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Everything You Need to Know About the Original HALLOWEEN
Hello Bidites! nce some of you are new to the whole te & how it's becoming more "blog" friendly, I thought as a Moderator & Halloween die hard I would bring to you a review and history of the movie that made its permanent mark in horror and started it all.
The original Halloween pioneered several aspects in the world of film making along with paving the road for many others within the horror genre such as: Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on elm street, Scream & many other franchise that are still going strong today.
Back-story:
Halloween (originally titled "The Baby tter Murders" ) was set in a mid western town of Haddonfield, Illinois where babytters are being stalked by this escaped maniacal killer. The location of Haddonfiled, Illionois is not actually a place but taken from Haddonfield, New Jersey hometown of script supervisor and producer Debra Hill who also co-wrote the film along with it's sequel.
Halloween was filmed in 4 weeks on $320,000 dollar budget which was supported by independent film distributor Irwin Yablans and
Moustapha Akkad. Many were very skeptical due to the budget being so low, but after Carpenter's assurance both supports were on board and filming started. In the spring of May 1978 Carpenter, Hill & the cast of Halloween hit the streets of Pasadena & Orange Grove, California to start the first scenes. Many Halloween fans have called these locations as the "Holy Land" & I myself will be making the trip out there with a few of my good friends next year sometime.
There were many challenges for the young Carpenter & Hill while shooting Halloween. First trying to make California look like a mid-western town around Halloween time. Trying to shoot around the palm trees & giving the fall feeling by throwing leaves into every scene to give that chilly vibe. Halloween gave us the first movie to use the Panavion Pana-glide used heavily in that context. Where the camera follows & you are The Shape (Michael Myers) moving towards the babytters, making you the character, feeling the suspense from your point of view. This technique has become a key to unlocking the element of suspense in horror movies that followed.
The Cast was mainly a group of young unknown actors including P.J soles who was in Carrie years prior now playing Linda the rebellious bad girl.
Jamie Lee Curtis TV star at the time, The daughter of Psycho star Janet Leigh. Playing lead role as Laurie Strode, the innocent confused virgin who see's what's really going on when the other girls are not watching.
Nancy Loomis (wife at the time of Production degner Tommy Lee Wallace) as Annie, Sheriff Brackets daughter & Charles Cyphers as Sheriff Bracket.
But one big name in Hollywood joined the cast to become Michael Myers pursuer for the next 20 plus years. Mr. Donald Pleasance as the iconic
Dr. Sam Loomis. Donald gave the movie more than just a plot of man chang girls in a mask. He gave the back story to force inde Michael and how it cannot be stopped. How he is purely and mply evil.
"Death Has come to your little own sheriff, you can either ignore it or help me to stop it". It gave it a very dramatic tone to the whole character and film in many different ways. Saying he has the
blackest eyes,the devils eyes.
The next task was a task that would put many of us collectors and horror fans into bankruptcy. The task of finding the infamous mask & look for The Villain, Michael Myers, or as everyone calls him "The Shape".
Production degner Tommy Lee Wallace was asgned to create image of the Villain, The Shape. Wallce went to Hollywood boulevard mask shop and grabbed several masks for choices. The script called for a blank emotionless face. Tommy got a Emmet Kelly Clown mask, Richard Nixon & Captain Kirk Mask. After modeling the Emmet Kelly mask they were onto something and all agreed it was eerie. Richard Nixon was too cartoonish. But after Tommy modified the Kirk mask by ripping the de burns & eyebrows off,
puffing the hair up & spraying it white & cutting the eye holes more round.............................that was all she wrote.....in the words of Tommy Lee Wallce on HorrorBid's Rabbit in Red Radio, the statement was made when Nick came out of the dresng room with it on.........OH SHIT ...FUCK ME......... THE SHAPE WAS BORN!
As for the suit Tommy explained it would be a neutral entity it wasn't anything it was just there, to focus on his face.
For man who'd be dawning the infamous mask would be John's close friend from film school, Nick Castle. Nick was trying to get some of his work off the ground at the time and was coming down to the set mostly everyday pre-production and one day John suggested if your going to be here you might as well do something. So the decion was made for him to be the killer.
ME, NICK, & TOMMY WITH MY MASK.
So after 4 weeks of long hours and over night grueling filming, Halloween came to a rap. Carpenter was still not finished, he needed to score the movie. He came up with a theme that stick in everyone's head until the end of time. A 5/4 time gnature taught by his father as a child. Carpenter took octaves on a piano & repeated it over different keys with strings ans ticker that would change the film forever. Making it one of the most clasc and one of the best scores to be in not just a horror movie but film in general.
The movie opened in Kansas City in only a few select theaters. The movie was not a hit immediately, the buzz grew by word of mouth and continued to grow into this monster that we know it today. Halloween grossed about $55 million (worldwide) it was one of the most successful independent films ever made. The film paid direct homage to the Alfred Hitchcock clasc Psycho. With the reference's of Doctor Sam Loomis which was also a characters name in Psycho.
In my opinion and being the crazy die hard fan, I believe Halloween is thee most influential film in the horror movie genre. So many different elements within the movie have bled into so many other horror movies it's comical.
From the masked killer who is always walking slowly when the victims running & who cannot die. To whoever is having sex in the movie will automatically die. To The villains there one moment and the camera pans away comes back and he's gone motif. The entire vibe of the movie is just perfect in every way. The eeriness of empty fall streets with Carpenter's clasc score on each scene. In the end Halloween will always stand the test of time to be the "Gone with the wind of the Horror films". It will always hold a special place in many peoples lives especially mine.
Take care,
Jim (Theshape1188)
The original Halloween pioneered several aspects in the world of film making along with paving the road for many others within the horror genre such as: Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on elm street, Scream & many other franchise that are still going strong today.
Back-story:
Halloween (originally titled "The Baby tter Murders" ) was set in a mid western town of Haddonfield, Illinois where babytters are being stalked by this escaped maniacal killer. The location of Haddonfiled, Illionois is not actually a place but taken from Haddonfield, New Jersey hometown of script supervisor and producer Debra Hill who also co-wrote the film along with it's sequel.
Halloween was filmed in 4 weeks on $320,000 dollar budget which was supported by independent film distributor Irwin Yablans and
Moustapha Akkad. Many were very skeptical due to the budget being so low, but after Carpenter's assurance both supports were on board and filming started. In the spring of May 1978 Carpenter, Hill & the cast of Halloween hit the streets of Pasadena & Orange Grove, California to start the first scenes. Many Halloween fans have called these locations as the "Holy Land" & I myself will be making the trip out there with a few of my good friends next year sometime.
There were many challenges for the young Carpenter & Hill while shooting Halloween. First trying to make California look like a mid-western town around Halloween time. Trying to shoot around the palm trees & giving the fall feeling by throwing leaves into every scene to give that chilly vibe. Halloween gave us the first movie to use the Panavion Pana-glide used heavily in that context. Where the camera follows & you are The Shape (Michael Myers) moving towards the babytters, making you the character, feeling the suspense from your point of view. This technique has become a key to unlocking the element of suspense in horror movies that followed.
The Cast was mainly a group of young unknown actors including P.J soles who was in Carrie years prior now playing Linda the rebellious bad girl.
Jamie Lee Curtis TV star at the time, The daughter of Psycho star Janet Leigh. Playing lead role as Laurie Strode, the innocent confused virgin who see's what's really going on when the other girls are not watching.
Nancy Loomis (wife at the time of Production degner Tommy Lee Wallace) as Annie, Sheriff Brackets daughter & Charles Cyphers as Sheriff Bracket.
But one big name in Hollywood joined the cast to become Michael Myers pursuer for the next 20 plus years. Mr. Donald Pleasance as the iconic
Dr. Sam Loomis. Donald gave the movie more than just a plot of man chang girls in a mask. He gave the back story to force inde Michael and how it cannot be stopped. How he is purely and mply evil.
"Death Has come to your little own sheriff, you can either ignore it or help me to stop it". It gave it a very dramatic tone to the whole character and film in many different ways. Saying he has the
blackest eyes,the devils eyes.
The next task was a task that would put many of us collectors and horror fans into bankruptcy. The task of finding the infamous mask & look for The Villain, Michael Myers, or as everyone calls him "The Shape".
Production degner Tommy Lee Wallace was asgned to create image of the Villain, The Shape. Wallce went to Hollywood boulevard mask shop and grabbed several masks for choices. The script called for a blank emotionless face. Tommy got a Emmet Kelly Clown mask, Richard Nixon & Captain Kirk Mask. After modeling the Emmet Kelly mask they were onto something and all agreed it was eerie. Richard Nixon was too cartoonish. But after Tommy modified the Kirk mask by ripping the de burns & eyebrows off,
puffing the hair up & spraying it white & cutting the eye holes more round.............................that was all she wrote.....in the words of Tommy Lee Wallce on HorrorBid's Rabbit in Red Radio, the statement was made when Nick came out of the dresng room with it on.........OH SHIT ...FUCK ME......... THE SHAPE WAS BORN!
As for the suit Tommy explained it would be a neutral entity it wasn't anything it was just there, to focus on his face.
For man who'd be dawning the infamous mask would be John's close friend from film school, Nick Castle. Nick was trying to get some of his work off the ground at the time and was coming down to the set mostly everyday pre-production and one day John suggested if your going to be here you might as well do something. So the decion was made for him to be the killer.
ME, NICK, & TOMMY WITH MY MASK.
So after 4 weeks of long hours and over night grueling filming, Halloween came to a rap. Carpenter was still not finished, he needed to score the movie. He came up with a theme that stick in everyone's head until the end of time. A 5/4 time gnature taught by his father as a child. Carpenter took octaves on a piano & repeated it over different keys with strings ans ticker that would change the film forever. Making it one of the most clasc and one of the best scores to be in not just a horror movie but film in general.
The movie opened in Kansas City in only a few select theaters. The movie was not a hit immediately, the buzz grew by word of mouth and continued to grow into this monster that we know it today. Halloween grossed about $55 million (worldwide) it was one of the most successful independent films ever made. The film paid direct homage to the Alfred Hitchcock clasc Psycho. With the reference's of Doctor Sam Loomis which was also a characters name in Psycho.
In my opinion and being the crazy die hard fan, I believe Halloween is thee most influential film in the horror movie genre. So many different elements within the movie have bled into so many other horror movies it's comical.
From the masked killer who is always walking slowly when the victims running & who cannot die. To whoever is having sex in the movie will automatically die. To The villains there one moment and the camera pans away comes back and he's gone motif. The entire vibe of the movie is just perfect in every way. The eeriness of empty fall streets with Carpenter's clasc score on each scene. In the end Halloween will always stand the test of time to be the "Gone with the wind of the Horror films". It will always hold a special place in many peoples lives especially mine.
Take care,
Jim (Theshape1188)
TheShape1188
Wednesday 4/20/2011 at 03:47 PM | 74764
That is mply awesome Jimmy.So much info right there, thanx so much for sharing brother.
I NEVER get tired of seeing Halloween threads on here. Now where's my Michael Smiley at?
I NEVER get tired of seeing Halloween threads on here. Now where's my Michael Smiley at?
skutterk
Wednesday 4/20/2011 at 08:22 PM | 74778
JIMMY THIS IS FANTASTIC!!!!!!! WHAT A GREAT THREAD. THERE IS A LOT OF REALLY GOOD INFORMATION IN THERE MY BUDDYTHANKS FOR DOING THAT!!!!
NICK
myers n San Diego
Wednesday 4/20/2011 at 08:24 PM | 74781
Brother that was awesome and a great read as well. I fully agree that withought Halloween alot of the movie killers we all know and love wouldn't be here today.
LONG LIVE THE BOOGIEMAN!!!!!!!!!!
Ryn
Wednesday 4/20/2011 at 08:26 PM | 74782
LONG LIVE THE BOOGIEMAN
myers n San Diego
Wednesday 4/20/2011 at 08:29 PM | 74784
THANK YOU GUYS REALLY APPRECIATE THE MUTUAL LOVE WE HAVE FOR THE BOOGEYMAN.
IT'S CRAZY HOW SUCH A LOW BUDGET FILM HAS IMPACTED SO MANY LIVES AND STILL CONTINUES TOO. THAT ALONE AMAZES ME EVEN WITH OUT THE MASK. THE FILM IS JUST BEYOND PERFECT IN EVERY WAY.
THE VIBE IS WAT REALLY TAKES ME INTO HADDONFIELD AND WALKING THE STREETS IN THE MORNING WITH LAURIE AND TOMMY. SUCH AN EPIC FEELING.
IT'S CRAZY HOW SUCH A LOW BUDGET FILM HAS IMPACTED SO MANY LIVES AND STILL CONTINUES TOO. THAT ALONE AMAZES ME EVEN WITH OUT THE MASK. THE FILM IS JUST BEYOND PERFECT IN EVERY WAY.
THE VIBE IS WAT REALLY TAKES ME INTO HADDONFIELD AND WALKING THE STREETS IN THE MORNING WITH LAURIE AND TOMMY. SUCH AN EPIC FEELING.
TheShape1188
Thursday 4/21/2011 at 01:54 AM | 74800
