Halloween: Being The Adventures Of Michael Myers | Halloween: The Night He Came Home | Halloween II
Halloween III: The Season Of The Witch | Halloween 4: The Return Of Michael Myers
Halloween 5: The Revenge Of Michael Myers | Halloween: The Curse Of Michael Myers | Halloween: H20 | Halloween: Resurrection

Setting: Haddonfield, Halloween 1995

In an underground basement, a woman gives birth surrounded by candles in a strange, pagan ceremony. The baby is marked with the thorn symbol. The Pointy Hat Man (first seen in Halloween 5) steals the baby from his mother, who is revealed to be Jamie Lloyd - a woman kidnapped from the police station six years earlier.

A nurse helps Jamie take the baby and escape. Jamie steals a truck and drives to a local bus station, where she phones The Barry Sims Show on the radio, begging for help. Listening is Tommy Doyle¹ as well as Dr Loomis and his colleague Dr Wynn, head of Smithsgrove Mental Institute.

Michael comes after Jamie and her baby. Jamie hides the child and drives off, pursued by Michael who catches her and kills her inside a barn. After the murder, he burns the thorn symbol into the hay behind her.

Meanwhile, in Haddonfield, the Myers' House has been transformed into a family home. Laurie Strode's adopted father's brother, John Strode, and his family have moved in, mainly because neither John nor his brother (both estate agents) were able to sell it.

The Strode family is not as happy as outward appearances would suggest. John is a sadistic, drunk bully who is cruel to his wife and children, and has deliberately kept his family ignorant of their home's horrific history. The mother is Debra, a likeable, but weak woman. Their adult children are Tim and Carol, who is despised by John for having a son, Danny. Danny lives in the room that was once Michael's, is the age Michael was when he killed his sister and is plagued by voices that tell him to kill.

Tommy follows a trail of blood in the bus station toilet and finds Jamie's son. He arranges to meet Dr Loomis later that night. He also meets Carol and Danny, and explains the danger they are in. He tells how Michael is controlled by the rare constellation, Thorn, which only appears on some Halloween nights. Whenever it appears, Michael murders, and he warns her to watch her house across the road. They are looked after by Mrs Blankenship (a lady who babysat Michael on the night he murdered his sister), as Tommy goes to visit Dr Loomis.

They meet at a party organised by Tim Strode's girlfriend Beth and hosted by radio DJ Barry Sims, who decides to broadcast his next show from the Myers' house. Tim, Beth and Barry Sims are soon killed by Michael, and Carol, Danny and Jamie's baby are kidnapped by Dr Wynn, who is revealed as the Pointy Shoe Man.

Tommy and Dr Loomis uncover a secret cult society made up of doctors in the basement of Smithsgrove Institute. There they discover that Wynn has attempted to control Michael as his own personal killing weapon, manipulated first through Jamie and now via her baby. Michael rebels against his control, and kills all the members of the cult while Tommy rescues Carol, Danny and the baby. Dr Loomis returns to confront Dr Wynn as Tommy and the others escape - but we hear him scream, finally killed by his nemesis Michael Myers...

Deaths

Cast

Those whose names are in italics are recurring characters.

Review:

After the appallingly bad Revenge, 1995's Curse is a fresh, inventive film - the best Halloween sequel so far. Even having to follow Revenge fails to detract from its brilliance. Sadly, Donald Pleasence, the actor who played Dr Loomis, died while the film was being made. However, even this does little to detract from it. The scenes he is in are a fine monument to this brilliant, understated actor, and the film, dedicated to his memory, is a tribute to his skill. Many films are hindered by the loss of their star, yet Curse is able to move seamlessly on. Only the ending - which would have proved a showdown between Loomis and Wynn - feels as if it was adlibbed, Dr Loomis's death is heard off-screen, bringing a shocking end to the film.

Unlike Revenge, which tried to be little more than a remake of Return, Curse is not afraid to try new approaches, and in fact brims over with them.

Gone is the simplistic 'let's just film lots of people being killed' approach, as Curse introduces us to a host of original ideas and characters we root for. They are, unlike those in its immediate predecessor, likeable, well thought-out, and in many ways unique.

It is true that some of the new ideas do not quite work. The greatest failure is that of suggesting that Michael has a symbol, the thorn. This is the first mention of it in the series, and seems unnecessary, as does the astrological reason behind his killing. The idea of a live broadcast from the Myers House is one that will be returned to in Halloween: Resurrection, and though the character of Mrs Blankenship, Michael's babysitter, is under-used, this is perhaps a blessing as this twist could so easily have failed and seemed corny. Even the Pointy Shoe Man comes to life to some respect through the character of Dr Wynn, although sadly we do not see a satisfying ending for him.

After seeing Curse, you once again feel the excitement of wanting to know what happens next, even more so than after the conclusion of Return. The characters are so well developed that they leave a strong impression on you. Tommy Doyle is one of them - a man whose earliest memory is of seeing Michael Myers attacking, and as a result has become obsessed with him. Danny is a member of the family who adopted Laurie Strode. He is the age Michael was when he killed his sister, and hears the same voices that Michael did. You never know which path he'll take, especially after seeing him threaten his grandfather with a knife. Kara, too, is a far cry from the annoying Tina, and is a character you strongly empathise for. Laurie's child, too, intrigues, as he is the last living relative of Michael Myers.

Not only that, but both Michael and possibly even Dr Wynn are still at large in Haddonfield, waiting for the opportunity to strike again...

Further Reading

Halloween: Being The Adventures Of Michael Myers
• Halloween: The Night He Came Home
• Halloween II
• Halloween III: The Season Of The Witch
• Halloween 4: The Return Of Michael Myers
• Halloween 5: The Revenge Of Michael Myers
• Halloween: H20
• Halloween: Resurrection