Synopsis:
I've made extensive alterations in order to Shape my ideal version. Many changes have been made to strengthen continuity, remove filler & improve pacing.
Intentions:
My intention was to create a tighter version that injects new energy while retaining the original mood.
Change List:
-added my production logo.
-new "a Dwight H. Little Film" credit.
TITLE CARD / OPENING CREDITS-
-new remixed opening theme using the tracks Pt.4 Opening & Darkest Night.
-cut the "October, 3Oth 1988" title.
-extended the shot after the Mustapha Akkad credit fades-out.
-moved the Donald Pleasance credit to the cast credits.
-new title card removes the numeral from the original title.
-removed the "in" from the Donald Pleasance credit.
-extended the final shot of the ambulance drivers.
-fade-out on the final shot of the ambulance drivers.
-added the "October, 3Oth 1988" title, cut earlier.
AT THE FEDERAL SANITARIUM-
-cut the security guard going over Michael's entire life story.
-some of the guards dialog plays over different shots.
-shortened the shot of the paramedic putting on her stethoscope.
-the paramedic doesn't take so long to apply the blood pressure cuff.
-cut Michael's arm falling off the gurney.
-cut a shot of the paramedic removing her stethoscope.
-cut a shot of the paramedic removing the blood pressure cuff.
-the paramedic's "Alright. Let's move him." begins earlier, over the previous shot.
IN THE AMBULANCE-
-extended the HALLOWEEN 4 Theme using the OST version of the original theme. (H1)
-cut Michael making a fist when the paramedic mentions his niece.
-cut the paramedic saying "And?".
-extended music fades-out when Michael attacks.
JAMIE CAN'T SLEEP-
-cut the shot of an ambulance parked outside the Carruthers house.
-cut Rachel saying "Are you going for a record? The 7-year-olds' hall of fame?"
-cut Rachel saying "Ugh, serious questions tonight?"
-cut the shot showing that the ambulance is gone.
-cut Jamie saying "Sure it does."
-cut Rachel saying "Your mom used to babysit me. Bet you didn't know that."
-shortened the shot of the window before Jamie closes it.
-cut Jamie having & looking at pictures of young Michael Myers.
-added an additional shot of Jamie's photo of Laurie. (reversed from earlier)
-cut the shot of the window & tree branches.
-cut the reflection of Michael in Jamie's mirror.
-new music fades in as Jamie prays. (Pt.4 Opening)
-fade-out after Jamie says "Amen."
-cut Jamie's dream about being attacked by Michael.
HALLOWEEN MORNING-
-new music continues over the establishing shot of the Carruthers house.
-fade-in on the shot leading to the Carruthers house.
-cut Rachel saying "I'm on a diet. Do you want an oinker for a daughter?"
-cut Rachel explaining how missing her date with Brady could ruin her life.
-cut Rachel saying "...get dressed-up in a really scary costume and..."
LOOMIS CONFRONTS DR. HOFFMAN-
-cut Loomis calling Michael "Evil on two legs."
-cut loomis asking "Do you know the date?" after "Do you know what today is?"
-Dr. Hoffman answers his phone on the first ring.
AMBULANCE CRASH SITE-
-cut Loomis asking how many were on board & the officer's response.
-shortened the wide bridge shot so Loomis is in the right place in the next shot.
-cut Loomis saying "He's gone. He was here, but now..."
-part of Hoffman's "Give the troopers a chance." is heard over a different shot.
-cut Hoffman saying "Even if he is somehow conscious, his muscles would be useless."
-Hoffman's "Now where are you going?" is heard over two different shots.
-edited Hoffman's "Now where are you going?" to have a quicker cadence.
TROUBLE AT THE SERVICE STATION-
-shortened the shot of Loomis pulling up to the fuel pumps.
-shortened the shot of Loomis parking his car.
-cut Loomis attempting to pump gas.
-cut Loomis attempting to use the old phone on the wall.
-cut Loomis begging Michael to not go to Haddonfield.
JAMIE AT SCHOOL-
-re-scored the scene with the track Pt.4 Opening.
-kids pick on Jamie because of her uncle Michael, not for being an orphan.
-cut two shots of the kids laughing at Jamie.
-looped audio so the kids taunt "Jamie's uncle's the boogieman!" longer.
-added sound effects of kids laughing.
-cut a shot of Jamie running from school.
-slo-mo on a shot of Jamie to better match the previous shot.
IN THE CAR-
-fixed an audio edit when cutting from the car driving away to Jamie in the back.
-cut Rachel introducing "Lindsey". (I like to think Lindsey is Tina from H5)
-cut some of Rachel & Tina's conversation about Brady.
AT VINCENT'S DRUG STORE-
-shortened the shot panning to Kelly pricing merchandise.
-shortened the shot of Tina's car approaching the drug store.
-cut Rachel & Brady making-out while Jamie looks for a costume.
-extended a shot of Jamie looking into the mirror.
-cut Jamie seeing a young Michael in the mirror.
-corrected the audio sync when Rachel crashes into the card rack.
-Jamie calls Michael "The boogieman" instead of "The nightmare man."
-added music to create a smoother transition into the next scene. (Pt.4 Opening)
HITCHIN' A RIDE-
-cut the first car ignoring Loomis & driving past him.
-shortened a shot so that the dust cloud is already covering Loomis.
-cut Rev. Sayer saying "I saw it clear as breasts in blue suede shoes."
GOING TRICK R' TREATING-
-cut Rachel telling Jamie to hurry up a second time.
-cut several black frames after Michael's POV looks away.
-Michael only finds pictures of Laurie in Jamie's room, not of himself.
THE BOYS AT THE BAR-
-cut Earl remarking that Sheriff Meeker wouldn't be afraid of aliens.
LOOMIS & SHERIFF MEEKER AT THE CARRUTHER'S HOUSE-
-cut Loomis finding the pictures of little Michael.
AT THE POWER STATION-
-re-scored the scene with the track Darkest Night.
-shuffled several shots when the technician is killed.
-moved a shot of the power going out at a house.
-cut a shot of Michael.
-cut a couple shots of the sparking machinery.
-extended the shot of a house after the power goes out.
-shortened a shot of sparking machinery.
RACHEL LOOKS FOR JAMIE-
-continued -re-scoring using the track Darkest Night.
-shortened a shot of Rachel to match her position the next shot.
-removed a stray piano note from the films soundmix.
-extended the shot of the jack-o-lantern after Jamie walks away.
-cut Rachel seeing Michael & running scared. (she doesn't know what's up yet)
LOOMIS & MEEKER FIND RACHEL & JAMIE-
-replaced a shot of Jamie & Rachel in the back of the car with one cut later.
A GROUP OF FAKE MICHAELS-
-cut this entire scene.
AT THE POLICE STATION-
-shortened the shot panning across the desk.
-cut "My men would have fought back"/"They didn't know what they were fighting."
-increased the volume of Loomis' reply, "Evil."
-tighter edit so that the dialog between Meeker & Earl is faster, more intense.
-cut Earl saying "We're gonna fry his ass."
MOB IN THE PARK-
-re-scored the scene with the track Outside the House.
-shortened the guys shooting into the bushes.
-added additional gunfire sounds to match what we're seeing.
-cut Earl calling Orrin a "Dumb son of a bitch."
KELLY & BRADY AT THE MEEKER HOUSE-
-cut Kelly suggesting they go upstairs.
-shortened a shot of Brady by the fire.
-shortened a shot of Kelly & Brady making-out.
PREPARING FOR MICHAEL-
-re-scored the scene with the track Upstairs.
-cut Sheriff Meeker getting the rifle out of the gun cabinet.
-cut Deputy Logan asking Sheriff Meeker "Aren't we going overboard?"
-cut Jamie saying "The kids at school were right."
-cut Deputy Logan nailing the shutters closed.
-shortened a shot of Brady walking through the attic.
-cut Brady getting scared by a sound.
-Kelly's kettle whistle begins during an earlier shot.
-switched Rachel leaving Jamie asleep & Meeker radioing the state troopers.
-shortened the shot of Rachel coming down the stairs.
-cut Rachel talking with deputy Logan.
-cut Rachel & Kelly's chat in the kitchen.
ESCAPE FROM THE MEEKER HOUSE-
-cut Rachel asking "What does that mean?" when Brady can't break the lock.
-Brady doesn't fumble around with the rifle as long.
-Michael doesn't take as long to climb the stairs.
-cut Rachel yelling at Michael to "Leave us alone!"
-added sound effects as Michael climbs over the clutter on the stairs.
UP ON THE ROOF-
-cut a shot of Rachel & Jamie climbing to the top of the roof.
-cut a shot of Michael standing up.
-cut one of Rachel's "I've got you!"s.
-cut a shot of Michael sauntering across the rooftop.
-new sound effect when Rachel hits the ground.
DOWN ON THE GROUND-
-cut one of Jamie's "Come alive!"s.
-shortened a shot of Jamie crying over Rachel.
-shortened the shot of Jamie crossing the street.
-shortened the shot of Jamie & Loomis taking off towards the school.
IN THE SCHOOL-
-frame-by-frame Photoshop work to fix the shots of Michael's unpainted pink mask.
--(I've had no luck dying the hair brown... sorry.)
-cut Jamie suddenly being far from Michael after Loomis is thrown out the window.
-cut Jamie running down the hall, trying locked doors.
-cut Jamie seeing Michael on the stairs before she runs down them.
-cut another shot of Michael standing on the stairs.
-shortened the 1st shot of Rachel spraying the fire extinguisher into the camera.
-altered the color timing of the 2nd extinguisher spray to remove the brown tint.
-2nd fire extinguisher spray fades into the following shot of the truck.
TRUCK RESCUE-
-re-scored the scene with the track Shape Attack.
-cut Earl asking "Where?" & Rachel replying "In the school!"
-cut a shot of the swings as Jamie pleads with the men to not go inside.
-Jamie's dialog is heard over the shots of the school hallways.
-added the sound of the truck starting.
-shortened the shot of the truck rounding the corner.
-moved the shot of the guys in the back of the truck.
-cut the guy in the back firing his shotgun when he sees the state troopers.
TRUCK ATTACK-
-shortened a shot to match Michael & Al's position from the previous shot.
-shortened the shot of the men falling out of the back.
-cut a shot of Earl driving as the men in back are attacked.
-cut a shot of Jamie & Rachel after the men in back are killed.
-shortened the shot of Michael standing up after being thrown from the truck.
-cut a shot of Rachel as she's shifting gears.
DOWN TO THE WELL-
-cut & shuffled several shots during the shoot-out.
-added a shot of Jamie & Loomis from HALLOWEEN 5.
-added 3 shots of the troopers dropping dynamite down the well from HALLOWEEN 5.
-added additional sound effects when the well caves in.
BACK AT THE CARRUTHER'S HOUSE-
-music begins as Darlene starts drawing the bath. (Michael's Finale)
-shortened the beginning of Jamie's 1st POV.
-music continues through the shot of Darlene preparing the bath.
-cut a shot of the tub filling with water.
-shortened the beginning of Jamie's 2nd POV.
-added a slash sound as the footage cuts to black.
END CREDITS-
-new end credits music. (H4 Theme, H1 Theme (OST ver), Darkest Night & Still He Kills)
-added the title card before the credits roll.
-adjusted the color & contrast to make the credits text orange.
POST CREDITS-
-added & extended a shot of the Carruther's house.
-added the Trick r' Treat rhyme from the beginning of the original HALLOWEEN.
-added my production logo to the end.
-added a cue from the track Michael Kills Judith.
Additional Notes:
I wanted the editing to feel more kinetic without any obvious changes. This version has a quicker pulse than the original, but still feels like the '78 classic.
Other Sources:
SOURCES USED: VIDEO- -Halloween (Shout! Factory bluray, 2021) ADDITIONAL AUDIO- -Halloween 2007 (Lionsgate bluray, 2011) -Halloween Soundtrack (Varèse Sarabande Records, 1983) -I'm Your Boogie Man by K.C. & the Sunshine Band (from the album Part 3, 1976) -Sound Effects (YouTube.com).
Special Thanks: