Blu-ray Review: Halloween II (1981)

"One of the best Horror sequels of all-time."

(aka Later That Night...)
Release Date: October 30th, 1981.
Country: USA.
Rating: R.
Written by: John Carpenter and Debra Hill.
Directed by: Rick Rosenthal.
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Pleasance, Lance Guest, Leo Rossi, Ana Alicia, Charles Cyphers, and Dick Warlock as The Shape. 

Picking up immediately after Loomis empties his gun into Michael, who disappears into the night because he's super-human, Laurie Strode is taken to the local hospital, which is eerily understaffed and almost feels like it's deserted. This of course it he perfect scenario for Michael to track Laurie down with his evil GPS powers, so that he can finally kill her. But why? Why does he want to kill poor Laurie so badly?

YEP. HE'S STILL DRIVING.

While Michael begins hacking through the small hospital staff during his search for Laurie, Dr. Loomis is still hot on his trail. When he's ordered by the Governor's Office to head back to Smith's Grove, because someone's got to take the fall for the massacre that happened in the first movie, he says "To hell with that!' because he doesn't give a shit; he's going to stop Michael, once and for all!

REBEL.

Damn the critics and their "This sequel is nowhere near as good as the first one!" bullshit. Alright, it might not be as good as Carpenter's classic, but you know what, it's just about as good, and it makes for a perfect continuation of the first one. This sequel has way more blood & gore than the first one did; DP Dean Cundey is back on board for this one, so it looks the same in many ways; Dick Warlock did an awesome job playing The Shape; and it feels like a worthy continuation of the first movie, giving us a satisfying ending and all.

We also really like the... twist that explains Michael's true motivation.

THAT PUMPKIN IS UP TO NO GOOD,

The part where Jimmy slips on the blood on the floor, hits his head, and then wanders to the car and either dies or passes out is never really resolved, and that pisses us off. It's like they forgot about him. *There is an alternate ending that was shot for TV that shows Jimmy being loaded into the ambulance with Laurie at the end, but not in the theatrical cut.

BEN TRAMER. JIMMY. THE MEN WHO LOVE LAURIE SURE DON'T HAVE MUCH LUCK IN THIS MOVIE.

Jamie Lee Curtis doesn't do much in this movie other than look and sound scared, at least until towards the end. It just felt like they didn't do her character the justice that they should have.

ALWAYS THE VICTIM!

Compared to the first movie, this one is a gorefest. The kills are way more creative and visceral this time out, with Michael using a hot tub, needle, and even draining a victim of all of their blood to accomplish his grisly checklist of death. The eye bit at then end was classically fantastic too.

I SUPPOSE THIS PIC IS A SPOILER, BUT LISTEN, THE MOVIE IS 35 YEARS OLD. YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN IT BY NOW.

A wonderful hot tub scene where Pamela Susan Shoop shows us her goods, and a brief shot of man-ass. That's it.

SHE MAY NOT GET NAKED IN THIS ONE, BUT JILL IS OUR FAVORITE QT BY FAR.

Scream Factory has taken the print used by Universal back in 2011 for its 30th Anniversary Edition disc, cleaned it up and made it better, getting rid of the blemishes and imperfections that plagued the already solid transfer. On the audio front, Scream has included a crisp 7.1 lossless audio track, along with DTS 5.1 and 2.0 tracks, depending on your tastes.

Special Features:

The TV Cut is a fun watch, and is probably the best supplement in this set.

• Audio Commentaries with Rick Rosenthal and actor Leo Rossi, and Dick Warlock.
• The Nightmare Isn't Over!: The Making of Halloween II.
• Halloween II: The Television Cut.
• Halloween II Film Script.
• Horror's Hallowed Grounds: The Locations of Halloween II.
• Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary.
• Alternate Ending.
• Theatrical Trailer and TV & Radio Spots.
• Stills Gallery.

COME ON, LOOMIS! FIGURE IT OUT, MAN!

A superb sequel in every way, Halloween II comes close to being as good as the original, but it's kind of hard to attain that level of perfection twice, especially with a different director on-board, you know? This Scream Factory Blu-ray is an excellent addition to any Horror fan's library, and it makes for a perfect bookend to the first movie.

Own it, if you don't already.

B+

Halloween II is available now on Blu-ray, DVD, and VOD.

Jamie Lee, Tawny, Ana, and Pamela; 80's hot, all of them.

You can also check out Jamie Lee Curtis in her very own Horror Hottie post, right over HERE.
Or the Girls of the Halloween Series post over HERE.