The Gonzo Wolf

Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to my personal choice of 31 films to get you in the Halloween mood.

Day One.

Halloween III Season of the Witch

From the fine folks at Wikipedia:

Halloween III: Season of the Witch is a 1982 American science fiction horror film written and directed by Tommy Lee Wallace in his feature-length directorial debut. It is the third installment in the Halloween film series and the only entry that does not feature the series antagonist, Michael Myers. Series creators John Carpenter and Debra Hill return as producers. The film stars Tom Atkins, Stacey Nelkin, and Dan O’Herlihy.

The film departs from the slasher genre of the other installments, instead featuring a “witchcraft” theme with science fiction aspects. John Carpenter and Debra Hill believed that the Halloween series could have been an anthology series of films that centered around Halloween night, with each sequel containing its own characters, setting, and storyline. Director Wallace stated there were many ideas for Halloween-themed films, some of which could have potentially created any number of their own sequels, and that Season of the Witch was meant to be the first.^{[citation needed]}

As with the series’ other films, suspense and tension are key themes, exploring violence against young children. On a budget of $4.6 million, Halloween III made a profit by grossing $14.4 million at the box office in the US,^[3] but it was also the poorest performing film in the Halloween series at the time.^[4] Most critics gave the film negative reviews, though reevaluation in later years has given Halloween III its own reputation as a stand-alone cult film.^[5][6] After the film’s disappointing reception and box office performance, Michael Myers was brought back six years later in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988).

It was the last Halloween film distributed by Universal Pictures until the 2018 film Halloween 36 years later.

The Rev-iew

Halloween III Season of the Witch is my favorite of all the Halloween films. To me, the Michael Myers thing is just another guy in a mask. Although Jamie Lee Curtis is one of the most amazing people on the planet, the plot of Halloween III is so much more diabolical. Her voice appears in this film a few times, though. Technically, she’s in it!

This movie looped on cable when I was a child in the early eighties, and it scared the hell out of me. Even though I now own an impressive Halloween mask collection, I still feel a tingle of fear whenever I put one on. It’s the same as Final Destination fans on an airplane, behind a log truck, or on a rollercoaster.

An Irish immortal witch creates a massive world company just to play a “prank” on modern society; it’s the 9/11 plan of slasher film plots and I love it. The amount of gore mixed with children was almost unheard of in mainstream 1982 Hollywood. Most couldn’t enjoy how masterful this film truly was and balked at the lack of a singular villain. Now it’s fallen into its own cult classic catagory and is celebrated as it should be; a masterpiece of eighties cinema.

This scene in the film is one of the greatest segments in horror film history. What a performance!

One of my fav parts? During the scene in which the family is locked in the room with the television, pay attention to the father character as he’s avoiding the snakes. One of them gets their teeth caught on his pants from a strike. Actors would never agree to stuff like that now!

Also…

The jingle. You’ll never forget the jingle, nor should you. Ever. Need a refresher?

Preach truths, toke jokes, and shoplift Amazon. Happy, happy Halloween. I’ll be back tomorrow for Day 2…