Halloween III

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Horrorphile - October 2008

Halloween III: Season of the Witch

October 31st 2008 01:24

Sequels are peculiar things. John Carpenter and Debra Hill produced Halloween (1978) for little more than $US300, 000 and shot it in just one month. Within a year of its release it had made $60 million worldwide. Within a few more years it had become the most successful independent horror movie ever made. By the end of the 80s it was regarded by horrorphiles as one of the greatest modern horror movies of all time, and virtually untouchable (until Rob Zombie ruined its mantle).

Tom Atkins as Dan Challis

Halloween II (1981) was deeply flawed, but because the two charismatic leads (Donald Pleasance and Jamie Lee Cutris) returned to continue “more of the night He came home”, and co-writer/producers Carpenter and Hill continued with much of the same tone and atmosphere (including the masterful electronic score) the movie worked as a long dark shadow of its former self. Still it had nothing on the first movie.

Executive producers then decided to squeeze a little more pumpkin juice from the Halloween jack o’ lantern. Carpenter came up with the concept of a different themed Halloween movie for each year. Carpenter’s mate Tommy Lee Wallace, who had been production designer and editor on Halloween, and played a ghost in The Fog (1980), was handed the writing/directing reigns. Just prior to working on Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982) Wallace had penned Amityville II: The Possession (1982).

Dan O'Herlihy as Conal Cochran

Halloween III has a strange and fascinating premise, but that’s about it, apart from the menacing and rather excellent electronic score from Carpenter in collaboration with Alan Howarth (different from the first two movies, but uses a similar tone), and a great poster. The story of Halloween III has nothing whatsoever to do with psychopath Michael Myers and his sister Laurie. So tenuous is the link it’s damn annoying. The “Halloween” should’ve been dropped from the title, but executive producers wouldn’t have liked that one iota, considering how much money the first two movies made for them using that potent all-American concept (not to mention George A. Romero had already made a feature using the title Season of the Witch).

Halloween III Tom Atkins and Stacey Nelkin

Dan and Ellie (Stacey Nelkin) find time for a little nooky

I saw Halloween III when it first came out and once again several years later on VHS. I remember liking the idea of the demented mask-maker and his evil mission to destroy the world through the indulgence of Halloween. I also remember a few decent special effects make-up sequences. Unfortunately the cheap-ass Australian DVD release from Force Video is a heavily-cut version. All the major gore effects have been removed. Damn, while watching the movie after all this time (and realising how dreadful the movie is), I was looking forward to a few choice moments of special effects make-up creator Tom Burman’s handiwork (and perhaps a sneaky perve at Ellie (Stacey Nelkin)’s ample bosom during the totally unnecessary sex scene). I was deprived of both.

Robots in a line, always a dead giveaway

[Some curious trivia: Stacey Nelkin, who back in the late 70s/early 80s looked like a cross between a Barbie doll and a Gelfing from The Dark Crystal, not only had an affair with Woody Allen as a teenager (Mariel Hemmingway’s character in Manhattan is based on her), but was cast as Mary, the sixth replicant in Blade Runner, but due to the movie’s escalating budget her part was cut just prior to shooting.]

The Kupfler family watch the Silver Shamrock Halloween ad

The basics of Halloween III's plot goes like this: Conal Cochran (Dan O'Herlihy), the evil head of the Silver Shamrock Corporation has implanted computer chips, each containing a tiny piece of rock from a boulder stolen from Stonehenge, into three different types of Halloween mask: a witch, a jack o’ lantern and a skull. On Halloween night when the Silver Shamrock TV advertising jingle plays it’s nursery rhyme tune it will trigger the computer chip to release all manner of supernatural nastiness and mass death for all who are wearing the masks. Only concerned doctor Daniel Challis (Tom Atkins) and young Ellie can save the day!

This image was cut from the Region 4 DVD I purchased. Not happy Jan!

Nearly everything about Halloween III is hilariously bad; but especially the acting and dialogue, not to mention the haircuts and wardrobe. What’s with that blue hanky hanging out the back pocket of Tom Atkins slacks?! He does eventually use it twice, once to dab at his nose when he encounters a bad smell, and later to wipe robot goo off his hand. I almost expected him to pocket the hanky again, just so his look wouldn’t be compromised! As for his hair, and the hair of annoying fat idiot Buddy Kupfler (Ralph Strait), they both look like wigs!

Wendy Wessberg in an Oscar-worthy performance as chair-bound Teddy

There’s a scene in a diner where Challis is watching an inane childrens' TV show. He asks the barman to change channels and we get to see the end of a trailer for Halloween describing it as “the immortal classic”. I’m sure if the movie had been an actor, they’d have felt sullied after appearing in this piece of tripe. Ha!

The movie's best shot - from DOP Dean Cundey - used for the poster

The last ten minutes of the movie appear to be an outright comedy as Challis escapes the Silver Shamrock factory having rescued Ellie and set the giant building alight (a dire optical special effect!). Ellie turns out to be a robot (wow, how novel, no wonder she screwed the thoroughly unattractive Atkins, she was programmed too!!), and tries to kill Challis, but the car crashes and Ellie’s arm is torn off. Challis knocks her head off too, but the severed robot arm attacks Challis and tries to strangle him, whilst the decapitated robot head's eyes swivel and watch from the ground.

More of the creepy-crawlie stuff please

Finally Challis makes a phone call to authorities to try and prevent the TV ad from airing, but it’s in vain. The doom-laden end is a failed attempt to add further "wickedness" to the movie. A curious note is that the bulk of the movie takes place in Santa Mira, where Invasion of the Body Snatchers is set. It seems Santa Mira is rather apocalyptic town, and probably one to steer clear of.

One of the movie's more expensive shots

So the movie finishes as Halloween begins, bridging the way for Dr. Loomis to spend the next 24 hours in pursuit of the boogeyman. Halloween III: Season of the Witch performed poorly at the box office, but executive producers weren’t done yet. They returned to Michael Myers and made five more sequels. All of which are dreadful, dreadful, dreadful!

Poor Ellie ... Stacey's body double fills the denim nicely though, ahem!

Do yourself a favour this weekend and watch the original Halloween. It’s like a fine whiskey; it just gets better and better with age, unless you’re a glutton for punishment, in which case watch Halloween III, or any of the sequels that followed. Or better still; Rob Zombie’s version … yeah, that’ll sting.

Wow, I wish the movie had been as good as this original teaser trailer:

One of several gore sequences cut from the Region 4 DVD release:

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Posted By: Bryn - Category: movie reviews

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Comments

3 Comments. [ Add A Comment ]

Comment by Damo

October 31st 2008 02:11

For the Sake of Argument
My Apologetics

Bryn

I cought the end of this movie on TV years ago and...

I hated it.
The writers must have made it as a bet. How crappy can we make a franchise before we lose money.

Comment by Bryn

October 31st 2008 02:22

Horrorphile

Yeah, I bought the DVD at a sale for $5. I was ripped off.
Great teaser trailer though. And I've always like the poster image of the childrens' silhouettes in costume stretched anamorphically. I forgot to mention in my review that the guy who wrote the original story was so appalled by the movie he demanded his name be removed.

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