting actors, and we’re all set. Honestly, Resurrection fails on just about every conceivable level, only impressive in just how poorly each and every possible moment is executed. In particular, Busta Rhymes’s now-infamous exclamation of “treat or trick, mother f**ker” comes off as more of a giant middle finger to the whole Halloween film series and their would-be legacy than a quick-witted quip leveled at Myers.
Rob Zombie’s Halloween
I have to be honest – seeing Rob Zombie’s Halloween for the first time was probably the single most depressing film-watching experience of my life. I hated the premise. I hated the execution. I only watched it to begin with because, as a fan of the series, I felt compelled to do so. I’d heard that Zombie took the approach of explaining away Michael’s evil as a byproduct of poor parenting, and I cringed to watch a film based on such a terrible idea…and it somehow wound up being even worse than I’d imagined. Ridiculous, over-the-top gore and a general veil of dank unpleasantness simply oozes from every frame of Zombie’s creation, adding up to a film that’s as lifeless and joyless to watch as its antagonist seems to be behind his mask. In all fairness, when I watched this this past Halloween, I didn’t hate it with the fiery intensity that I did back in 2007, but that’s probably only because I was expecting something as terrible as only a horrid memory can be. It’s still not a good movie…but it isn’t the descent into hell that I once thought it was, either. There’s some genuinely intense sequences scattered here and there, and Zombie does recapture something of the feel of the season that some of the earlier sequels (even the otherwise excellent H20) had all but abandoned at this point. Scout Taylor-Compton does an admirable job screaming (even if that’s all she’s really given to do), and Malcolm McDowell is an intriguingly different kind of Dr. Loomis. But really, that’s about as much praise as I can heap on this one. Note that this set contains only the Unrated Director’s Cut of the film.
Rob Zombie’s Halloween II
If there’s one thing I can say I unequivocally appreciate about Rob Zombie’s Halloween, it’s that it’s not nearly as bad as Rob Zombie’s Halloween II. Over the past five years, this second Zombie sequel has somehow found a rather vocal fan following…but I couldn’t tell you why in a million years. Dr. Loomis is turned into a complete jerk of a character. Laurie is presented as a PTSD-afflicted, neurotic basket case with a vocabulary so in-your-face expletive-heavy that Kevin Smith would think twice about using it for a Jay and Silent Bob film. Michael Myers is essentially a homeless maniac, spurred to kill by his dead mother and child self-image, morphing him into a character that has more in common with Norman Bates than the Myers we know from the earlier films. The one genuinely frightening scene in the whole movie is tossed away as a dream sequence, and the ending is so utterly confusing (regardless of which version you choose to watch) that it’ll leave all but the biggest Zombie apologists saying “whaaa…?” after the screening. It’s truly a sad way to round out a series that began with such impressive artistry. I don’t know what’s in store for the (inevitable) next chapter in the saga of Halloween, but I honestly believe that it has nowhere to go but up from here. Note that this set contains only the Unrated Director’s Cut of the film.
Video: How’s it look?
Halloween
Though the new “Halloween: The Complete Collection” boxed set features the very same blu-ray transfers for Halloween that were previously released in 2007 and 2013 and then subsequently reviewed here on the site, I’d like to add a few comments of my own about both transfers’ respective strengths and weaknesses. The 2007 transfer remains more in keeping with the color palette chosen by Director of Photography Dean Cundey for 1999’s THX-approved DVD release. That scheme, though technically revisionist, was widely lauded by fans as being more atmospheric and appropriate to the original intent of the filmmakers. The 2007 blu-ray does have its share of issues, however. Fine object detail isn’t up there with the best catalog titles, and the night time scenes lack the strong bluish push that Cundey had previously approved. The 2013 transfer, by contrast, has magnificent detail – for a catalog film or otherwise. It’s a better-looking blu-ray in nearly every regard, but there’s (naturally) one caveat. The color grading has once again been re-imagined (once again by Cundey), but the results are totally different than the previous releases. Daytime scenes are now rather severely de-saturated, and the blue tint of the night shots, while an improvement over the 2007 disc, are still quite subdued compared to the 1999 version. Fans will ultimately have to decide for themselves which compromise they prefer. Personally, I’d recommend going with the 2013 disc for its superior detail since we’re likely never going to know at this point just how Halloween’s color scheme is “supposed” to look. Both versions of Halloween feature subtitles in English SDH and in Spanish.
Halloween II
Scream Factory’s 2012 transfer for Halloween II is recycled for this set, but that’s hardly a bad thing. Fans have been split on whether this version is better or worse than Universal’s earlier blu-ray release, the former showing a hair less DNR, but showcasing persistent white dots that pervaded the print. In the end, I find those two very minor issues to be a wash, and I find the Scream Factory offering to be quite pleasing overall. Halloween II is never going to look like a film made in 2014, but for its vintage, this movie looks pretty great. Black levels are terrific, and fine object detail is excellent throughout, giving the film that “pop” that we love to associate with HD. I can’t imagine anyone being displeased with how the theatrical version of this movie looks. The Television Cut of the film included here is presented in 4:3, standard-def DVD only, so fans should temper their expectations for that version accordingly. There are no subtitles available.
Halloween III: Season of the Witch
Likewise, Scream Factory’s Halloween III blu-ray is the same as the previously-released edition, and once again, that’s a good thing for fans. I’ve read a fair amount of negativity regarding this blu-ray transfer, but I truly don’t know what some of those reviewers were expecting out of Halloween III if this didn’t satisfy them. The blu-ray is quite filmic, with subtle grain left intact, excellent blacks, wonderful detail levels, and DNR is thankfully kept to appropriately judicious levels. All in all, fans only familiar with the transfer on the old DVD version should be totally blown away by this disc. There are no subtitles available.
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers
This disc contains the same transfer as the 2012 blu-ray, reviewed here.
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers
This disc contains the same transfer as the 2012 blu-ray, reviewed here.
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
Owners of the previously-released Alliance triple-feature Canadian blu-ray containing Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers will know more or less what to expect out of the Theatrical Cut of the film in this new boxed set. While the transfer is now 1080p (rather than the 1080i offering from before), the differences are actually fairly minimal. Black levels aren’t as inky as I’d like for such a dark film, but detail is actually very good overall. Compression could definitely be improved as well, as solid backgrounds exhibit occasional blocking throughout the film. But generally speaking, this is a decent transfer that improves marginally over what we’ve gotten before. The Producer’s Cut is a different animal altogether. Newly-created from the original elements, it looks as clean and crisp as fans have long hoped it would. It’s rather unfair to compare the older Theatrical Cut transfer to its Producer’s Cut brother, but suffice it to say that the latter trumps the former in every way thanks to better compression, sufficiently inky blacks and detail levels with which fans of the film – especially those used to viewing this cut on various bootlegs over the years – will be absolutely thrilled. Subtitles are available in English only.
Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later
Much the same as The Curse of Michael Myers, Halloween: H20’s transfer shares most things in common with the Alliance triple-feature, with the added benefit of 1080p encoding. Owners of that disc will know the primary strengths and weaknesses of this release based on that blu-ray. H20 has never been a pretty film, and the murky, hazy presentation we get here doesn’t make any strides toward changing that. Many film-inherent anomalies also crop up throughout the film and, although they’re almost certainly not the direct fault of the disc, they probably could have (and should have) been cleaned up to some degree. Those who had Echo Bridge’s blu-ray in their collections will be pleased to know that this version of H20 is presented in the film’s original 2.39:1 aspect ratio, and not in the reformatted 16:9 framing that Echo Bridge’s disc contained. Black could be stronger, and detail is fairly weak throughout. It’s a shame that more wasn’t done to improve the picture quality of one of the series’ best entries. While certainly not a travesty, and a far cry better than Echo Bridge’s blu-ray, H20 remains as in dire need of a fresh remaster as ever. Subtitles are available in English only.
Halloween: Resurrection
Another disc, another recycled transfer. I’ve viewed this new Halloween: Resurrection transfer side-by-side with the previously-released Echo Bridge and Alliance transfers, and honestly, there’s very little in the way of significant differences between all three of them. If you’ve owned any of the prior blu-rays of the film, you’ll know what to expect here. If you haven’t, you’ll likely be neither angered nor blown away by this disc’s picture quality. The film doesn’t suffer from over-zealous DNR, but it’s definitely been digitally “enhanced” to a sometimes distracting degree. Compression is a frequent offender, lending a decidedly digital feel to the presentation. On the plus side, detail level (or perhaps the illusion of detail level) is adequately high, and blacks are similarly above average. But it’s really just a very average effort in the end, with the disc never terribly offending, but never truly impressing, either – particularly for such a recent film. Resurrection isn’t a terrible transfer, nor the least HD-like that I’ve reviewed. It simply doesn’t distinguish itself in any major way. Subtitles are available in English only.
Rob Zombie’s Halloween
Once again, Rob Zombie’s Halloween features the exact same transfer as the previously-released “Unrated Director’s Cut” blu-ray. The film looks as strong as one would expect for a movie shot in 2007, with excellent detail, immersive blacks, good compression, and no excessive digital manipulation. Halloween doesn’t exact distinguish itself here above and beyond other recent blu-ray releases of major Hollywood fare, but it’s strong in virtually every technical department. Fans of the film should be totally pleased with this presentation. Subtitles are available in English SDH and in Spanish.
Rob Zombie’s Halloween II
And finally, we have – wait for it – the same transfer for Rob Zombie’s Halloween II as previously-released on blu-ray. But as with the 2007 film, the original blu-ray was already a visual winner. Shot in gritty 16mm with a challengingly bland color scheme, Halloween II reportedly looks quite rough on standard DVD. Thankfully, we live in a world of HD formats capable of resolving such source issues as film stock and color bleed. What little artistic merit I find in this movie has everything to do with its visual style, and this blu-ray should satisfy anyone’s desire to see the film presented accurately. The intense grain of the 16mm elements might be a bit overwhelming to some viewers, but it suits the movie’s mood perfectly. Colors are quite purposefully graded, but I believe them to be true to Zombie’s intent here. Overall, it’s a very strong transfer that the film’s one or two fans should fully appreciate. Subtitles are available in English and in English SDH.
Audio: How’s it sound?
Halloween
Oh boy, where do I begin here? When Halloween’s 35th Anniversary blu-ray was announced in 2013, I was ecstatic. Finally, I’d get to see the film with Dean Cundey’s preferred colors, with the television scenes incorporated into the movie (more on that below) and with the original mono audio track intact. Well, as it turned out, Cundey’s color preferences had totally changed, the television scenes were presented as extras only, and the advertised “original mono” audio was actually a down-mix of the 7.1 track! Now first off, I need to say a few words about the Dolby TrueHD 7.1 track. There are two camps on this, and I should say up front that I’m firmly on the side of the purists in this particular case. First, I’ll highlight the positives. The 7.1 soundstage is quite immersive. Imaging is strong across the channels, and dialogue is adequately intelligible throughout. Low end is given a huge bump (most noticeable during the few “jump scare” moments sprinkled throughout the film). But what do we sacrifice for all this newfangled fidelity? Well, we lose the original sound design for one thing. And it’s not just a matter of gimmicky expansion of audio that was never meant to be more than mono. Some sound effects have been changed. Others have been added where they didn’t exist before. Music has been subtly altered in several places. It’s a cumulative effect that is utterly distracting if you’re anywhere near as intimately familiar with the movie as I am. Thankfully, this new boxed set DOES finally contain the REAL original mono track that we were promised last year – in lossless quality no less. And it’s on Disc 1, coupled up with the new and improved 2013 transfer, so there’s finally a win-win scenario to celebrate for Halloween fans.
Halloween II
In contrast, Scream Factory gives us a very satisfactory DTS-HD MA 5.1 mix for Halloween II that should please both purists and non-purists alike. The sound stage is immersive without being forceful about it. The original mix is expanded, but also respected. It’s a restrained mix, but that’s exactly as it should be. It does its job by adding subtly to the overall atmosphere without resorting to altering the original elements. This isn’t a track to rattle your windows, but it opens up Halloween II likely more than you’d expect. And just in case a new 5.1 mix just isn’t your cup of tea on catalog titles, Scream has been nice enough to include the original stereo mix right along with it. Kudos to Scream Factory for getting this one right the first time. The Television Cut of the film is presented on the DVD in stereo only.
Halloween III: Season of the Witch
All we’re given for Halloween III is the film’s original mono track, presented in DTS-HD MA 2.0. There’s a misprint on the collection that indicates the film contains a 5.1 track, but be aware that this was a packaging mistake. For what it is, though, the mono track supports the movie just fine, and it actually has a surprising amount of depth for such an antiquated sound design. Dialogue is clean and clear, and I noticed no peaking or distortion issues. It’s nothing to write home about per se, but it’s a sufficiently effective track that I also don’t think anyone will be too displeased with it.
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers
This disc contains the same audio as the 2012 blu-ray, reviewed here.
Note: initial pressings of the “Halloween: Complete Collection” boxed set contained a Halloween 4 disc that had major audio sync issues, beginning around the 48-minute mark and persisting throughout the remainder of the film. A replacement program has been initiated by Anchor Bay to correct this error, and anyone experiencing the sync problem on their copy should contact Anchor Bay to be issued a new disc.
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers
This disc contains the same audio as the 2012 blu-ray, reviewed here.
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
Like its video transfer counterpart, The Curse of Michael Myers features a DTS-HD MA 5.1 mix that shares many things in common with its previously-released blu-ray brethren. This time, however, we do get a bit of an upgrade, as the old blu-rays were Dolby Digital only. The main areas of improvement are predictably the overall ambience, music score and tightness of the lower frequencies. To be honest, it’s not a night-and-day leap over the previous discs, but those with an ear for the improvements will appreciate them, however small they may be. I did find The Producer’s Cut lossless audio track – probably just by virtue of being the newer version created – to be a bit better than that of the Theatrical Cut, but both soundtracks are quite strong and should easily satisfy fans of both versions.
Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later
Halloween H20 features a 5.1 DTS-HD MA track that does its job well and should please anyone not expecting it to sound like a Michael Bay film. Dialogue is always perfectly intelligible, music sounds strong, and surround envelopment, while not overly aggressive, is employed effectively throughout. Several jump scare moments come with a healthy dose of subwoofer rumble (more than I was expecting, actually), and the final moments of classic Halloween score are appropriately satisfying. Again, nothing too incredible to report, but I think everyone will be happy with this audio presentation.
Halloween: Resurrection
I could essentially copy and paste my thoughts on H20’s audio into this space, and you’d get a good idea of how the DTS-HD MA 5.1 track sounds on Halloween: Resurrection. Surround activity gets a bit of a bump on this film compared to the last one, but otherwise, both tracks share a lot in common, doing their jobs without calling overt attention to their efforts. Anyone not already using this particular disc as a coaster should be more than happy with the presentation.
Rob Zombie’s Halloween
Being much newer productions (with nine years having passed between H20 and this entry) and with updated sound design techniques, Rob Zombie’s films were just naturally going to sound a bit stronger than the earlier films in the series. The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track presented here (again, the same one as on the old blu-ray release) is more than up to the task of rattling your windows when it gets going. I did find this track to be a bit loud and unpleasant at times, although this problem could just as easily be attributable to Zombie’s filmmaking style or the in-your-face nature of the accompanying visuals rather than being some fault with the audio itself.
Rob Zombie’s Halloween II
To be perfectly honest, I’m running out of ways to say “this is a good track that does its job adequately”, but such is the story once again with the DTS-HD MA 5.1 track we get here. Again, we have an audio track that benefits somewhat from a newer production, lending terrific aural ambience and atmosphere to a film otherwise artistically devoid of both. Put to it, I’d probably award a 4.0 rating to every audio track in the collection, with a possible honorary 4.5 awarded to the original Halloween simply for getting its audio tracks 100% correct for once, and another 4.5 for Rob Zombie’s Halloween II, simply by virtue of a subtly wider and more immersive sound stage. And while those are respectable scores, they’re rather difficult ones to consistently review on a film-by-film basis.
Supplements: What are the extras?
Disc 1
We get one extra commentary track on this new edition of Halloween, featuring Dean Cundey and editor and production designer Tommy Lee Wallace. It’s a good track that’s more laid back and reserved than the comparably jovial track provided by Carpenter and Curtis, but I personally prefer it for its more informative tone, and find it a worthy added incentive to replace the 2013 release.
Otherwise, this disc contains the same extras as the 2013 blu-ray, reviewed here: http://blurayauthorty.wpengine.com/blu-ray/halloween-35th-anniversary-edition-blu-ray/
Disc 2
This disc contains the same extras as the 2007 blu-ray, reviewed here: http://blurayauthorty.wpengine.com/blu-ray/halloween-blu-ray/
Disc 3
Scream Factory’s Halloween II sports an impressive collection of extras, including two audio commentaries (the first by Rick Rosenthal and Leo Rossi, and the second by Dick Warlock and Robert V. Galluzzo), an excellent 45-minute making-of documentary entitled “The Nightmare Isn’t Over!: The Making of Halloween II”, a Halloween II-centric episode of Horror’s Hallowed Grounds, eight minutes worth of deleted scenes, an alternate ending with optional commentary, the theatrical trailer, several TV spots and a photo gallery.
Disc 4
The only extra included with The Television Cut of Halloween II is the film’s script, which you’ll need a computer to read as a PDF file.
Disc 5
Halloween III’s extras are also surprisingly robust, containing two audio commentaries (one with Tommy Lee Wallace, Rob G. and Sean Clark and the other featuring Tom Atkins going it solo), a 33-minute making-of documentary called “Stand Alone: The Making of Halloween III: Season of the Witch”, a 20-minute episode of Horror’s Hallowed Grounds devoted to the locations of the film, a still gallery, TV spots and the theatrical trailer.
Disc 6
This disc contains the same extras as the 2012 blu-ray, reviewed here: http://blurayauthorty.wpengine.com/blu-ray/halloween-4-the-return-of-michael-myers-blu-ray/
Note: Anchor Bay was unable to secure the rights for a re-release of the discussion panel featurette which was included on the previous release, hence it does not appear on this new edition. Otherwise, the film presentation and extras content is identical.
Disc 7
This disc contains the same extras as the 2012 blu-ray, reviewed here: http://blurayauthorty.wpengine.com/blu-ray/halloween-5-the-revenge-of-michael-myers-blu-ray/
Disc 8
The extras for the theatrical version of Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers are pretty sparse. All we get is a still gallery, a few TV spots, and two theatrical trailers.
Disc 9
The Producer’s Cut, on the other hand, is filled to the brim with extra content. On this disc, you’ll get a terrific audio commentary by Daniel Farrands and Alan Howarth, a veritable treasure trove of featurettes totaling around an hour in all (including “Acting Scared: A Look at the Film’s Cast”, “The Shape of Things”, “Haddonfield’s Horrors”, “A Cursed Curse”, and “Full Circle”), seven minutes worth of alternate and deleted scenes that don’t appear in EITHER cut of the film, archival interviews, nearly a half-hour of additional behind-the-scenes footage, an interview with Danielle Harris entitled “Jamie’s Story”, a tribute to Donald Pleasance, the film’s original teaser trailer and an electronic press kit.
Disc 10
Halloween H20 gets a nice array of new content as well, which is sure to please the film’s many fans. First up, we get a newly-recorded audio commentary (with Sean Clark, Steve Miner and Jamie Lee Curtis), a terrific hour-long making-of documentary entitled “Blood is Thicker than Water: The Making of Halloween H20”, select scenes with John Ottman’s original score reinstated, some 45 minutes of vintage interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, a still gallery, a single TV spot and the theatrical trailer.
Disc 11
For Halloween: Resurrection, we get an ironically good assortment of extra content as well, including an audio commentary (featuring Rick Rosenthal and Robert A Feretti), 11 minutes of deleted and alternate scenes, a 40-minute so-called “Web Cam Special”, another 40 minutes of vintage interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, a head cam featurette (really?), a brief storyboard analysis, a set tour, a quick on-set interview with poor Jamie Lee Curtis trying to make her appearance in Resurrection seem meaningful, a still gallery, two TV spots and the theatrical trailer.
Disc 12
For Rob Zombie’s Halloween, extras include an audio commentary by the director, 35 minutes of deleted and alternate scenes, four featurettes (including “Re-Imagining Halloween”, “The Many Faces of Michael Myers”, “Meet the Cast” and “Casting Sessions”), Scout Taylor-Compton’s screen test and the theatrical trailer.
Disc 13
There’s only one extra on this disc, but it’s a big one: an incredibly detailed 4.5 hour (!) documentary on the film entitled “Michael Lives”. Suffice it to say that this contains absolutely everything anyone could conceivably ever want to know about this movie’s production. It’s engaging, in-depth, and truthfully, far more interesting and entertaining than the film is itself.
Disc 14
The 2009 version of Halloween II contains another audio commentary by Zombie, audition footage, a selection of deleted and alternate scenes, a blooper reel and make-up tests. There’s also a pretty eclectic assortment of stand-up routines and music videos included that have nothing to do with the film.
Disc 15
The set’s dedicated “Bonus Disc” features a wide variety of extra content that fans of this series will love delving into. First up is the Halloween: Extended Cut, which incorporates the television footage shot by Carpenter in 1981 back into the unedited theatrical version of the film. A few caveats here. While it’s great to see the TV footage inserted into the film seamlessly, the changes in color palette between the extra scenes and the 35th Anniversary transfer are rather jarring. In hindsight, the 2007 transfer might have been a better fit. Also, the only audio option on this version is a DTS-HD MA 5.1 track. This might be fine for some out there, but it leaves those who prefer the original mono audio still wishing for an ideal version of the Extended Cut. This version is also cobbled together rather sloppily. As someone with just a rudimentary background in film editing, I noticed several transitions that could have been timed more effectively, and one audio cue that wasn’t handled properly between cuts. Sad to say, but I was a bit let down by the presentation of this version of the film, so if this is why you’re buying the boxed set, know that it isn’t perfect. Next up we get a couple of new making-of documentaries produced by Scream Factory, one for Halloween 4 and another for Halloween 5. Both run around 45 minutes and are excellent. There’s also a trio of featurettes (“Halloween Unmasked 2000”, “The Making of Halloween 4: Final Cut” and “Inside Halloween 5”), an interview and still gallery for Halloween, an interview and radio spots for Halloween III, still galleries for both Halloween 4 and Halloween 5, five separate episode of Horror’s Hallowed Grounds which visit locations for the remaining films in the franchise not covered on the earlier discs, and an assortment of TV spots. While this set isn’t completely perfect, and much of the material is recycled from prior releases, there’s just too much here to dig into as a fan of this series not to overlook a few shortcomings and focus instead on the many positives. Add in some highly-attractive box and disc art to the mix and you’ve got one of the very best blu-ray releases of 2014. Highly recommended!
