What were peoples reactions when Halloween 2 came out? There’s been some talk about how disappointed people were in the mask when The return of Michael Myers came out. But what about H2? Because he did look quite different in the sequel to Halloween.
H4 was number one at the box office for I believe an entire month after it’s release and if people were disappointed in the mask it definately didn’t reflect in it’s sales…and other than the grungy nicotine laced yellowness courtesy of Debra Hill’s smoke filled apartment and Dick Warlock’s head being shaped differently than Nick Castle’s, H2’s mask always looked the same to me and it was one of the 3 left over from the original…H2 however was a “disappointment” to people and at the box office, but I still to this day can’t figure out why…The most common line I hear when people say they didn’t like H2 is " uhh…I don’t know…it just wasn’t as good as the original."
I saw Halloween II first when I was 10 years old in 1985 and was desperate to see the original after that. When I finally saw it, I could tell it was a different person in there, but the mask gave me the same creepy feeling, and I felt it was possibly the same one. Once Halloween 4 came around, that creepy feeling I got when I saw the mask just wasn’t the same - and I was really disappointed. In a lot of aspects with 4, but over the years, it really has grown on me.
Then part 5 came along, and I felt DEVASTATED by the way the mask looked!!
My understanding is that the mask used in H2 is actually the same mask used in the original, but Dick Warlock and Nick Castle had different shaped faces, which ended up giving the mask a slightly different look when worn by each actor… Now maybe they added some more dirt & grime to the mask as well for part 2. I’m sure there are people out there who can speak with more authority on this, but that’s what I remember reading.
I too saw H2 before I ever saw the original, and I was always a big H2 fan. Knowing that there was a previous movie, I always wanted to see the original, and when I did, it was a religious experience to say the least! WOW. But to this day, even if the original may technically be considered a better film, I still enjoy watching H2 every bit as much as the original. Maybe actually a bit more in some ways. One thing I know for sure is that I consider both to be horror classics, and they both have that Carpenter feel that I love so much.