Halloween 5 (1989)

User Rating:

4.5/10   

Directors:

Dominique Othenin-Girard
Arthur Speer

Writers:

John Carpenter (characters) and
Debra Hill (characters) ...

Release Date:

13 October 1989 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Michael Lives, And This Time They're Ready!

Plot:

It's one year later after the events of Halloween 4. Michael survives the shootings and on October 31st he returns with a vengeance...

Plot Keywords:

Halloween | Michael Myers | Dark | Police | Party

Cast

Ellie Cornell	...	Rachel Carruthers
Beau Starr	...	Sheriff Ben Meeker
Donald Pleasence	...	Dr. Sam Loomis
Danielle Harris	...	Jamie Lloyd
Harper Roisman	...	Mountain Man
Karen Alston	...	Darlene Carruthers (archive footage)
Betty Carvalho	...	Nurse Patsey
Max Robinson	...	Dr. Max Hart
Wendy Kaplan	...	Tina Williams
Jeffrey Landman	...	Billy Hill
Frank Como	...	Deputy Nick Ross
David Ursin	...	Deputy Tom Farrah
Tamara Glynn	...	Samantha Thomas
Stanton Davis	...	Young Policeman
Jonathan Chapin	...	Mikey

Also Known As:

Halloween 5: Michael Myers' Revenge (USA) (working title)
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (USA) (poster title)

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:R (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Singapore:PG (cut) | USA:R (#29954) | Australia:MA (DVD rating) | Australia:R (original rating) | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Iceland:(Banned) | Netherlands:16 | Norway:15 (video re-release) | Sweden:15 (1998 re-release) | UK:18 | West Germany:18 | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

Layton, Utah, USA

Company:

Magnum Pictures Inc.

Trivia:

On the audio commentary for the DVD it's stated that Greg Nicotero and Wendy Kaplan were seeing each other during filming.

Goofs:

Continuity: Dr. Loomis shoots tranquilizer darts at Michael from a bolt-action rifle. He makes two shots in a row without reloading.

Quotes:

[When Spitz pretends to be Michael Myers]
Deputy Tom: Definitely not funny! Somebody could be dead right now!
Deputy Nick: Fortunately we're lousy cops.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Halloween: 25 Years of Terror (2006) (V)

Soundtrack:

Second Time Around

Apart from Pleasence, everyone in the film is just going through the motions.

When the original Halloween was made it was scary because of its gritty realism and believable characters. Part 2 was also an edge-of-seater. But by the time you reach this, Part 5, the tension has gone from the series and Michael Myers has descended from a believable shadow-stalking figure into an unkillable Jason 'Friday the 13th' Voorhees clone.

For what its worth, the plot of this film involves Myers coming after Jamie, who is now in a childrens' psychiatric hospital after attacking her stepmother. The concept of Jamie having a psychic bond with her deranged uncle is interesting, but it's all completely ruined by the constant unfunny attempts at humour, the tedious padding and the lack of likeable would-be victims. Instead of genuine characters all we have here are Porky-style sex-mad teenagers with nothing approaching an IQ between them. There's even a scene set in a barn similar to the one in some of the Friday the 13th films. And Rachel from Part 4 seems to have been reduced to a stereotype blonde airhead whose only purpose in the film is to run around half-naked before being slaughtered. And why does Myers' mask look nothing like the one he wore in the previous films?

One good point in this film is Donald Pleasence, who is at his best as an overwhelming Dr Loomis who dominates his every scene and makes the film worth viewing. There is also an enigmatic Man in the Black Fedora-type figure who leads the film into the far superior Part 6.