Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers

Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers

Starring Donald Pleasence, Danielle Harris, Ellie Cornell, Beau Starr

Directed by Dominique Othenin-Girard

The Story:
One year after the police force shot Michael Myers into a mine shaft, young Jamie (Danielle Harris) is so traumatized by the event - as well as stabbing her foster mother - that she's gone mute and is hospitalized in a children's home.  Meanwhile, Michael was rescued by a recluse and has been kept in the man's living room in a coma state for a year.

On Halloween, Michael wakes up, and Jamie has a psychic bond with her Uncle.  She knows he's alive and coming for her, but she still can't speak, even though Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence) tries to get the information out of her.  Michael returns to Haddonfield and stalks Jamie's foster sister Rachel (Ellie Cornell) and her friends Tina (Wendy Kaplan), Mikey (Jonathan Chapin), Samantha (Tamara Glynn) and Spitz (Matthew Walker), while Jamie keeps a telepathic link to him, knowing his whereabouts.  Loomis believes Jamie can cure Michael of the hatred inside him, and sets a trap for him at his old house, using Jamie as bait - but can you really reform pure evil?

The Synopsis:
While "Halloween 5" isn't the worst in the series - in fact, it's somewhat enjoyable to rewatch - it's far from any of the previous outings.  Maybe it was hit with franchise fatigue, but it seems that the director had so many different ideas for the film, he never developed any of them fully - in fact, in interviews, even the cast said they had no idea which way the film was heading.  It was a jumbled mess, but French director Othenin-Girard did get some aspects right.

First of all, he made the story a direct continuation from the previous film, much like "Halloween II" did.  The film opens with Michael getting shot by the police as the end of the fourth, and we see how he managed to escape.  It maintained a sense of continuity that blended well together.

Second, he returned Michael to his traditional boogeyman status.  In the fourth film, Michael was dead center stage, looming larger than life, much like Jason did in the "Friday the 13th" series.  However, Michael was designed to be a background character - a Shape - that loomed in the distance and hid behind bushes and houses, just barely out of view.  That brought the most fear to the character: when the doors are locked, the windows are barred and the lights are out, he's somehow there.  He's that unrelenting evil, that creature under the bed, the killer in the closet. Here, he relentlessly stalks his victims before striking, hiding behind doors, trees and cars, in the background where you blink and you can miss him.  That makes him the most terrifying, and Othenin-Girard brings back that aspect of his character perfectly.

Third is the actors.  Even though Donald Pleasence looks about as tired with the franchise as anyone else, he still steams through his role with as much gusto as he can muster.  Young Danielle Harris steals the show as Jamie, who is now mute and has a psychic bond with her Uncle.  She gives a performance far beyond her years, and cemented her as one of the best younger female actresses in any horror film.  Even newcomer Wendy Kaplan does well as Tina, a wild child with a heart of gold who will protect Jamie at any cost, even though she's not related in any way, shape, or form.  

Now for the issues.  And there are several.

First, the Keystone Cop wannabes.  There's two cops in the film who serve as comedic relief, and even get their own "theme music" that accompanies them (sorta like a mix between a Barnem and Bailey Circus and Yakety Sax).  A film that's so tense and frightening as "Halloween" shouldn't have comedic relief, and these two cops are anything but funny.

Second, the Man in Black.  There's a mysterious man with steel-tipped shoes who menacingly walks around Haddonfield, and bares the same tattoo as Michael (which I never remember seeing on him before, but whatever).  We never know his true motives or intentions, or even who the heck he was.  This was something that even producer Moustapha Akkad revealed to be true: they had no idea where this concept would go.  They thought they'd make the man Michael's twin brother, or a shadow government agent, or another possibility that gets more flushed out in the next installment.  Either way, his presence is more a nuisance than anything else, and it would've been better without him.

Third is Michael's resurrection.  A hermit finds Michael after he's shot by the police, and takes him into his home.  For a year.  While Michael remained in a coma.  For a year.  Even a hermit must have friends who mentioned a serial killer in Haddonfield with a white mask, but it seemed like the man was unphased about having a comatose man in his living room for a year.  Maybe he needed a table.

Fourth - and most jarring - is Jamie's sudden inexplicable psychic bond with her Uncle.  How this happened?  I have no idea.  Yet she can feel when he wakes up, and can see through his eyes and knows where he's at - when it's convenient for the plot.  The first half of the film deals with her having this connection and using it to protect the people she loves, but after the halfway point this power seems to dissipate and disappear almost entirely, except one more time in the end to allow the writers to bring Michael to his home without the worrisome fact of dealing with a lot of policemen there.   It was a lazy after-effect that took you out of the film and it was just irritating. Especially when Loomis kept prodding Jamie to tell him where Michael was, but she seemed to be protecting him for some reason.  Again, a plot that never gets fully developed.

Ultimately, the bad edges out the good, and the result is a sequel that's subpar at best, and lazy at worst.

The Summary:
Even though Michael Myers returns to the shadows from whence he came - and thereby became a frightening figure again - the film was marred with nonsensical plot points, a mysterious figure that's never fully developed, and a tired addition to the "Halloween" franchise.

The Score: C-