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Halloween II (2009 film)
Encyclopedia
Halloween II is a 2009 American horror film written, directed, and produced by Rob Zombie
. The film is a sequel to Zombie's 2007 remake
of Halloween
(1978), and the second film in the rebooted Halloween film series
and the tenth Halloween film in total. Picking up where the 2007 remake ended, and then jumping ahead one year, Halloween II follows Laurie Strode
as she deals with the aftermath of the previous film's events, Dr. Loomis
who is trying to capitalize on those events by publishing a new book that chronicles everything that happened, and Michael Myers
as he continues his search for Laurie so that he can reunite with his sister. The film sees the return of lead cast members Malcolm McDowell
, Scout Taylor-Compton
, and Tyler Mane, who portray Dr. Loomis, Laurie Strode, and Michael Myers in the 2007 film, respectively.
The sequel was first announced at the 30 Years of Terror Convention, which was held in 2008. Shortly after the release of the 2007 remake, Zombie expressed that he was not going to make another Halloween film. After more than a year of unsuccessful attempts to draft a script for a sequel, Bob
and Harvey Weinstein
, and Malek Akkad secured a contract for Zombie, who had a renewed interest in the film, to write and direct. For Halloween II, Zombie decided to focus more on the connection between Laurie and Michael, and the idea they share similar psychological problems. Zombie wanted the sequel to be more realistic and violent than its 2007 predecessor. For the characters of Halloween II, it is about change. Zombie wanted to look at how the events of the first film affected the characters. Zombie also wanted to show the connection between Laurie and Michael, and provide a glimpse into each character's psyche. Filming primarily took place in Georgia, which provided Zombie with a tax incentive as well as the visual look the director was going for with the film. When it came time to provide a musical score, Zombie had trouble finding a place to include John Carpenter
's original Halloween theme music. Although Carpenter's theme was used throughout Zombie's 2007 film, the theme was only included in the final shot of this film.
Halloween II was officially released on August 28, 2009 in North America
, and was met with a negative reception from critics. On October 30, 2009 it was re-released in North America to coincide with the Halloween
holiday weekend. The original opening of the film grossed less than the 2007 remake, with approximately $7 million. The film would go on to earn $33,392,973 in North America, and $5,925,616 in foreign countries giving Halloween II a worldwide total of $39,318,589. The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray, with a theatrical version and director's cut of the film offered.
(Chase Wright Vanek), at Smith's Grove Sanitarium. Deborah gives Michael a white horse statuette as a gift. Michael says that the horse reminds him of a dream he had of Deborah's ghost, all dressed in white and leading a horse down the sanitarium halls toward Michael, telling him she was going to bring him home. Moving ahead fifteen years, after having shot an adult Michael (Tyler Mane), Laurie Strode
(Scout Taylor-Compton
) is found wandering around in a state of shock
, and covered in blood, by Sheriff Brackett (Brad Dourif
). Brackett takes Laurie to the emergency room. Meanwhile, the paramedics pick up the Sheriff's daughter Annie (Danielle Harris
) and Michael's psychiatrist Dr. Loomis
(Malcolm McDowell
), who are still alive after having been attacked by Michael, and take them to the hospital. Presumed dead, Michael's lifeless body is loaded into a separate ambulance. When the driver has a traffic accident, Michael awakens and escapes the ambulance, walking toward a vision of Deborah dressed in white and leading a white horse.
Michael appears at the hospital, and begins murdering everyone he comes across on his way to Laurie. Trapped in a security outpost at the gate, Laurie watches as Michael tears through the walls with an axe, but just as he tries to kill her, Laurie wakes up from the dream. It is actually one year later and Laurie is now living with the Bracketts. Michael's body has been missing since last Halloween—still presumed dead—and Laurie has been having recurring nightmares about the event. While Laurie deals with her trauma through therapy, Loomis has chosen to turn the event into an opportunity to write another book. Meanwhile, Michael has been having visions of Deborah's ghost and a younger version of himself, who instructs him that with Halloween approaching it is time to bring Laurie home; so he sets off for Haddonfield.
As Michael travels to Haddonfield, Laurie begins having hallucinations that mirror Michael's, which involve a ghostly image of Deborah and a young Michael in a clown costume. In addition, her hallucinations also begin to include her acting out Michael's murders, like envisioning herself taping Annie to a chair and slitting her throat while dressed in a clown outfit—similar to how a young Michael murdered Ronnie White. While Laurie struggles with her dreams, Loomis has been going on tour to promote his new book, only to be greeted with criticism from people who blame him for Michael's actions and for exploiting the deaths of Michael's victims. When his book is finally released, Laurie discovers the truth: that she is really Angel Myers, Michael's long lost sister. With the truth out, she decides to go partying with Mya (Brea Grant
) and Harley (Angela Trimbur) to escape how she is feeling. Michael appears at the party and kills Harley, then makes his way over to the Brackett house and stabs Annie repeatedly.
When Laurie and Mya arrive they find Annie bloodied and dying. Michael kills Mya and then comes after Laurie, who manages to escape the house. While Laurie manages to flag down a passing motorist, Sheriff Brackett arrives home and finds his daughter dead. Laurie gets into the motorist's car, but before they can escape Michael kills the driver and flips the car over with Laurie still in it. Michael takes the unconscious Laurie to an abandoned shed he has been camping out in. Laurie awakens to a vision of Deborah, and a young Michael, ordering her to say "I love you, mommy".
The police discover Michael's location and surround the shed. Loomis arrives and goes into the shed to try to reason Michael into letting Laurie go. Inside, he has to inform Laurie, who believes that the younger Michael is holding her down, that no one is restraining her and that she must maintain her sanity. Just then, Deborah instructs the older Michael that it is time to go home, and Michael grabs Loomis and kills him by slashing his face and stabbing him in the chest. Stepping in front of a window while holding Loomis's body, Michael is shot twice by Sheriff Brackett and falls into the spikes of some farming equipment. Apparently released of the visions, Laurie walks over and tells Michael she loves him, then she stabs him repeatedly in the chest and finally in the face. The shed door opens and Laurie walks out, wearing Michael's mask. As she pulls the mask off, the scene transitions to Laurie in isolation in a psychiatric ward, grinning as a vision of Deborah dressed in white stands with a white horse at the end of her room.
In 2008, at the 30 Years of Terror Convention, Halloween producer Malek Akkad confirmed that a sequel to Rob Zombie's 2007 film was in the works. French filmmakers Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Muary were in negotiations to direct the sequel in November 2008, but on December 15, 2008 Variety
reported that Rob Zombie had officially signed on to write and direct the Halloween sequel. In an interview, Zombie expressed how the exhaustion of creating the first Halloween made him not want to come back for a sequel, but after a year of cooling down he was more open to the idea. The writer/director explained that with the sequel he was no longer bound by a sense of needing to retain any "John Carpenter-ness", as he "felt free to do whatever". Producer Malek Akkad said the original intention, when they believed Zombie was not returning, was to create a "normal sequel". Akkad and his Trancus producing company hired various writers to come up with drafts for a new film, but none worked. Akkad and the Weinstein brothers then turned to Bustillo and Muary, whose film Inside
had recently been bought for distribution by the Weinstein Company. According to Akkad, the producers really wanted Zombie to return, as Akkad felt that there was something "lost in the translation" when the French filmmakers took over the project. After his work on the 2007 remake, Zombie had earned the trust of Akkad, who told him to ignore any rules they had set for him on the previous film. Akkad said that he wanted Zombie to move the franchise away from some of its established rules.
, who portrayed a young Michael Myers in the 2007 remake, was set to reprise his role for Halloween II. By the time production was getting started for the sequel Faerch had grown too big for the part. Zombie had to recast the role, much to his own dismay, because Faerch's physical maturity did not fit what was in the script. Although Faerch is not in the sequel, the first trailer for Halloween II contained images of Faerch. Zombie pointed out that those images were test shots done and were not intended to be in either the trailer or the film.
Taylor-Compton described her character as having "these bipolar moments", where her emotions are spontaneously changing from points of happiness to agitation. The actress stated that Zombie wanted to see Laurie Strode travel into "these really dark places". Taylor-Compton clarified that when the film starts Laurie is still not aware that Michael is her older brother, and as the film progresses more and more pieces of information are given to her and she does not know how to deal with them. The actress explained that the darkness brewing inside Laurie is manifested externally, generally through her physical appearance and the clothes she chooses to wear—Zombie characterized the look as "grungy".
Zombie further described Laurie as a "wreck", who continually sinks lower as the film moves forward. Even Sheriff Brackett goes through changes. Brackett, who receives more screen time in this film, allows Laurie to move in with him and his daughter after the events of the first film. Zombie explained, "He's old, he's worn out, he's just this beat-down guy with these two girls he can't deal with." Zombie characterized Loomis in the sequel as more of a "sellout", who exploits the memories of those who were killed by Michael in the 2007 film. Zombie explained that he tried to channel Vincent Bugliosi
, a lawyer who prosecuted Charles Manson
and then wrote a book about it, into Loomis's character for the sequel; noting that he wanted Loomis to seem more "ridiculous" this time. As for Michael Myers, the character is given almost an entirely new look for the film, which is being used, according to Taylor-Compton, to illustrate a new emotion for the character as he spends much of his time trying to hide himself. Zombie said that of all of the characters that return in the sequel, Michael is the only one that does not change: "All the other characters are very different. Laurie; Loomis; they're having all kinds of problems in their life, but Michael just moves along. Michael is no different; he's exactly the same as he was ten years old and he killed everybody [...] He has no concept of the world around him, so he can never be affected by it."
" appearing the most prominently. Zombie chose songs that he liked, and that would enhance a given scene within the film. An official soundtrack for the film was released on August 25, 2009. In addition, an album featuring the music of psychobilly
band Captain Clegg and the Night Creatures was released in conjunction with Halloween II on August 28, 2009. Captain Clegg and the Night Creatures is a fictional band that appears in Halloween II. Nan Vernon
, who recorded a new version of the song "Mr. Sandman
" for the end credits of the 2007 remake, recorded a cover of "Love Hurts
".
released Halloween II in North America on August 28, 2009 to 3,025 theaters. Following that, the film was released in the United Kingdom on October 9, 2009. Dimension re-released Halloween II in North America on October 30, 2009 to coincide with the Halloween
holiday, across 1,083 theaters. The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on January 12, 2010; the theatrical cut and an unrated director's cut, which Zombie says is "very different from the theatrical version," are available.
($11,642,254), Halloween III: Season of the Witch
($14,400,000), and Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
($15,116,634), in unadjusted dollars. The film dropped 64.9% in its second weekend, only grossing $5,745,206 and slipping from third to sixth place. Grossing just $2,114,486 in its third weekend, Halloween II dropped out of the box office top ten to fourteenth place. The re-release of the film was intended to take advantage of the Halloween holiday, but the film only brought in approximately $475,000. By the end of his theatrical run, Halloween II grossed a total of $33,392,973 in North America, and an additional $5,925,616 overseas for a worldwide total of $39,318,589. Compared to the other Halloween films, the 2009 sequel sits in fourth place, just behind the original Halloween.
, Halloween II has an overall 20% approval rating from critics, with an average
score of 3.7 out of 10. By comparison, Metacritic
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average score of 46, based on 15 reviews. Rob Nelson, of Variety
, felt the use of Deborah and the white horse was nothing more than "silly", and he disagreed with Zombie's choice to film Halloween II in 16mm film, as opposed to wider format of 35mm that he used on his 2007 remake. Nelson also stated that the hospital scene was nothing more than a "butcher"-version of Carpenter's 1981 sequel, with the rest of the film feeling like it was rushed and "slapped together" at the last minute. In contrast, Time Out believed the hospital scene at the start of the film "[bested the 1981 sequel] in just about every respect". Time Out stated that Compton's portrayal of Laurie Strode showed an "intense, nontrivializing dedication to the role" that kept interest, while the storyline of Dr. Loomis's egocentricity hinders the overall storyline. Time Out also said that Zombie hurt the film by trying to show how "violence lingers with, and perverts, all who are touched by it", but then undercutting himself with "carnivalesque" violence. Although the New York Post
' s Kyle Smith did not believe the character of Laurie Strode was a balance for Michael Myers or Dr. Loomis, he agreed the ghostly images of Deborah Myers were a "relief from the blood-streaked brutality" of Michael's murders.
The Boston Globe
's Tom Russo had varied reactions to the film. Russo pointed out that Zombie attempted to be more inventive with Halloween II, but only achieved mixed results for his efforts. Russo referred to the dream sequences of Deborah Myers and the white horse as "pretentiously silly", but agreed that the scenes did help to break up the standard genre violence and even went so far as to compare the sensation created by those scenes to "Tim Burton
doing straight horror". In the end, Russo claimed that "only the most hardcore fans" would want the film series to continue. Joe Neumaier, of the Daily News, stated that Zombie has found himself with Halloween II. Neumaier describes the film as a successful "'character-based' monster-flick". Zombie's use of music from the 1970s, like The Moody Blues
' "Nights in White Satin
" and 10cc
's "The Things We Do For Love", is "terrifically odd" throughout the film. Neumaier also said that the imagery of Deborah Myers and the "ethereal white horse" were a "nice visual relief" from Michael's violent attacks.
Rob Zombie
Rob Zombie is an American musician, film director, screenwriter and film producer. He founded the heavy metal band White Zombie and has been nominated three times as a solo artist for the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance.Zombie has also established a career as a film director, creating the...
. The film is a sequel to Zombie's 2007 remake
Halloween (2007 film)
Halloween is a 2007 American slasher film written, directed, and produced by Rob Zombie. The film is a remake/reimagining of the 1978 horror film of the same name, the first in the rebooted Halloween film series and the ninth Halloween film in total. The film stars Tyler Mane as the adult Michael...
of Halloween
Halloween (1978 film)
Halloween is a 1978 American independent horror film directed, produced, and scored by John Carpenter, co-written with Debra Hill, and starring Donald Pleasence and Jamie Lee Curtis in her film debut and the first installment in the Halloween franchise. The film is set in the fictional midwestern...
(1978), and the second film in the rebooted Halloween film series
Halloween (franchise)
Halloween is an American horror franchise that consists of ten slasher films, novels, and comic books. The franchise focuses on the fictional character of Michael Myers who was committed to a sanitarium as a child for the murder of his older sister, Judith Myers...
and the tenth Halloween film in total. Picking up where the 2007 remake ended, and then jumping ahead one year, Halloween II follows Laurie Strode
Laurie Strode
Laurie Strode is a fictional character in the Halloween horror film series, portrayed by actresses Jamie Lee Curtis and Scout Taylor-Compton. She appears in six of the present ten Halloween installments, first appearing in John Carpenter's original 1978 film...
as she deals with the aftermath of the previous film's events, Dr. Loomis
Samuel Loomis
Samuel Loomis was a Connecticut furniture maker and the most celebrated maker of Colchester/Norwich style furniture.-External links:* ]]* ]]...
who is trying to capitalize on those events by publishing a new book that chronicles everything that happened, and Michael Myers
Michael Myers (Halloween)
Michael Myers is a fictional character from the Halloween series of slasher films. He first appears in John Carpenter's Halloween as a young boy who murders his older sister, then fifteen years later returns home to murder more teenagers...
as he continues his search for Laurie so that he can reunite with his sister. The film sees the return of lead cast members Malcolm McDowell
Malcolm McDowell
Malcolm McDowell is an English actor with a career spanning over forty years.McDowell is principally known for his roles in the controversial films If...., O Lucky Man!, A Clockwork Orange and Caligula...
, Scout Taylor-Compton
Scout Taylor-Compton
Scout Taylor-Compton is an American actress and singer. She has appeared in numerous small television roles and in feature films that range from dramas to those in the horror genre....
, and Tyler Mane, who portray Dr. Loomis, Laurie Strode, and Michael Myers in the 2007 film, respectively.
The sequel was first announced at the 30 Years of Terror Convention, which was held in 2008. Shortly after the release of the 2007 remake, Zombie expressed that he was not going to make another Halloween film. After more than a year of unsuccessful attempts to draft a script for a sequel, Bob
Bob Weinstein
Robert "Bob" Weinstein is an American film and theatre producer, the founder and head of Dimension Films, former co-chairman of Miramax Films, and current head, with his brother Harvey Weinstein, of The Weinstein Company.-Career:...
and Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein, CBE is an American film producer and movie studio chairman. He is best known as co-founder of Miramax Films. He and his brother Bob have been co-chairmen of The Weinstein Company, their film production company, since 2005...
, and Malek Akkad secured a contract for Zombie, who had a renewed interest in the film, to write and direct. For Halloween II, Zombie decided to focus more on the connection between Laurie and Michael, and the idea they share similar psychological problems. Zombie wanted the sequel to be more realistic and violent than its 2007 predecessor. For the characters of Halloween II, it is about change. Zombie wanted to look at how the events of the first film affected the characters. Zombie also wanted to show the connection between Laurie and Michael, and provide a glimpse into each character's psyche. Filming primarily took place in Georgia, which provided Zombie with a tax incentive as well as the visual look the director was going for with the film. When it came time to provide a musical score, Zombie had trouble finding a place to include John Carpenter
John Carpenter
John Howard Carpenter is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, editor, composer, and occasional actor. Although Carpenter has worked in numerous film genres in his four-decade career, his name is most commonly associated with horror and science fiction.- Early life :Carpenter was born...
's original Halloween theme music. Although Carpenter's theme was used throughout Zombie's 2007 film, the theme was only included in the final shot of this film.
Halloween II was officially released on August 28, 2009 in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, and was met with a negative reception from critics. On October 30, 2009 it was re-released in North America to coincide with the Halloween
Halloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
holiday weekend. The original opening of the film grossed less than the 2007 remake, with approximately $7 million. The film would go on to earn $33,392,973 in North America, and $5,925,616 in foreign countries giving Halloween II a worldwide total of $39,318,589. The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray, with a theatrical version and director's cut of the film offered.
Plot
In a short flashback, Deborah Myers (Sheri Moon Zombie) visits her son, a young Michael MyersMichael Myers (Halloween)
Michael Myers is a fictional character from the Halloween series of slasher films. He first appears in John Carpenter's Halloween as a young boy who murders his older sister, then fifteen years later returns home to murder more teenagers...
(Chase Wright Vanek), at Smith's Grove Sanitarium. Deborah gives Michael a white horse statuette as a gift. Michael says that the horse reminds him of a dream he had of Deborah's ghost, all dressed in white and leading a horse down the sanitarium halls toward Michael, telling him she was going to bring him home. Moving ahead fifteen years, after having shot an adult Michael (Tyler Mane), Laurie Strode
Laurie Strode
Laurie Strode is a fictional character in the Halloween horror film series, portrayed by actresses Jamie Lee Curtis and Scout Taylor-Compton. She appears in six of the present ten Halloween installments, first appearing in John Carpenter's original 1978 film...
(Scout Taylor-Compton
Scout Taylor-Compton
Scout Taylor-Compton is an American actress and singer. She has appeared in numerous small television roles and in feature films that range from dramas to those in the horror genre....
) is found wandering around in a state of shock
Acute stress reaction
Acute stress reaction is a psychological condition arising in response to a terrifying or traumatic event...
, and covered in blood, by Sheriff Brackett (Brad Dourif
Brad Dourif
Bradford Claude "Brad" Dourif is an American film and television actor who gained early fame for his portrayal of Billy Bibbit in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and has since appeared in a number of memorable roles, including the voice of Chucky in the Child's Play franchise, Younger Brother in...
). Brackett takes Laurie to the emergency room. Meanwhile, the paramedics pick up the Sheriff's daughter Annie (Danielle Harris
Danielle Harris
Danielle Andrea Harris is an American film and television actress, best known as a scream queen for her roles in several horror films, four of them in the Halloween series: in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers and Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers as Jamie Lloyd and in Halloween and...
) and Michael's psychiatrist Dr. Loomis
Samuel Loomis
Samuel Loomis was a Connecticut furniture maker and the most celebrated maker of Colchester/Norwich style furniture.-External links:* ]]* ]]...
(Malcolm McDowell
Malcolm McDowell
Malcolm McDowell is an English actor with a career spanning over forty years.McDowell is principally known for his roles in the controversial films If...., O Lucky Man!, A Clockwork Orange and Caligula...
), who are still alive after having been attacked by Michael, and take them to the hospital. Presumed dead, Michael's lifeless body is loaded into a separate ambulance. When the driver has a traffic accident, Michael awakens and escapes the ambulance, walking toward a vision of Deborah dressed in white and leading a white horse.
Michael appears at the hospital, and begins murdering everyone he comes across on his way to Laurie. Trapped in a security outpost at the gate, Laurie watches as Michael tears through the walls with an axe, but just as he tries to kill her, Laurie wakes up from the dream. It is actually one year later and Laurie is now living with the Bracketts. Michael's body has been missing since last Halloween—still presumed dead—and Laurie has been having recurring nightmares about the event. While Laurie deals with her trauma through therapy, Loomis has chosen to turn the event into an opportunity to write another book. Meanwhile, Michael has been having visions of Deborah's ghost and a younger version of himself, who instructs him that with Halloween approaching it is time to bring Laurie home; so he sets off for Haddonfield.
As Michael travels to Haddonfield, Laurie begins having hallucinations that mirror Michael's, which involve a ghostly image of Deborah and a young Michael in a clown costume. In addition, her hallucinations also begin to include her acting out Michael's murders, like envisioning herself taping Annie to a chair and slitting her throat while dressed in a clown outfit—similar to how a young Michael murdered Ronnie White. While Laurie struggles with her dreams, Loomis has been going on tour to promote his new book, only to be greeted with criticism from people who blame him for Michael's actions and for exploiting the deaths of Michael's victims. When his book is finally released, Laurie discovers the truth: that she is really Angel Myers, Michael's long lost sister. With the truth out, she decides to go partying with Mya (Brea Grant
Brea Grant
Brea Colleen Grant is an American actress and writer who is best known for playing Daphne Millbrook in the NBC television series Heroes...
) and Harley (Angela Trimbur) to escape how she is feeling. Michael appears at the party and kills Harley, then makes his way over to the Brackett house and stabs Annie repeatedly.
When Laurie and Mya arrive they find Annie bloodied and dying. Michael kills Mya and then comes after Laurie, who manages to escape the house. While Laurie manages to flag down a passing motorist, Sheriff Brackett arrives home and finds his daughter dead. Laurie gets into the motorist's car, but before they can escape Michael kills the driver and flips the car over with Laurie still in it. Michael takes the unconscious Laurie to an abandoned shed he has been camping out in. Laurie awakens to a vision of Deborah, and a young Michael, ordering her to say "I love you, mommy".
The police discover Michael's location and surround the shed. Loomis arrives and goes into the shed to try to reason Michael into letting Laurie go. Inside, he has to inform Laurie, who believes that the younger Michael is holding her down, that no one is restraining her and that she must maintain her sanity. Just then, Deborah instructs the older Michael that it is time to go home, and Michael grabs Loomis and kills him by slashing his face and stabbing him in the chest. Stepping in front of a window while holding Loomis's body, Michael is shot twice by Sheriff Brackett and falls into the spikes of some farming equipment. Apparently released of the visions, Laurie walks over and tells Michael she loves him, then she stabs him repeatedly in the chest and finally in the face. The shed door opens and Laurie walks out, wearing Michael's mask. As she pulls the mask off, the scene transitions to Laurie in isolation in a psychiatric ward, grinning as a vision of Deborah dressed in white stands with a white horse at the end of her room.
Development
| "'Don't feel hindered by any of the rules we've had in the past. I want this to be your vision and I want you to express that vision." |
| — Producer Malek Akkad speaking to writer/director Rob Zombie. |
In 2008, at the 30 Years of Terror Convention, Halloween producer Malek Akkad confirmed that a sequel to Rob Zombie's 2007 film was in the works. French filmmakers Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Muary were in negotiations to direct the sequel in November 2008, but on December 15, 2008 Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
reported that Rob Zombie had officially signed on to write and direct the Halloween sequel. In an interview, Zombie expressed how the exhaustion of creating the first Halloween made him not want to come back for a sequel, but after a year of cooling down he was more open to the idea. The writer/director explained that with the sequel he was no longer bound by a sense of needing to retain any "John Carpenter-ness", as he "felt free to do whatever". Producer Malek Akkad said the original intention, when they believed Zombie was not returning, was to create a "normal sequel". Akkad and his Trancus producing company hired various writers to come up with drafts for a new film, but none worked. Akkad and the Weinstein brothers then turned to Bustillo and Muary, whose film Inside
Inside (2007 film)
Inside is a 2007 French horror film directed by Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo, starring Alysson Paradis and Béatrice Dalle. It was written by co-director Alexandre Bustillo, and is the first film from either director...
had recently been bought for distribution by the Weinstein Company. According to Akkad, the producers really wanted Zombie to return, as Akkad felt that there was something "lost in the translation" when the French filmmakers took over the project. After his work on the 2007 remake, Zombie had earned the trust of Akkad, who told him to ignore any rules they had set for him on the previous film. Akkad said that he wanted Zombie to move the franchise away from some of its established rules.
Characters
For the sequel, Tyler Mane, Malcolm McDowell, Scout Taylor-Compton, Danielle Harris, Sheri Moon Zombie, and Brad Dourif returned to the roles of Michael Myers, Dr. Loomis, Laurie Strode, Annie Brackett, Deborah Myers, and Sheriff Brackett, respectively. Daeg FaerchDaeg Faerch
Daeg Faerch is a Danish-Canadian actor. His credits include a comedic role in Peter Berg's Hancock and, most notably, in the horror remake Halloween...
, who portrayed a young Michael Myers in the 2007 remake, was set to reprise his role for Halloween II. By the time production was getting started for the sequel Faerch had grown too big for the part. Zombie had to recast the role, much to his own dismay, because Faerch's physical maturity did not fit what was in the script. Although Faerch is not in the sequel, the first trailer for Halloween II contained images of Faerch. Zombie pointed out that those images were test shots done and were not intended to be in either the trailer or the film.
| "As Laurie is Michael's sister, I'm playing it like he's clearly insane and so is she, but her insanity doesn't manifest itself in the same way... She's slipping into insanity throughout the whole movie." |
| — Zombie describing Laurie's psychological state. |
Taylor-Compton described her character as having "these bipolar moments", where her emotions are spontaneously changing from points of happiness to agitation. The actress stated that Zombie wanted to see Laurie Strode travel into "these really dark places". Taylor-Compton clarified that when the film starts Laurie is still not aware that Michael is her older brother, and as the film progresses more and more pieces of information are given to her and she does not know how to deal with them. The actress explained that the darkness brewing inside Laurie is manifested externally, generally through her physical appearance and the clothes she chooses to wear—Zombie characterized the look as "grungy".
Zombie further described Laurie as a "wreck", who continually sinks lower as the film moves forward. Even Sheriff Brackett goes through changes. Brackett, who receives more screen time in this film, allows Laurie to move in with him and his daughter after the events of the first film. Zombie explained, "He's old, he's worn out, he's just this beat-down guy with these two girls he can't deal with." Zombie characterized Loomis in the sequel as more of a "sellout", who exploits the memories of those who were killed by Michael in the 2007 film. Zombie explained that he tried to channel Vincent Bugliosi
Vincent Bugliosi
Vincent Bugliosi is an American attorney and author, best known for prosecuting Charles Manson and other defendants accused of the Tate-LaBianca murders. His most recent books are Reclaiming History: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy , The Prosecution of George W...
, a lawyer who prosecuted Charles Manson
Charles Manson
Charles Milles Manson is an American criminal who led what became known as the Manson Family, a quasi-commune that arose in California in the late 1960s. He was found guilty of conspiracy to commit the Tate/LaBianca murders carried out by members of the group at his instruction...
and then wrote a book about it, into Loomis's character for the sequel; noting that he wanted Loomis to seem more "ridiculous" this time. As for Michael Myers, the character is given almost an entirely new look for the film, which is being used, according to Taylor-Compton, to illustrate a new emotion for the character as he spends much of his time trying to hide himself. Zombie said that of all of the characters that return in the sequel, Michael is the only one that does not change: "All the other characters are very different. Laurie; Loomis; they're having all kinds of problems in their life, but Michael just moves along. Michael is no different; he's exactly the same as he was ten years old and he killed everybody [...] He has no concept of the world around him, so he can never be affected by it."
Filming
With a $15,000,000 budget, production began on February 23, 2009 in Atlanta, Georgia. Zombie acknowledged that filming in Georgia provided certain tax breaks for the company, but the real reason he chose that location was because the other locations he was planning to use were still experiencing snowy weather. For him, Georgia's landscapes and locations provided the look that he wanted for his film. During production, Zombie described the sequel as being "Ultra gritty, ultra intense and very real" and said that he was trying to create almost the exact opposite of what people would expect. Known for filming multiple sequences during production of his films, Zombie filmed an alternate ending to Halloween II. In the alternate ending, Loomis and Michael crash through the shed the police have surrounded, and out into the open air. As Loomis grasps at Michael's mask, and pleads for him to stop, Michael stabs him in the stomach, telling him to "Die!".Music
For the sequel, Zombie only used John Carpenter's original theme music in the final scene of the film, though the director admits that he and music composer Tyler Bates tried to find other places to include it. According to Zombie, Carpenter's music did not fit with what was happening in the film; whenever he or Bates would insert it into a scene it "just wouldn't feel right" to the director. Zombie also used popular culture songs throughout the film, with "Nights in White SatinNights in White Satin
"Nights in White Satin" is a 1967 single by The Moody Blues, written by Justin Hayward and first featured on the album Days of Future Passed.It is in the key of E minor Aeolian.-Single releases:...
" appearing the most prominently. Zombie chose songs that he liked, and that would enhance a given scene within the film. An official soundtrack for the film was released on August 25, 2009. In addition, an album featuring the music of psychobilly
Psychobilly
Psychobilly is a fusion genre of rock music that mixes elements of punk rock, rockabilly, and other genres. It is one of several subgenres of rockabilly which also include thrashabilly, trashabilly, punkabilly, surfabilly and gothabilly...
band Captain Clegg and the Night Creatures was released in conjunction with Halloween II on August 28, 2009. Captain Clegg and the Night Creatures is a fictional band that appears in Halloween II. Nan Vernon
Nan Vernon
Nan Vernon is a Canadian singer and actress". She is notable for providing the end credit music of both of Rob Zombie's Halloween films and for being part of the "singer-songwriter trend" of women nurturing folk music's rebirth.-Early career:The Eurythmic's Dave Stewart discovered Vernon...
, who recorded a new version of the song "Mr. Sandman
Mr. Sandman
"Mr. Sandman" is a popular song written by Pat Ballard which was published in 1954 and first recorded in that year by The Chordettes. The song's lyrics convey a request to "Mr...
" for the end credits of the 2007 remake, recorded a cover of "Love Hurts
Love Hurts
"Love Hurts" is the name of a song, written and composed by Boudleaux Bryant. First recorded by The Everly Brothers in July 1960, the song is also well known from a 1975 international hit version by the rock band Nazareth and in the UK by a top 5 hit in 1975 by Jim Capaldi.The song was introduced...
".
Release
Dimension FilmsDimension Films
Dimension Films is a motion picture unit currently a part of The Weinstein Company. It was formerly used as Bob Weinstein's label within Miramax Films, to produce and release genre films...
released Halloween II in North America on August 28, 2009 to 3,025 theaters. Following that, the film was released in the United Kingdom on October 9, 2009. Dimension re-released Halloween II in North America on October 30, 2009 to coincide with the Halloween
Halloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
holiday, across 1,083 theaters. The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on January 12, 2010; the theatrical cut and an unrated director's cut, which Zombie says is "very different from the theatrical version," are available.
Box office
On its opening day, the film grossed an estimated $7,640,000, which is less than the $10,896,610 Zombie's 2007 remake pulled in during the same weekend of August. By the end of its opening weekend, Halloween II had grossed $16,349,565. That weekend earned more than the entire box office performances of Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael MyersHalloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers is a 1989 American slasher film and the fifth installment in the Halloween film series. It was directed by Dominique Othenin-Girard and starred Donald Pleasence, who again portrayed Dr. Sam Loomis and Danielle Harris, who returned to play Jamie Lloyd...
($11,642,254), Halloween III: Season of the Witch
Halloween III: Season of the Witch
Halloween III: Season of the Witch is a 1982 science fiction horror film and the third installment in the Halloween film series. It is the only Halloween where the story does not revolve around Michael Myers. Directed and written by Tommy Lee Wallace, the film stars Tom Atkins as Dr. Dan Challis,...
($14,400,000), and Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers is a 1995 American horror film and the sixth installment in the Halloween series. Directed by Joe Chappelle from a screenplay by Daniel Farrands, the plot involves the "Curse of Thorn", a mystical symbol first shown in Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers...
($15,116,634), in unadjusted dollars. The film dropped 64.9% in its second weekend, only grossing $5,745,206 and slipping from third to sixth place. Grossing just $2,114,486 in its third weekend, Halloween II dropped out of the box office top ten to fourteenth place. The re-release of the film was intended to take advantage of the Halloween holiday, but the film only brought in approximately $475,000. By the end of his theatrical run, Halloween II grossed a total of $33,392,973 in North America, and an additional $5,925,616 overseas for a worldwide total of $39,318,589. Compared to the other Halloween films, the 2009 sequel sits in fourth place, just behind the original Halloween.
Critical reception
Based on 69 reviews collected by Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
, Halloween II has an overall 20% approval rating from critics, with an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 3.7 out of 10. By comparison, Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Normalization (statistics)
In one usage in statistics, normalization is the process of isolating statistical error in repeated measured data. A normalization is sometimes based on a property...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average score of 46, based on 15 reviews. Rob Nelson, of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
, felt the use of Deborah and the white horse was nothing more than "silly", and he disagreed with Zombie's choice to film Halloween II in 16mm film, as opposed to wider format of 35mm that he used on his 2007 remake. Nelson also stated that the hospital scene was nothing more than a "butcher"-version of Carpenter's 1981 sequel, with the rest of the film feeling like it was rushed and "slapped together" at the last minute. In contrast, Time Out believed the hospital scene at the start of the film "[bested the 1981 sequel] in just about every respect". Time Out stated that Compton's portrayal of Laurie Strode showed an "intense, nontrivializing dedication to the role" that kept interest, while the storyline of Dr. Loomis's egocentricity hinders the overall storyline. Time Out also said that Zombie hurt the film by trying to show how "violence lingers with, and perverts, all who are touched by it", but then undercutting himself with "carnivalesque" violence. Although the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
's Tom Russo had varied reactions to the film. Russo pointed out that Zombie attempted to be more inventive with Halloween II, but only achieved mixed results for his efforts. Russo referred to the dream sequences of Deborah Myers and the white horse as "pretentiously silly", but agreed that the scenes did help to break up the standard genre violence and even went so far as to compare the sensation created by those scenes to "Tim Burton
Tim Burton
Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
doing straight horror". In the end, Russo claimed that "only the most hardcore fans" would want the film series to continue. Joe Neumaier, of the Daily News, stated that Zombie has found himself with Halloween II. Neumaier describes the film as a successful "'character-based' monster-flick". Zombie's use of music from the 1970s, like The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues
The Moody Blues are an English rock band. Among their innovations was a fusion with classical music, most notably in their 1967 album Days of Future Passed....
' "Nights in White Satin
Nights in White Satin
"Nights in White Satin" is a 1967 single by The Moody Blues, written by Justin Hayward and first featured on the album Days of Future Passed.It is in the key of E minor Aeolian.-Single releases:...
" and 10cc
10cc
10cc are an English art rock band who achieved their greatest commercial success in the 1970s. The band initially consisted of four musicians -- Graham Gouldman, Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley, and Lol Creme -- who had written and recorded together for some three years, before assuming the "10cc" name...
's "The Things We Do For Love", is "terrifically odd" throughout the film. Neumaier also said that the imagery of Deborah Myers and the "ethereal white horse" were a "nice visual relief" from Michael's violent attacks.