The Halloween film franchise has spanned nearly 50 years of Hollywood history. Like many long-running series, it’s seen its share of highs and lows. It also had an identity crisis three installments into its run. Halloween III: Season of the Witch holds a special place in the franchise, though, for being the only entry not involving Michael Myers. And we do mean the villain, not the Canadian comedy actor. It’s a divisive entry that’s perhaps less divisive now thanks to time and distance. Not to mention, the film is stellar compared to more awkward entries that would later come to be. And if you haven’t seen Halloween III, you can get a chance to do so on the big screen for one night only in September.
Theatrical Re-Releases
We’ve talked up theatrical re-releases before. For example, we reported on The Texas Chainsaw Massacre coming back just a few months ago. Any chance you can get to see a horror classic in a larger viewing environment is a good thing. This September you’ll have the chance to watch not just Halloween III, but the first two installments as well, courtesy of AMC and Halloween: The Game. Yes, corporate synergy is at play here. On September 8th, 2026, you can play as Michael Myers in single-player, or hapless teenagers in multiplayer mode to survive the night. Of course, you can also play as Myers in multiplayer too in the asymmetrical setup they’ve got going.
It’s as good a time as ever to leverage the films to market the game. Plus, spooky season is coming up too, so it all fits. September 4th, 2026, AMC will play host to the first Halloween, written and directed by John Carpenter. The second film will follow on the 5th, with Halloween III concluding things on September 6th. Rewatching the original picture will surely be a delight. The little background details of Myers stalking Laurie, the iconic piano theme, Donald Pleasence running around and screaming; it’s all phenomenal.
Halloween
Halloween II is more of a mixed bag. Carpenter still wrote the film, but he didn’t direct it. His absence is notable. The movie ratchets up the action and gore and loses the chilling suspense of the original. While it’s not a bad movie, especially by comparison to later installments, it’s not great. It can be fun, and it’s also the film that reveals Michael is Laurie’s brother. Of course, this is not necessarily canon anymore thanks to the more recent Halloween trilogy. That’s a different topic for a different day, though. We need to talk about 1982’s Halloween III: Season of the Witch.
Halloween III was created under the notion that the franchise should be like an anthology series. Instead of each movie being about Myers, each one could be its own thing. They could be different stories about creepy crap that happens on Halloween. This was supposed to be the start of that kind of storytelling. Ultimately it would be the only attempt at this, and it’s not hard to see why. Halloween III is an astonishingly messy, bewildering, and recklessly assembled film. It openly washes over key plot points, makes very little sense when you try to break down character actions and plot twists, and it doesn’t seem to know whether it wants to be campy or not. Make no mistake, it IS camp in all of its glory. Was it trying to be, though?
Halloween III
A lot of credit needs to go to Tom Atkins, who plays our heroic lead, Dr. Chalis. He plays every ridiculous moment with complete seriousness. It doesn’t matter how many robots, parts of Stonehenge, or magic masks are thrown at him. This man makes every second transpire with gravity. He doesn’t ever stop to think, “The hell is this weirdness? How long was she a robot for?” Nope, he just makes sure that he’s going to yell at a television station over the telephone by the end of this adventure. Dr. Chalis is a serious man in a living cartoon and doesn’t care to realize it.
Meanwhile, on the other end, we have Dan O’Herlihy. He plays the villain, Conal Cochran. O’Herlihy knows he’s in a ridiculous film. It’s almost to the point where even his character knows he’s in a movie. He is hamming it up more than Circe at a naval yard. You half expect him to turn directly towards the camera and start winking at you. It’s like he’s about to say, “You think that was bad? Watch this shit.” *wink* But it’s that energy that makes him so awesome. The contrast between Cochran and Chalice makes the entire film more enjoyable. And when Cochran takes the time to explain his evil actions, he basically confesses it’s all for fun. Dude just wants to kill kids for kicks and giggles.
The Score
If there’s one thing that’s legitimately good about the movie, though, it’s what John Carpenter contributes as a composer. The film goes out of its way to have one hell of an atmospheric soundtrack. Its heavy use of synths makes it more akin to an 80s sci-fi movie. That just adds to the charm. It doesn’t feel out of place in the context of the movie, but is completely alien to the franchise in general. Regardless, it’s creepy. It’s exactly what it needs to be and accomplishes it with more style and substance than the film would otherwise deserve.
Oh, and then there’s the Silver Shamrock jingle. Throughout the film, there is a commercial for the Silver Shamrock company run by Cochran. The jingle for the advertisement is the conveniently free public domain song, “London Bridge Is Falling Down.” Back it up with a beeping synth line and handclaps, throw in some lyrics that count down to Halloween, and you’ve got yourself a hit, baby! “Eight more days to Halloween, Halloween, Halloween. Eight more days to Halloween, Silver Shamrock!” Michael Jackson wishes he wrote this instead of Thriller.
So yeah, the first three Halloween movies are coming to AMC theaters. That’s great. But if you can only see one of them, see Halloween III: Season of the Witch. This is the kind of film that should not exist as a major motion picture. It’s a movie that you would’ve expected to see on an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000 but ended up as part of a major franchise. Happy Samhain, everybody!
