Michael Myers attacks trick-or-treaters on Halloween

Michael Myers survives his descent into a mind shaft from the previous movie and holds up with a hermit for a year before returning to his hometown in Illinois to attack his niece during Halloween and any trick-or-treaters who get in the way. As usual, Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence) is on his trail.

“Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers” (1989) has the best sense of Halloween up to this point in the Michael Myers story arc with a considerable amount of the runtime involving the entertaining shenanigans of trick-or-treaters. While it’s not great like the previous entry it’s pretty much on par with the original 1978 movie and I actually prefer it even though it’s less classy/arty and more blunt. Remember the infamous closet scene in the original? This one has a similarly effective sequence revolving around a clothes chute and Jaimie Lloyd.

Ellie Cornell returns from the previous movie as Rachel and looks better, but it’s charismatic raven-haired Wendy Foxworth as Tina who’s the main protagonist (aside from Jaimie, that is) with blonde Tamara Glynn offering support as Samantha. There’s also a Fonzie wannabe and his bud.

This is the first movie in the series to throw in a little camp and comic booky-ness like the “Friday the 13th” franchise did with “Part III” (1982) and subsequent installments. The campiness has to do with the two goofy deputies and the comic booky-ness relates to the mysterious man-in-black and the corresponding twist at the end, which is supposed to segue into “Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers” (1995). Like “Friday the 13th Part III,” there’s a long sequence involving a similar-looking barn.

As with “Halloween 4,” the movie was shot in the greater Salt Lake City area, Utah.

GRADE: B