Halloween Films Ranked

I’ve figured out what the Halloween franchise is. It’s a choose your own adventure!

Thirteen films across arguably six different timelines. Add in both masks and films of hugely differing quality to a hefty dose of lorem and it’s perfect to get stuck into. I do wish they’d be more creative with their titles though; I’ve not had to date so many films to tell them apart before.

So as I’ve seen all the Halloween films, I’ve ranked them. But just as important as the quality of the film is the quality of the Michael, so I’ll judge his movement/mannerisms, and most importantly, his mask.

Suffice to say, there’s a reason the older films persist in putting the original mask on the box covers.

Is he The Boogeyman? Yes, I think he is.


13 – Halloween II (2009)

Rob Zombie is not a subtle filmmaker. With “edgy” dialogue, it feels as though they think they’re clever. They really aren’t. Michael being a voyeur is pretty standard, but H2 is completely OTT. It also manages to be both unnecessarily violent whilst also being tension free.
The predecessor to this film had one thing I could lean into – Loomis. But whereas Pleasance’s version fundamentally still cared, this one is just a dickhead. He’s sold out and he’s not helping anyone.
Certain scenes, especially later ones with the returning Danielle Harris as Annie Brackett, are too much. Brad Dourif is good! But I fundamentally do not like this film. It doesn’t meet any expectations of a Halloween film. It’s gratuitous and self-indulgent. But it’s also not fun

Mask – He isn’t The Shape with half a mask.

Michael – A hulking bum who doesn’t keep the mask on. He’s far too emotional. He even grunts at one point.

12 – Halloween III: Season of the Witch

I absolutely understand why Carpenter wanted to make Halloween an anthology and move into other areas. But if you’re going to step away from Michael, you better nail it.
Season of the Witch’s story doesn’t make sense. How did they move Stonehenge? And even if the evil plan is a success…what was going to be gained? Surely there’s a better way to go about it? It’s not overall as violent a film, one gross death aside. But attacking kids is iffy at best in my book.
Dan O’Herlihy is cool to see at least! You know he’s shady as heck, but you can’t deny he’s charming.
It took a long time to getting round to watch this, but it’s rubbish.

Mask – The Shamrock masks are creepy enough, and they’re nicely referenced in Halloween Kills. But are they Michael? No.

Michael – Can’t judge what isn’t there.

11 – Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers

Released six years after ‘Revenge’, ‘Curse’ is saddled with far too much to do. Kicking an explanation for Michael down the road each time was always going to lead to problems. In trying to give him meaning, the film answer no questions, only introducing more! How does a cult manage Michael? Does anyone talk to him?
Beginning with a particularly harsh kill of the now older (but still a teenager) Jamie, the tone is overall grungy and bleak, and…well a bit weird. Which is perfectly summed up by the complete miscasting of a young Paul Rudd. Yep, Ant-Man is in H6, and he sucks hard. At least he has things to do at least, unlike Loomis, who gets done dirty in his last appearance.
Whilst there are some good kills, the real horror is how H6 has been edited. The theatrical version at least is a mess of mashed together scenes. Then there’s the Producer’s Cut, which maybe I’ll get to.
At least the dickhead Dad gets his. Perhaps the most deserving of Myers in all the films.
Also, what’s the with music? Metal techno with screechy guitars has no place here!

Mask – A marked improvement over 4 and 5. Big but right level of detail. And you can’t see the eyes! Hair is too spiky though.

Michael – Brutal with a beer gut. Perhaps his most brutal and cruel in the original films.

10 – Halloween: Resurrection

I don’t hate this film as much I used to. Rosenthal returns, and whilst he doesn’t hit the same same heights as H2, it’s all passable. Resurrection is a dumb film, and extremely of it’s time, but the biggest problem is what to do with Michael once Laurie is gone.
I can appreciate that this timeline couldn’t keep relying on Michael following Laurie. And Curtis had clearly had enough of it. Michael having no plan, and just going home, could be enough. That “peace” being disrupted could be enough of a reason.
The use of the handheld camera, especially when guiding the final girl isn’t wholly ridiculous. It’s not a bad cat and mouse mechanic. But Busta Rhymes is terrible, and ultimately the film doesn’t really know what to do.

Mask – Far too contoured, though perhaps that helps with the grainy footage. If they had made a sequel, the melted mask could have been interesting.

Michael – Miles better than H20. The movements are pretty good, with a decent cadence to it all.

9 – Halloween Ends

I have to appreciate a swing for the fences.
But after not getting enough Laurie in Kills, Ends seems hellbent on giving us as little Michael as it feels it can get away it.
Green and Co are asking a lot of fans with this one I feel, and who knows, maybe it will come together on subsequent viewings as part of the latest trilogy.
But as of now, there isn’t enough of what I need from a Halloween film to balance out the the things Ends wants to do.
Kudos on being definitive in a way that even makes the H20’s ending seem tame.
Check out the style of the title sequence. It says a lot.

Mask – Amazing ’18 mask with burn damage and now possibly moldy. Makes sense. Still looks great.

Michael – We don’t see nearly enough of him. But once rejuvenated he’s the same great Michael of ’18 and Kills.

8 – Halloween (2007)

Rob Zombie’s remake is a waste of time. It’s so occupied with being grimy that it can’t even be bothered to keep up with it’s own story. So much time is spent badly explaining Michael, only for it be ditched halfway through for ‘yep, he’s just evil’.
It’s like the film realises that he doesn’t need explaining.
Pleasance is the King but McDowell is definitely the best part of this; you’re not sure if he legitimately means well or he’s a full on sell out.
How does Michael know who his sister is after so long though?
A brutal but very clumsy reboot. When Michael seems the most fleshed out you know something has gone wrong.

Mask – The mask is great, and looks creepy as hell on a kid.

Michael – His sheer size makes the normal Myers mannerisms feel odd. He even rushes a few times. Can more convincingly walk through a door though.

7 – Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers

A mixed bag. The main positive is Pleasance, as by this point Loomis is absolutely off the chain!
Pleasingly unhinged, he’s screaming in kids’ faces and generally NGAF. He uses a kid as bait, doesn’t care about the police, and has a stroke trying to beat Myers to death. Speaking of kids, Danielle Harris does a great job as Jamie. Rather unsettling that she reminds me of my own daughter, so the distress is that much more pointed for me personally.
The teenagers are annoying (go Michael!). But I can support Tina, who is very protective of young Jamie
I have no idea why the police need Bulk and Skull sound effects though.
I wish it had just got on with things and carried on from 4 properly, but it bottles it.
On the plus side, Michael isn’t mucking about, proving himself handy with farming tools and weirdly (again), a car.
Bloody Thorn and the curse though. Frustrating.

Mask – Never being tucked in winds me up. Far too long but at least no eyes.

Michael – Good build. Moves alright. Pretty solid.

6 – Halloween Kills

I’m so pleased I don’t have a third Halloween II on this list. Yay for named sequels!
Halloween Kills takes the story of 2018 and moves it on in a somewhat logical fashion. It’s predecessor means that perhaps we expect more now, but even when it doesn’t match that level, its still giving plenty of what we want. It’s an ensemble piece that takes some big swings, and mainly sticks it. In the back. With a bloody big knife.

Mask – Following on from ’18 Halloween means it’s still an amazing mask. The fire damage adds a little something to it too.

Michael – Does Michael have a sense of humour? Possibly irony? He’s definitely not a happy bunny, and is happy to be goaded into being even more violent. I like it.

5 – Halloween II

This one feels pretty goofy and is absolutely a response the slew of films released after the original. There are more kills, and though a good number are off-screen what we see is more visceral.
I like how the Hospital CCTV is used, and I like the nurses’ shoes falling off as she dies; it’s a fun touch.
As I’m a sucker for continuity it’s cool to see a callback to Ben Tramer, whilst Pleasance is great as always.
A blinded Michael makes for a tense final confrontation.
Carpenter really wanted this to end, but in doing so adds in a wrinkle that would affect every film after for 40 years; Michael and Laurie being related.
We didn’t need it. Laurie could just be the one who got away. Myers doesn’t need motivation!

Mask – Actually the original mask, just mistreated and on a different head.

Michael – He carries himself well; good pace to him but never rushed.

4 – Halloween H20

I realised something on my most recent watch of this sequel; it isn’t about Michael. Halloween: H20 (cool name) is all about Laurie Strode, how she’s been struggling with her past trauma, and how she ultimately finds the courage to finish the job.
It’s brief run time focuses on Laurie, leaving very little time for slashing. Cerebral would be pushing it, but much like the original it’s not about the gore. Curtis does well to show just how damaged Laurie has become, and thankfully the kids aren’t too annoying.
There are lots of call backs, some snappy Scream-esque dialogue and not every decision made is a stupid one. There aren’t many kills, but Laurie and Michael facing off through the window is iconic. A broken Laurie getting herself together and facing her bogeyman is badass and fitting.

Michael – He moves too fast, and he doesn’t sit up the right way. He’s…OK at best. Shame he’s not on point when Laurie is so good.

Mask – There are entire YT videos on the four(!) different masks used in this films. The best one is from the previous film. A mess.

3 – Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers

H3’s failure meant Myers was nailed on to return. But with no Laurie the H2 family connection had to be leaned on. It’s a good thing they bring back Loomis as well. Pleasance is excellent.
In many ways this one the most Halloweeny. The opening credits set the tone well, whilst exposition is dealt with pleasingly quickly. Harris does an admirable job as Jamie; she had a tricky job on her hands and does well. We may have lot Laurie but we still have Loomis. I love Pleasance.
H4 needed to get things back on track, and it does. If Michael didn’t look so awkward this might rank higher. The final third act is decent, but we know it takes more than some bullets to stop Michael Myers! Lot of love for Sheriff Meeker too.

As time has gone on I’ve come to appreciate this one more.

Michael – He’s unintentionally hilarious at times, which I quite enjoy now. The hockey pads don’t help his stilted motion.

Mask – There are a couple of moments where it looks good. But it spends far too much time exposed, where it’s obviously a poor facsimile. It does him look almost apologetic, or like he saw himself in a mirror.

2 – Halloween (2018)

Everything I need for a horror film is here – lore to read on Wikipedia, a convincing boogeyman, a sense of ‘he’s coming look out!’, and enough brutality to make me wince but not want to throw up. ’78 is a masterclass, but older me prefers the pacing and higher kill-count of ’18.
Laurie, no longer a timid ‘final girl’, is now a hardened and prepared fighter. She hasn’t been able to let go, fracturing her relationship with her family. The Strodes add a core to this film that takes it up a notch for me.
Then there’s Michael, restored to the force he should be.
No stupid looking mask, no nearly ginger hair. He’s brutal without transforming into the fully supernatural killing machine he became as other sequels scrabbled to match other masked killers.
I just like this film a lot. There are one or two things that are a bit silly to me. But this is a horror film I can fully enjoy. My main question is…does Michael even know it’s Laurie? Should we care?
With the trilogy now wrapped up, I think this could have been the perfect finale.

Michael – Age hasn’t slowed him down one bit. Modern times have made him more brutal too. The cadence and movement is all there.

Mask – Totally believable that this is the same mask years later. An amazing recreation, second only to the original.

1 – Halloween (1978)

The original film sets the bar that all other Halloween’s should be measured against. Through the music to the direction, it builds tension and keeps you on your toes. It’s a very patient film, and there’s no denying that by today’s standards it’s very tame. Five kills and next to no blood. Nevertheless it’s a well-crafted and chilling piece, with Carpenter innately understanding how to build a mood. That patience, punctuated by sharp spikes in the unforgettable score, can still make you jump now. The film takes a friendly, safe looking neighbourhood and undercuts it with a sense of dread. Through the voyeuristic gaze of our killer, his breath is the only clue that he’s human at all.
The music’s great, the setting unnervingly benign, and Myers is still the true bogeyman that manages to linger in the back of my mind. I still make sure everything is locked after, and there’s always a glance over my shoulder as I go upstairs.

Mask and Michael – Not much to say, often imitated, never matched.


With so many films across so many timelines it doesn’t really matter if we agree or not. We all know there will be more. How would you rank them?

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