HALLOWEEN V: The Revenge of Michael Myers
After what the studio considered a massive success with Halloween 4, producer Moustapha Akkad rushed a fifth installment into production. Writers were called in to pitch, but no one had anything good to offer after Halloween 4’s shock ending. Enter French-Swiss filmmaker Dominique Othenin-Girard. Girard pitched and pleaded with Akkad, who responded, “who do you think you are?” Othenin-Girard ushered in his friend and writing partner, Michael Jacobs, who helped complete the pitch, and Akkad again replied, “who DO you think you ARE, Dominique?”
It wasn’t long after that when Othenin-Girard was contacted to inform him that he got the job. For some reason, Akkad saw something in Dominique that many fans still don’t understand. Nevertheless, Othenin-Girard and Jacobs took the original script by Shem Bitterman and rewrote it to offer up a confusing, muddled script that created a tension filled set due to the fact that it was filmed before it was perfected and a number of suspenseful scenes were dumbed down to nearly nothing. Mass tensions arose on the set due to a large number of script changes from the middle of the shoot forward, in addition to a number of dangerous shots, which actors claim they would never do again. In fact, a certain actor was injured at least twice during the production run.
The film was released on October 13, 1989 to #2 at the box office with a very small profit, and nearly no critical approval. At the end of its theatrical run, Halloween 5 was, and remains, the least profitable Halloween film. The producers quickly felt that the film came out too soon, and the fanbase was divided on the entry. This rift caused a nice 6 year gap until the next sequel was released, with its own set of issues. Being the least profitable entry, was the film able to carry over the momentum from Halloween 4 and simply overlooked, or did it fall completely flat? Let’s take a look.
The Shape, plus his scythe.
The Shape lurks as Loomis raves.
The mysterious Man in Black
The incredible laundry chute sequence
"Die, Michael, DIE!!!”
RATINGS
Story - 85
Because Hell would not have him, Michael Myers survived the mine explosion thought to have killed him. One year later, his traumatized young niece Jamie is horrified to discover she has a telepathic bond with her evil Uncle… and that Uncle Michael is on his way back to Haddonfield. But Dr. Loomis has a new plan to destroy the Boogeyman in his childhood home using Jamie as bait.
Atmosphere - 70
Halloween 5 looks nothing like a Halloween film. Rather, it looks like a typical late 80’s slasher film. Its day scenes are held in bright sunny daylight with green grass and green leaves in the trees. Strike 1. Its night scenes have no sense of color shading whatsoever, and are completely drowned in the black of night. Strike 2. Also, Haddonfield no long looks like the small, anywhere in the States town that it did before. At some points it feels like a very small city. And lastly, Michael Myers’ house is not the small typical house it was. This time, it’s magically transformed into Dracula’s castle, complete with a massive basement, and a massive attic. It all looks completely out of place.
Acting/Characters - 65
Oh man, what a disaster this should be. Halloween 5 is littered with a number of teen characters, most of which are Rachel’s ‘friends’. How she could be friends with some of these idiots is FAR beyond me. First, there’s Tina, portrayed by Wendy Kaplan. Neither of the two seem to know when to shut their mouths. Tina seriously never shuts up. She bounces around on screen delivering line after line progressively worse and worse. Someone get this girl a Ritalin. Next is her friend Sam, played by Tamara Glynn. Tamara delivers one of the only likeable characters in the film because she’s quiet, delivers her lines fairly, and simply put, doesn’t act like a mental patient at all times. She’s quite the beauty, as well… one that was criminally underutilized. If I'm to be perfectly honest, Glynn delivered the only NEW character in the film that I like. Period. She just seems like a real human being. Tina's character was too nuts for a teen in the 80's. If a kid acted like that now, it's fine ... but back then, they would have been locked in a padded room. On the contrary, Tamara did a fantastic job with what she was given. I've seen the script, and she wasn't given much. Somehow, some way, that blonde girl breathed a hell of a lot of life into that character, and it shows on screen. In addition, any late teen boys that viewed Halloween 5 were helped to a second puberty thanks to Tamara's final scenes. All kidding aside, well done Tamara! Let’s move on to Tina’s boyfriend Mikey. This guy is an absolute prick, who cares more about his car than anyone or anything, and not to mention, he looks like a baboon. I’m not kidding. He takes about two seconds to get pissed over nothing, particularly when other characters are trying to make him laugh. He’s got no sense of humor, and delivers almost every line sounding like he’s got a hemorrhoid. Lastly, there’s Sam’s boyfriend Spitz. This guy truly acts like an escaped mental patient, delivering his lines in a high screechy voice; and finishing with a hideously awful screeching cackle. The film also adds two ‘clown cops’ complete with their own clown sound effects. Not only are these guys idiots and complete failures as comic relief, they can’t deliver a line to save their lives. Good thing Michael Myers is around. Also filling the running time is Jamie’s friend Billy, portrayed by Jeffrey Landman. I have no problems with Landman at all, because he does as well as he can with a terrible character. Billy spends most of his time stuttering and standing in the background. Wonderful. Returning from previous entries is Dr. Looms, played wonderfully once again by Donald Pleasence. Joining him once more is Sherriff Meeker, played by Beau Starr. Starr is once again convincing as the town’s rock solid Sherriff. And finally, Ellie Cornell returns as Rachel. She’s wonderful in her 5 minutes on screen. That’s all I’ll say about her character. Most of this section is a mess, from the awful characters to the nonstop terrible acting.
Pacing/Direction - 65
Director Dominique Othenin-Girard’s direction is a real mess. Flat out. An absolute mess and I’ll explain why. Whether it’s lingering on shots too long or jumping from shot to shot too quickly, the man had no idea what he was doing. He didn’t seem to bring in much of the lighting and shadow usage either. For the most part, the errors in direction cause the film to drag on and on, particularly during its middle stretch. Not only does the film either linger on shots or cut them too short, but it lingers on scenes too long. It’s hard to find a scene that was too short. Simply put, a number of scenes seem to take ages to get through, and part of it could be blamed on characters or dialogue… but as a director, you have to know when to cut away. You can always cut back; it’s knowing when to cut away that can make a scene. One of the few good directing moments comes on cue of Tina kissing Michael (who she thinks at that point is her boyfriend), and his knuckles grip the wheel of the car tight, followed by a quick cut back to Jamie, who screams just as the film cuts back to the car burning out. Nicely done. His crowning achievement was the laundry chute scene, where his quick cutaways pay off to great end.
Music - 95
Alan Howarth returns for Halloween 5, and by this point, he’s got the Halloween cues running through his veins. His score on 5 is pure terrifying to listen to, as the main Halloween theme is now accompanied by a haunting bass-line. The bass-line also runs through other parts of the score, layered underneath shrieking piano notes. The scare stings are as unsettling as ever, and the score does its job effectively throughout.
Cinematography - 86
Rob Draper was brought on as cinematographer, and while he didn’t do a bad job by any means… the film just feels lacking, cinematography wise. There are a few nice moments, including the infamous upside down shot towards the beginning, and the ‘inside-the-poster’ shot. Also, the chase scene through the children’s clinic was very well shot. There are a select few neat shots during the barn sequence and the woods sequence, but Draper’s best stuff comes during the laundry chute scene. That’s what racks up the points. The angles really help the intensity of that scene.
Dialogue - 70
The film bounces around from Loomis’ raving to terrible Tina lines such as, “nothing, Mike, that’s what I get, NOTHING!!!” Not to mention, every line that falls out of Spitz’ mouth makes you want to smash out the screen. Billy’s dialogue is ear-shattering, particularly his classics, "J-J-Jamie, a-a-are you o-okay," and "c-coooookiiiieee w-woooman," which was followed up by a rare Pleasence clunker, "Cookie woman? What?" In addition, the clown cops have a number of lines that leave you with your face in your palm. Beau Starr delivers his surprisingly well written lines with authority, and when Jamie finally speaks, her lines aren’t bad, but they’re not what you want from a lead character. The only good line that was written for her was, “He’ll never die.”
Effects - 87
There are a number of grisly effects delivered by KNB FX found throughout Halloween 5, and they are just that. Grisly. Loomis and Michael’s burn scars are riveting, even more so than in 4. Mikey’s death scene has a pretty nicely achieved effect. Spitz’ prosthetics are great looking in a much deserved death scene. The really bad effect comes when Michael takes a knife to Tina, and it BENDS. Rubber knife, fully caught on camera. Excellent. Thank you, Othenin-Girard.
The Shape/Michael Myers - 85
Stuntman Don Shanks takes over the reins of the character in this film. First off, I want to note that I have no problems with his portrayal. I DO have a number of problems with the way the character was written in the film. He shares a telepathic link with his niece. He is wandering around Haddonfield in broad daylight, hiding very poorly in bushes and under trees. He is portrayed as a human with feelings. Also, quick side note, he doesn’t kill Tina as quickly as he could have. Kidding aside, the aim of Othenin-Girard was to make Myers a human that showed remorse for his actions. He does so towards the end of the film by pausing when he has a chance to kill Jamie to remove his mask and shed a tear. Where did this come from? I honestly don’t understand. He quickly snaps back into his rage and tears apart the room. That’s the strength of the character here. Shanks’ portrayal was awesome. Not Castle, or Wilbur, but he did a very solid job. The character’s playfulness returns as well, during a scene in the car with Tina.
Scares/Intensity - 85
The best moments that keep up the intensity are the voyeur-lurking shots of Michael. Particularly one when he’s lurking outside the clinic, which leads to a heart-pounding chase through the clinic basement. There’s a fun little car chase through a field and woods, where Michael chases Jamie and Billy at a decent speed. The ending isn’t as suspenseful as it should be, save for the brilliant laundry chute scene, which was 5’s answer to 4’s rooftop chase. It’s the best part of the film, as Michael gets incredibly violent as Jamie tries to hang on for dear life (pun totally intended).
Lead Character - 90
Jamie returns for this installment, and though she’s about as charismatic as she was in her last go ‘round, there’s a couple issues with her role in this film. First off, she doesn’t have Rachel by her side. Those two worked so well as a duo that to focus on just one of them for the entire film creates a void that just can’t be filled with anyone else, no matter how hard the filmmakers tried. Second, she doesn’t speak a single word until the third act of the film. Her encounter with Myers in the previous film left her mute and scarred with a telepathic link to her uncle. BIG. MISTAKE. She is able to create sympathy as Dr. Loomis tries to drag out of her what she knows about Myers, and she bursts into tears… but there’s no dialogue to complete the character. Instead, your lead character spends much of the film dragging along, simply trying to alert others to Myers’ activity. Once she does speak, we are drawn back into her character, as she will do anything to take down her evil uncle, and save the lives of those that she cares for.
Kills - 85
This film features the highest body count in the series. I believe I counted 22. TWENTY-TWO!!! Now, it should be noted that not all are attributed to Michael Myers. Regardless, Mr. Myers had a long day in this film. Some highlights include a garden tool to the head, a pitchfork (used on multiple occasions), a pair of scissors, and a SCYTHE!?
Writing - 79
The script was a mixed bag ranging from pretty good to elements that would be criticized for years to come, and are still being criticized. Let’s visit the most debated issue first. The thorn element. Deep into Halloween 5’s production, it was written into the script that Michael has a tattoo of an ancient ruin on his wrist. The rune of thorn. Numerous explanations have come from those involved with the film. Director Othenin-Girard claims (and I DO quote), “Moustapha Akkad wanted to give Michael a brother, so we created the man in black. Moustapha said he needed more to show that they are brothers, so we added the tattoo. The tattoo was meant to be a symbol for power.” Don Shanks, who played Michael, recalls it quite differently. “In the original opening, the Dr. Death character tattoos the thorn on Michael. Dominique explained to me that this character (the man in black) was actually going to be one and the same as Michael. Kind of a character that’s not really there, it’s the other half of Michael. At least, that’s the way Dominique explained to me.” The Man in Black was a character that came with the rune tattoo. He appears throughout the film, silently watching over, and was clearly up to something mysterious. He appears in the end of the film, making a massive impact. Next the script included a telepathic link between Michael and Jamie after she touched him in the last film. This decision was highly criticized, and rightly so. The effect leaves Jamie mute for most of the film, and then the link never really pays off in the end. The script also featured Dr. Loomis losing his mind, which was a neat inclusion since Loomis, in a way, was always just as nuts as his escaped patient. Dr. Loomis now is on the edge, willing to use Jamie as bait to lure her evil uncle, putting her in great danger. Loomis sees that as a necessary risk to bring Michael in. Finally, the script built up to a great original ending between Michael and Loomis, but the final end of the film was added on partway through. You know what’s coming when the final scene starts, but it’s actually very terrifying. What results is one of the most frightening sequences in the film, to be honest. All in all, it’s a mixed bag. A lot of unnecessary elements, but it could have been MUCH, much worse.
TOTAL POINTS - 1047/1300
OVERALL - 81 (80.53)
Interesting. Halloween 5 gets a middle of the road rating, and that’s exactly where it belongs. It’s not great, and it’s not terrible. It’s somewhere in between. Most fans of the series would probably tell you the same thing. But, just as it comes with its own devoted followers, it also has a pack of Halloween fans at the ready to tear it to shreds. The film turned around the ending of the very popular Halloween 4, so it was likely to upset some people. I, myself … well, I have somewhat of a soft spot for 5. It was one of the earlier installments that I saw in full and it scared the living hell out of me.
It seems that even through its many, many weak links, it has just enough good to pull it out of the mud at the end of the day. It’s definitely a big letdown after the excellence that was Halloween 4, but could you honestly expect any more out of a low-budget franchise sequel that was rushed into and throughout production? Halloween 5 actually is better put together than a lot of the slasher films that came parading throughout the 80’s, but honestly that’s not saying too much. The problem is that Halloween 5 set up a very problematic ending without answering any of the numerous questions it created. Due to this, it would be six years before Michael Myers would return again. When the light shines through the Halloween tunnel, ‘Revenge’ can be found, but just barely, at the end of that tunnel.
Until next time, The Nightmare Isn't Over
Michael Myers, Watching silently from the shadows.
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