I was around the age of 16 or 17 when I first watched John Carpenter’s Halloween. It was the late 1990s and the movie was being shown late night on BBC 2, as part of a season of Saturday night horror films.
While I had heard of Halloween and was vaguely familiar with Michael Myers, at that point in time I knew very little about the movie. In fact, my knowledge of horror movies in general was pretty poor at best and was only starting to improve thanks to my interest in Scream (1996), Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the like.
Halloween changed everything – and I mean everything. Watching Halloween, as well as Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960), kick-started a huge fascination with the horror genre which continued with the likes of Rosemary’s Baby (1968), The Omen (1976), Child’s Play (1988) and many, many more.
But I distinctly remember that first time with Halloween. It was late, I was in bed, I had the TV turned on, and the volume turned down (well, it was late), and I was terrified for 90 minutes.
From the opening sequence, which introduces a young Michael Myers, to the final scene where Michael disappears into the night, I could not take my eyes off the television screen. The simplicity of the movie, paired up with John Carpenter’s nerve shredding score had me completely transfixed.
I remember clearly being terrified as Laurie Strode wandered the streets of Haddonfield, while being stalked by Michael. Of all the scenes in the movie, that is what freaked me out the most as the ‘monster’ was moving around during the day!
DURING THE DAY!
Still to this day whenever I watch Halloween I get creeped out at the sight of Michael Myers walking around Haddonfield in broad daylight, watching and waiting to strike. It’s pure nightmare fuel.
There’s also something truly sinister about the scene where Michael is stood in Laurie’s backyard, amongst a collection of newly washed sheets. It’s casual. It’s natural. It could happen in anyone’s backyard.
Oh sweet lord, it could happen in my backyard! OK, I don’t have a backyard but that doesn’t mean I don’t worry about this happening one day.
*Shudder*
Anyway, back to the ’90s and a couple of days after I first watched Halloween I ordered the movie on cassette tape from the Britannia Video Club (a VHS mail order service which was popular in the UK). The video was bundled up as a double-feature with Halloween II (1981).
I watched that damn tape countless times over the next few weeks. Jeez, I must have worn that tape out, but I couldn’t get enough.
This was horror on a scale I simply wasn’t familiar with. I knew it was something special.
Over the years I upgraded my Halloween tape to DVD, before eventually switching to a HD copy. No matter the format, I kept Halloween close.
Even after all these years, there’s something about Halloween which really gets under my skin. Always has, always will.
The original Halloween was a game-changer for me as it demonstrated just how good horror could be. I’ll never forget the first time I watched it or how truly scared I was.
—
—
Thank you for stopping by It’s A Stampede! to read this post about Halloween. For more posts, be sure to check out the recommended reads below.
It's A Stampede! 
Leave a comment