Halloween II (1981)

"He was my patient for fifteen years. He became an obsession with me until I realized there was neither reason nor conscious or anything about him that was... even remotely human."

- Sam Loomis

Halloween II is horror film in the slasher genre. It was released in the United States on October 30th, 1981 and marked the directorial debut of Rick Rosenthal. Halloween II is the sequel to John Carpenter's 1978 classic Halloween. This film distinguishes itself from other sequels in that it takes place immediately following the events of the first film and even recaps the climatic showdown between Doctor Sam Loomis and Michael Myers from the first film. Although Carpenter didn't direct the sequel, he did have a directorial hand in the final cut and reshot some scenes to give the sequel an edgier feel to it.

Plot
"You don't know what death is."

- Sam Loomis

Believing she has killed Michael Myers, Laurie Strode instructs Tommy Doyle and Lindsey Wallace to seek shelter with a neighbor. After they leave, Michael rises and attacks Laurie. Doctor Sam Loomis bursts into the house and shoots Michael repeatedly. Myers falls backwards towards the outside and balcony and tumbles to the ground. Loomis goes to inspect the body, but Michael has disappeared. A neighbor comes out to see what all the noise is about. Loomis tells him to call the police.

Michael meanwhile, continues to stalk the neighborhood. He walks into the home of Mister and Mrs. Elrod, but neither of them seem to notice him. Stealthily, he takes a butcher knife from the kitchen counter. Drops of blood from his injuries splatter onto the counter. Mrs. Elrod returns to the kitchen, sees the blood and screams. Her neighbor, Alice, hears the screams and calls out, but nobody responds. Alice goes back into her house to resume a telephone conversation she is having with a friend named Sally. Sally tells Alice to turn on the radio. When she does so, she hears the news report about three teenagers found dead in the Northwest section of Haddonfield. While talking with Sally, Alice hears a strange noise. She goes into the living room and sees that the front door is open. Suddenly, Michael Myers appears from behind her and stabs her in the chest with a knife.

Search Party
Back at the Doyle residence, police and medics converge on the scene. Two EMTs strap Laurie Strode to a stretcher and bring her out to the ambulance. She keeps mumbling that she doesn't want to be put to sleep. They bring her to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital. The nurses call in Doctor Mixter (whom they suspect has been drinking at the country club) and he administers a shot to Laurie. She continues to protest, but they go unheard. Jimmy and his colleague Budd watch on.

Meanwhile, Sheriff Brackett and Doctor Loomis drive across town searching for Michael Myers. Loomis repeatedly mentions how he had shot him six times. While Loomis reloads his gun, Brackett scans the streets. He blames Sam for letting Michael out to begin with. Suddenly, they hear screams coming from some trick or treaters. They pull over and Loomis sees someone who looks like Michael Myers approaching some children. He runs out of the car and begins pointing his gun at him. Brackett restrains him and Myers walks across the street. From out of nowhere, a police cruiser slams into Myers, ramming him into another vehicle which promptly explodes. Brackett asks Loomis if this was Myers, but Loomis isn't sure. Just then, another police cruiser pulls up. Deputy Gary Hunt exits the vehicle and tells Brackett about the bodies they recovered from the Wallace residence. One of them is the sheriff's daughter, Annie.

At the hospital, ambulance driver Jimmy has taken an interest in Laurie Strode. He goes to her room to visit her and give her comfort. Nurse Virginia Alves comes into the room and tells Laurie that Doctor Mixter is going to wait until tomorrow before applying a cast to her injured ankle. Stating that Laurie needs some rest, she tells Jimmy to leave the room. Jimmy's partner Bud comes in and tells him that they need to leave. A call just came in.

Meanwhile, news crews and police cruisers surround the Wallace residence. Sheriff Brackett stops to identify the body of his daughter Annie. Again, he blames Loomis for letting Myers out. He leaves to go tell his wife. Loomis speaks with Deputy Hunt and asks him to confirm whether the body that was struck by the police vehicle was actually Michael Myers.

Terror at Haddonfield Memorial
Michael meanwhile, hides in the back seat of a vehicle belonging to a member of the hospital staff. He goes to Haddonfield Memorial and resumes his search for Laurie. In her room, Laurie listens to Jimmy who tells her that the man who attacked her was Michael Myers. Nurse Alves enters the room and tells Laurie that she will try to contact her parents. She can't get a call out and it appears as if the lines are down. She sends a nurse named Janet to find Mister Garrett the security guard to see if he can fix the problem. Janet finds him and Garrett hands her a walkie talkie to keep in contact with him. He then goes down to a supply room to check the fuses. While searching through the dark room, he hears a noise coming from a closet. He opens it up and a pile of materials falls down upon him. Michael Myers appears behind him and brings the claw end of a hammer down atop Garrett's head, killing him.

At the medical examiner's office, Doctor Loomis, Deputy Hunt and the M.E. go over the charred remains of whom they believe to be Michael Myers. The M.E. estimates that the body belongs to someone who is only sixteen or seventeen years of age. Loomis asserts that Michael Myers is twenty-one.

Leaving the office, they learn about a fracas taking place at the old Myers house. Arriving on the scene, they find a group of townspeople angrily throwing rocks at the windows and shouting. Two boys approach the men. They are looking for their friend Ben Tramer. He was supposed to meet them after a party, but never arrived. After hearing Tramer's description, Loomis and Hunt deduce that the body in the morgue actually belongs to Tramer. Just then, Hunt receives a call about a break-in at the elementary school near Old Reservoir Road.

Back at the hospital, Laurie has a dream. In the dream, she sees herself as a young girl arguing with her mother. The woman breaks the shocking news to her, pointedly stating "I am not your mother". In the next part of the dream, Laurie sees herself as a young girl again, this time at a hospital. A boy, a few years older than she, sits quietly in a chair, staring blankly out the window. He turns around when Laurie enters the room.

In another part of the hospital, Budd the ambulance driver hits on his girlfriend, a nurse named Karen. After cajoling her at length, he convinces Karen to meet him in private down in the therapy room. The two go down there and get into the therapy pool. While they share an intimate moment with one another, Michael Myers walks into the adjacent room and turns up the temperature gauge on the pool. Karen complains that the water is too hot and asks Budd to adjust the temperature. He gets out and goes into the other room. Michael leaps at him from behind and strangles him with a garrote wire. He then enters the therapy room and stands behind the unsuspecting Karen. Karen senses Michael behind her, but thinks that it is Budd. She takes his hand and begins kissing it. When she finally turns around, she sees that it is not her boyfriend at all. Michael grabs Karen's face and presses it into the scalding hot tub water. He dunks her several times until the skin on her faces blisters and boils and she soon dies.

The Samhain Connection
Loomis, Hunt and several officers drive down to Haddonfield Elementary. They find the classroom that had been broken in to and consult with the officer who first called in the disturbance. There are traces of blood across several desks and a butcher knife sticking through a crayon drawing on a table top. Loomis looks at the drawing and says, "Sister". The officer then draws their attention to the blackboard where the word "Samhain" is written in blood. Loomis explains how Samhain was the name which referred to the Celtic lord of the dead. As the men talk, Marion Chambers of Smith's Grove Sanitarium arrives. She tells Loomis that the hospital staff is up in arms over the patient break-out and they want Loomis to return to the hospital right away. She says that even the governor has become involved in the Michael Myers fiasco and how it relates to Smith's Grove. Their administrator, Doctor Rogers, wants all of this swept under the rug as quickly as possible. Loomis refuses to leave, stating that he cannot return until he knows that Michael Myers is either captured or killed. Marion tells him that they sent a federal marshal to insure his return to Smith's Grove.

At the hospital, Jimmy returns to Laurie's room. He tells her that he's not going to let anything happen to her. Observing her more closely, he notes that she appears to be having an adverse reaction to her medication. He tells Nurse Janet who runs off to find Doctor Mixter. Janet goes into his office and calls out to him, but the man sitting before her doesn't respond. She calls out again, but still no response. Stepping in closer, she spins his chair around and finds Mixter dead with a needle sticking out of his eye. Janet backs up and begins screaming, at which point, Michael Myers attacks her from behind and injects her with a needle into her temple, which kills her.

When Janet fails to return, Jimmy grows impatient and goes off to look for her. Jill likewise leaves Laurie by herself. Michael Myers eventually makes his way to Laurie's room. He stabs at the bed sheets several times with a scalpel, but soon discovers that Laurie isn't there. Having faked her adverse reaction to the medication to get the staff away, Laurie is out of bed and limping down the hallway. She hides inside an empty hospital room and tries to make a telephone call. The lines are still down, so Laurie slumps down to the floor and rests.

More Victims
Nurse Jill Franco looks around the hospital, searching for Mister Garrett. Like so many others, he too is now missing. She eventually runs into Jimmy who tells her that Laurie is missing from her room. Jimmy continues searching on his own and goes into the O.R. He finds nurse Alves strapped to an operating table with an I.V. running out of her arm. Her blood is all over the floor. Jimmy turns around to get help, but slips in the blood and falls to the floor, knocking himself unconscious.

Jill tries to leave the hospital, but discovers that her car won't start. Additionally, all four tires have been slashed. Frightened, she runs back inside the hospital. She eventually finds Laurie, but Laurie is still in too much of a daze from the drugs to even acknowledge her. Michael comes up behind Nurse Franco and stabs her in the back with a scalpel, hefting her entire body into the air. Laurie runs screaming, and Michael methodically pursues her. She runs downstairs into a large maintenance room where she finds the body of Mister Garrett suspended from a light. Michael presses onward and Laurie manages to find a small access window into an adjacent room and wriggles through it. Michael slashes at her with the scalpel, but Laurie evades the swipes. Michael eventually gets into the other room and Laurie runs into a service elevator. He continues to follow her, but Laurie manages to make it to the ground floor and runs outside. She takes shelter inside of an empty vehicle.

Family Ties
"Samhain isn't evil spirits. It isn't goblins, ghosts or witches. It's the unconscious mind. We're all afraid of the dark inside ourselves."

- Sam Loomis

Meanwhile, Doctor Loomis leaves with Marion Chambers and the marshal. Marion tells him about a special file regarding Michael Myers that was sealed by the governor. However, after the events of this evening, the governor has authorized Doctor Rogers of Smith's Grove to open it. Marion tells Loomis that Laurie Strode is Michael Myers' sister. Things suddenly begin to make sense to Loomis. He knows that Michael is deliberately targeting Laurie Strode specifically. He asks the marshal to turn the car around, but the man refuses. Excited, Loomis pulls out his revolver and shoots out the car window. The marshal obeys Loomis and turns the car around.

Back at the hospital, Jimmy finds Laurie in the car. He tries to start the vehicle, but the engine won't turn over. Suddenly, Jimmy passes out. Laurie crawls out of the car just as the marshal's vehicle arrives. She tries to call out to Doctor Loomis, but her voice is too hoarse and they cannot hear her. Michael Myers appears in the parking lot and begins walking after the weakened Laurie. Laurie manages to make it inside the hospital and the marshal locks the door behind her. Myers never breaks stride and walks straight through the glass door. Loomis opens fire on him and Michael collapses. Loomis orders Marion to go back out to the marshal's car and radio for help. The marshal leans over Michael Myers who instantly springs up, slitting the marshal's throat with a scalpel. He gets up and begins walking towards Loomis and Laurie who promptly run for safety. They sequester themselves inside of a room and Loomis gives Laurie a gun. Michael breaks down the door and Loomis opens fire on him. He discovers to his horror however, that he is out of bullets. Michael stabs him in the stomach with his scalpel. He then turns towards Laurie who fires two shots directly into Michael's eyes, blinding him. Michael begins slashing wildly in Laurie's direction, but doesn't hit her. Loomis, though bleeding, manages to get up and begins loosening the valve on a canister of ether. Laurie takes his cue and begins doing likewise to another set of canisters. Michael continues to blindly swipe his scalpel at every noise he hears. Loomis orders Laurie out of the room and says, "It's time, Michael". He lights his lighter, igniting the ether in the room. There is a huge explosion. Michael stumbles out of the room, his body completely engulfed in flames. He falls to the ground, seemingly dead. Paramedics arrive and take Laurie out of the hospital and into an ambulance.

Notes & Trivia

 * Directorial debut of Rick Rosenthal.


 * The music for the recapped sequences from Halloween is re-scored.


 * George Romero's Night of the Living Dead is playing on the television in the Elrod home.


 * Bennett Tramer, the boy who gets killed while wearing the Michael Myers mask, was referenced in the first Halloween. Ben was the one whom Annie tried to set Laurie up with.


 * Actress Nancy Loomis reprises her role as Annie Brackett for the scene in which Annie's body is wheeled out of the Wallace house. Loomis also provided the voice of Sally, the girl on the telephone who was speaking to Alice in the beginning of the movie.


 * Comedian Dana Carvey makes his film debut playing an unnamed camera crew assistant seen outside the Wallace residence. Ironically, Carvey is best known for being one half of a comedy duo with a partner named Mike Myers.


 * Marion's last name, Chambers, is revealed in this film.


 * At the time of filming, actress Jamie Lee Curtis had short hair, necessitating a prop wig to make her more closely resemble the character from the previous film. In the original Halloween, Jamie Lee Curtis had long hair.


 * Although Sam Loomis appears to die in this film, he survives his second encounter with Michael Myers and returns to pursue him anew in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers.


 * The end credits for the film indicate Michael's age as 23 even though Doctor Loomis tells Graham that Michael is 21.


 * The film opens and closes with the song "Mr. Sandman" by the Chordettes.


 * After the film's climax, one of the officers credits Michael Myers with killing ten people. Including the bodies recovered from the first film (not counting the mechanic outside of Haddonfield), the actual body count would be twelve. It is possible that not all of the bodies had been recovered yet and there is also the ambiguous insinuation that Doctor Loomis dies as well, thus adding to the numerical discrepancy.

Characters

 * Alice: Alice was the neighbor of Mister and Mrs. Elrod. Michael Myers sneaked into her house and stabbed her to death with a butcher knife.


 * Annie Brackett: Annie Brackett was the daughter of Sheriff Brackett. Her body was recovered from the Wallace residence.


 * Bennett Tramer: Bennett Tramer was a student at Haddonfield High School. In 1978, Annie Brackett tried to set him up on a date with Laurie Strode. On Halloween night, Ben was dressed up as the Shape and mistaken by police for serial killer Michael Myers. As the police pursued him on foot, Ben walked across the street whereupon he was accidentally struck by a police vehicle which slammed into another car, causing it to explode. Ben Tramer was killed instantly and his body was severely burned.


 * Craig: Unknown


 * Darcy Essmont: Darcy Essmont was a friend of Karen and worked at Haddonfield Memorial Hospital. Karen promised to give Darcy a ride home, but tried to back out. Darcy made her hold to her commitment.


 * Doctor Mixter: Doctor Mixter worked at Haddonfield Memorial Hospital. On the night of October 31st, 1978, he was called in to attend to Laurie Strode who had been admitted after being attacked by Michael Myers. Mixter was partially inebriated when he met Laurie, having just returned from a country club. Michael Myers killed Doctor Mixter by stabbing him in the eye with a needle.


 * Eddie Lee: Eddie Lee lived in Russellville and was a possible love interest of Darcy Essmont.


 * Garrett: Garrett was a security guard at Haddonfield Memorial Hospital. He was asked to check on the power after the phone lines went down. Michael Myers killed him by striking across the back of the head with the claw end of a hammer.


 * Gary: Gary was a young boy dressed as a pirate, who was taken to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital after his mother discovered that he had partially eaten a razor blade that was planted inside a piece of candy.


 * Gary Hunt: Gary Hunt was a deputy in Haddonfield, Illinois under Sheriff Leigh Brackett. Gary was the one who informed Sheriff Brackett of his daughter Annie's death. Hunt then accompanied Doctor Sam Loomis to Haddonfield Elementary School to investigate a break-in.


 * Graham: Graham was the medical examiner of Haddonfield. He examined the charred remains of Ben Tramer, whom Deputy Hunt and Doctor Loomis mistakenly believed to be Michael Myers.


 * Howard Elrod: Howard Elrod was the husband of Mrs. Elrod. On Halloween night, he stayed home and watched Night of the Living Dead. His neighbor, Alice Martin, believed that Mrs. Elrod picked on her husband too much.


 * Janet Marshall: Janet Marshall was a nurse at Haddonfield Memorial Hospital. She was asked to assist Mister Garrett with checking on the down telephone lines. Later, she was sent to find Doctor Mixter. Michael Myers appeared and stabbed her in the temple with a needle.


 * Jimmy: Jimmy was an ambulance driver and EMT. His little brother, Ziggy, went to school with Laurie Strode. Jimmy watched over Laurie when she was taken to the hospital.


 * Karen Baley: Karen Baley was a nurse at Haddonfield Memorial Hospital. She was romantically linked to an EMT driver named Budd. Budd and Karen sneaked off to spend some quality time together in the hospital's therapy pool. Michael Myers killed Karen by turning up the water temperature in the pool, then dunking her face into the water, causing it to blister and boil until she died. Note: Last name revealed on name tag.


 * Laurie Strode: A survivor of Michael Myers, Laurie was taken to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital where she befriended an EMT named Jimmy. Doctor Loomis learned that Laurie was actually Michael's little sister. Loomis came to the hospital and once again saved Laurie from Michael's rampage, at great cost to himself.


 * Leigh Brackett: Leigh Brackett was the sheriff of Haddonfield. He identified the body of his daughter Annie after she had been murdered by Michael Myers. Sheriff Brackett retired only three years following her death.


 * Michael Myers: Revealed to be the older brother of Laurie Strode, Michael Myers continues his bloodthirsty rampage at Haddonfield Memorial Hospital in an effort to kill his sister.


 * Mrs. Elrod: Mrs. Elrod was the wife of Howard Elrod and lived next door to Alice Martin. Michael Myers broke into the Elrod home on Halloween night to steal a butcher knife. He left traces of blood behind on the kitchen counter. When Mrs. Elrod saw the blood she began to scream. Annie heard her from next door and presumed that Mister Elrod got tired of her always picking on him and began beating her.


 * Randy: Unknown


 * Robert Mundy: Robert Mundy was a news broadcaster who broke the story about the discovery of three dead bodies murdered by an escaped mental patient from Smith's Grove-Warren County Sanitarium.


 * Sally: Sally was a friend of Alice. She alerted her to the murders that took place just down the street from her house.


 * Sam Loomis: A psychiatrist from Smith's Grove, Loomis failed in his first attempt to kill Michael Myers, but succeeded in tracking him back to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, where he critically injured Michael in an explosion, at great cost to himself as well.


 * Virginia Alves: Virginia Alves was a nurse at Haddonfield Memorial Hospital. Michael Myers murdered her by strapping her to a table and exsanguinating her with an I.V. drip. Her body was discovered by an EMT named Jimmy.