Tuesday, December 31, 2013

HALLOWEEN: THE 35TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION : STILL STRONG AT 35

It's a running joke among fans that DVD company Anchor Bay will find a new way to release the movie HALLOWEEN every year. The thing is that even so those same fans will get in line for each new release. Each and every edition of the film to make its way to DVD has included something new in the extras that make it worth owning. This new release of the film is no different.

HALLOWEEN: THE 35TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION is the best way to watch this classic horror film and released just in time for the actual holiday. What movie matches the theme of the season any better than this one? Forget Freddy and Jason, when it comes to the holiday of Halloween Michael Myers is the name everyone remembers.

I've praised the film before and will continue to do so. For the very few that may not have seen this film at least once in the 35 years since it was released (I know, it's hard to believe it's actually been that long) it tells the story of Michael Myers who starts the film by killing his sister (no not a spoiler since it happens right away). Years later Michael has grown and due to the law must be examined to see if he can be released. Only the psychiatrist Dr. Loomis sees the evil that Michael actually is and warns them. But Michael escapes and heads back to his home town to kill again.

Side by side with this story is a group of girlfriends who are about to spend the night either with their boyfriends or babysitting. The main character is Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) and it is around her that most of the movie centers. Why Michael chooses these girls is never explained but later films in the series tried. What we witness then is the moments of terror everyone goes through, fear of the dark, of what we don't know, of the boogeyman coming to get you.

Director John Carpenter does an amazing job with this film, touching all the right nerves at the right moment and eliciting screams that would wake the dead. Cinematographer Dean Cundey make this low budget film look like it was made for millions using light and shadow to bring on the scares and direct or misdirect the viewers attention from start to finish. Cundey was responsible for the new blu-ray transfer of this film and it has never looked better. Items that might not have been seen in shadow before are highlighted now and the look of the film is stunning.

The extras this time around include several that have been around before including a 25 years later examination of the locations used in the film, but it's the new ones that will catch collector's attention. Included this time is a new commentary track by Carpenter and Curtis together talking about the film for the first time. Also included is a short film called "The Night She Came Home" about Curtis' appearance at the Horrorhound horror convention last year, the first convention appearance she's done since the film came out.

Fans will want to add this edition to their collection. If you don't have it in yours now is the time to add it. If not for the extras than for the near perfect remastering of the film itself. This is the way HALLOWEEN was meant to be seen.

Click here to order.

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