Halloween II (1981)
61%RT Audience Score: 63%
Awards & Nominations: 1 win & 3 nominations
Halloween II picks up where its predecessor left off – and quickly wanders into a dead end that the franchise would spend decades struggling to find its way out of
Halloween II, more like Halloween Boo Hoo. Critics are not impressed with this sequel, and it’s not hard to see why. The characters are empty shells waiting to be slaughtered, and the film is uninspired compared to the original. But hey, at least Jamie Lee Curtis is still killing it. If you’re looking for a cheap and gristly horror show, this might be the movie for you. But if you’re looking for something with substance, you might want to skip this one.
Production Company(ies)
Power Pictures, 2002 Ltd., Bórd Scannán na hÉireann Nederlandse Programma Stichting
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Morningside Hospital – 8711 S. Harvard Blvd., Los Angeles, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
R
Year of Release
1981
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Stereo Dolby Atmos
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Aspect ratio:2.35 : 1
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Runtime:NA
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Streaming): Aug 14, 2007
Genre(s)
Holiday/Horror
Keyword(s)
Halloween II, R-rated, directed by Rick Rosenthal, written by John Carpenter and Debra Hill, produced by Debra Hill and John Carpenter, starring Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode, Donald Pleasence as Dr Sam Loomis, Charles Cyphers as Sheriff Leigh Brackett, Jeffrey Kramer as Graham, Lance Guest as Jimmy, Pamela Susan Shoop as Karen, horror, holiday, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Aja Romano, Dave Kehr, Mike Emery, Variety Staff, Derek Adams, Roger Ebert, Scott Sublett, Brian Eggert, Peter Sobczynski, Eddie Harrison, Sean Collier, Halloween franchise, sequel, slasher, Michael Myers, Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, serial killer, suspense, thriller, horror classic, iconic characters, nerve-wracking, satisfying conclusion, dead end, franchise struggles
Worldwide gross: $25,533,818
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $86,030,796
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,087
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 9,381,766
US/Canada gross: $25,533,818
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $86,030,796
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 822
US/Canada opening weekend: $7,446,508
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $25,089,433
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 544
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $2,500,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $8,423,221
Production budget ranking: 1,733
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $4,535,904
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $73,071,671
ROI to date (est.): 564%
ROI ranking: 225
Donald Pleasence – Dr. Sam Loomis
Charles Cyphers – Sheriff Leigh Brackett
Jeffrey Kramer – Graham
Lance Guest – Jimmy
Pamela Susan Shoop – Karen
Director(s)
Rick Rosenthal
Writer(s)
John Carpenter, Debra Hill
Producer(s)
Debra Hill, John Carpenter
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
1 win & 3 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (45) | Top Critics (8) | Fresh (13) | Rotten (32)
As films go, however, Halloween 2 isn’t very good.
October 19, 2018
Aja Romano
Vox
TOP CRITIC
Rick Rosenthal, who directed this 1981 sequel, doesn’t have Carpenter’s expansive, affectionate way with stereotypical characters, and without it they’re empty shells — bodies waiting for the slaughter.
August 27, 2007
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
A bad sequel to a good movie.
August 27, 2007
Mike Emery
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
This uninspired version amounts to lukewarm sloppy seconds in comparison to the original film that made director John Carpenter a hot property.
August 27, 2007
Variety Staff
Variety
TOP CRITIC
The result won’t make any converts, but Jamie Lee Curtis is as good as ever.
February 9, 2006
Derek Adams
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
It’s a little sad to witness a fall from greatness, and that’s what we get in Halloween II.
October 23, 2004 | Rating: 2/4
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
TOP CRITIC
Hollow and pointless.
May 20, 2022 | Rating: 1/4
Scott Sublett
Washington Blade
Despite Carpenter’s claim that they sought to give audiences what they expected after the first one, they instead supplied a cheap and gristly horror show far removed from the original’s restraint.
March 8, 2022 | Rating: 2/4
Brian Eggert
Deep Focus Review
If Halloween II has a slightly better reputation than most subsequent franchise entries, that says more about their lousiness than II’s intrinsic worth.
November 28, 2021
Peter Sobczynski
The Spool
…makes a dull job of keeping iconic characters apart…
October 3, 2021 | Rating: 1/5
Eddie Harrison
film-authority.com
Most importantly, as the only movie other than the original with all three of Laurie, Loomis and Myers, it has most of the elements that made the classic film so great.
October 16, 2020 | Rating: 7/10
Sean Collier
Box Office Prophets
The suspense generated by the Carpenter/Hill screenplay, which begins with the end of Halloween, builds nerve wrackingly to a satisfying conclusion.
May 27, 2020 | Rating: 3/4
Larry Vitacco
Philadelphia Gay News…
Plot
After Doctor Samuel Loomis shoots Michael Myers six times, Michael escapes and is now on the loose in Haddonfield. Laurie Strode is taken to the hospital and Doctor Loomis continues to hunt down Michael with the help of the police. Michael continues killing the citizens of Haddonfield and heads to the hospital to kill Laurie. It’s now up to an Injured Laurie and Doctor Loomis to stop Michael and his murderous rampage.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
There is no goofy or funny or odd comment about the film Halloween II on Fresh Kernels.
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