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“Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers” Review | Familiar Shape Fits Nonetheless
Spoilers beware.
When you watch a Halloween sequel for the first time, you never really know what you’re going to get. The level of quality present in the 1978 original is never in question, but the rest of the franchise has been a real roller coaster since the release of Halloween II in 1981. I’ve yet to watch all 13 of these movies — Halloween, Halloween II, Season of the Witch, and the DGG trilogy from Blumhouse are my exposure to the series thus far — but I’ve had the urge to experience the whole of what Halloween has to offer for a few years now. Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers is the latest entry that I’ve watched for the first time, released in 1988 as a new direction for the franchise after Season of the Witch landed far below studio expectations. Michael Myers’ return after 7 years mostly succeeds, though I would describe it as a middle-of-the-road Halloween sequel.
10 years after Michael Myers’ first rampage across Haddonfield, “The Shape” is ordered to be transferred from a federal sanitarium back to Smith’s Grove. Awakened once again by the presence of his hometown, Michael Myers awakens from his comatose state, killing everyone inside the transporting ambulance and escapes into the night. Dr. Loomis, scarred from the explosion but still alive after all this…
