Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers is a 1988 horror slasher film and the fourth entry in the franchise. It was directed by Dwight H. Little (Freddy’s Nightmares; The Phantom of the Opera; Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid) from a screenplay written by Alan B. McElroy.
The central plot focuses on Michael Myers returning home to kill his niece Jamie Lloyd (Danielle Harris), the daughter of Laurie Strode, with Doctor Loomis (Donald Pleasence) once more pursuing him. Exploitation veteran Michael Pataki (Grave of the Vampire; Mansion of the Doomed; Graduation Day) plays Doctor Hoffman.
As the title suggests, this film marks the return of Michael Myers, the central villain of Halloween (1978) and Halloween II (1981), due to his absence in Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982).
Initially, John Carpenter and co-producer Debra Hill retired the Myers plot outline after the second instalment of the series, intending to feature a new Halloween-season related plot every sequel, of which Halloween III would be the first. However, due to the disappointing financial performance of the third film, Halloween 4 reintroduced a Myers-related plot.
Having miraculously survived the explosion at the end of Halloween II and been in a coma since, Michael Myers escapes while being transferred via ambulance between sanitariums, killing the driver and paramedics.
Prior to escaping, Michael learns that Laurie died in a car accident and that she has a daughter, Jamie Lloyd. He returns to Haddonfield to try and kill her. Doctor Samuel Loomis, Michael’s old psychiatrist, who also survived the explosion ten years earlier, learns of Michael’s escape and resumes his pursuit to try to stop his murderous patient. He follows Michael to a small gas station and eatery, where Loomis learns Michael has killed a mechanic for his clothes, along with a clerk. Michael then escapes in a tow truck and causes a small explosion, destroying Loomis’s car in the process. Loomis is then forced to hitchhike.
Meanwhile, in the town of Haddonfield, eight-year-old Jamie Lloyd is living with her foster family, the Carruthers, who happened to be close friends of Laurie’s. It is Halloween and Jamie’s foster parents, Richard and Darlene, are heading out for the night and foster sister Rachel is forced to babysit – causing her to miss her date with her boyfriend Brady. Jamie knows about her uncle, Michael Myers, but is unaware he is the strange man she has been having nightmares about…
Technical specs:
1 hour 28 minutes
Aspect ratio: 1.85: 1
Audio: Ultra Stereo
Buy Blu-ray: Amazon.co.uk
Buy Blu-ray: Amazon.com
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