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‘Halloween’ at 40: The Video Game Where He (Sort Of) Came Home

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40 years of halloween atari 2600

Even in the simpler early days of video games, the movie tie-in game was a common occurrence. Horror was surprisingly well represented at this time with the late 70’s and early 80’s seeing Jason Voorhees, Leatherface, Jaws, and more star in oversimplified fare. The tale of John Carpenter’s Halloween video game debut is a strange one though.

Halloween was released on the Atari 2600 in 1983 by Wizard Video (Yes, the same one behind the VHS release of a host of video nasties), five whole years after Micheal Myers first stalked his way around Haddonfield. The general objective of the game is for the player, cast as a babysitter, to protect the children in their care from The Shape, who has invited himself in for a spot of murder. The screen is split into two and the babysitter can move between screens via doorways (as can Myers).

To score points, you had to find a child and escort them to the other side of the house without The Shape butchering either of you. If he did, you lost one of your Jack-O-Lanterns (basically lives). If you got lucky, then you could get hold of a weapon to fend off The Shape for a short time, though the appearance of retaliation is somewhat ambiguous as Myers just tends to wander off hurriedly like he forgot a previous engagement rather than look injured or stunned. Naturally, things get tougher and tougher as you progress.

It sort of sounds like Halloween, doesn’t it? But already there’s something a bit off. Almost like a license was draped over the top of a pre-existing game.

If there was anything that confuses the situation further then it’s how that license is applied. With the exception of the game’s box art using the iconic movie poster, the game itself never makes reference to any of the characters from that film. That bizarrely includes Micheal himself. The cartridge only had a sticker with ‘Halloween’ written on it in plain text too. The classic John Carpenter theme song does make the cut at least and is a pretty good stab at it given the technical limitations. It’s especially cool how it kicks in anytime The Shape appears on screen, brandishing his knife.

Despite being incredibly tame to look at, Halloween courted plenty of controversy for its subject matter. After all, having a game that sees kids killed off in an age where games had yet to have that watershed moment, where they were seen as more than children’s playthings, was never going to go down well regardless of what you did or didn’t see.

Wizard Video Games had already caused a stir earlier that year with a game based loosely on The Texas Chainsaw Massacre where players could go around offing victims as Leatherface. That game’s biggest crime was that it was wholly unpleasant to play beyond any implied grisliness.

Halloween - Atari VCS 2600 Box Art Cover Scan

Halloween on the Atari 2600 doesn’t really stand up to scrutiny 35 years on. It wasn’t the greatest game to begin with really. To its credit, you can at least say it did convey the panic of being chased by a seemingly unstoppable entity, even if that entity is unrecognizable as one of the most iconic killers in cinema history.

Editorials

‘Leprechaun Returns’ – The Charm of the Franchise’s Legacy Sequel

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leprechaun returns

The erratic Leprechaun franchise is not known for sticking with a single concept for too long. The namesake (originally played by Warwick Davis) has gone to L.A., Las Vegas, space, and the ‘hood (not once but twice). And after an eleven-year holiday since the Davis era ended, the character received a drastic makeover in a now-unmentionable reboot. The critical failure of said film would have implied it was time to pack away the green top hat and shillelagh, and say goodbye to the nefarious imp. Instead, the Leprechaun series tried its luck again.

The general consensus for the Leprechaun films was never positive, and the darker yet blander Leprechaun: Origins certainly did not sway opinions. Just because the 2014 installment took itself seriously did not mean viewers would. After all, creator Mark Jones conceived a gruesome horror-comedy back in the early nineties, and that format is what was expected of any future ventures. So as horror legacy sequels (“legacyquels”) became more common in the 2010s, Leprechaun Returns followed suit while also going back to what made the ‘93 film work. This eighth entry echoed Halloween (2018) by ignoring all the previous sequels as well as being a direct continuation of the original. Even ardent fans can surely understand the decision to wipe the slate clean, so to speak.

Leprechaun Returns “continued the [franchise’s] trend of not being consistent by deciding to be consistent.” The retconning of Steven Kostanski and Suzanne Keilly’s film was met with little to no pushback from the fandom, who had already become accustomed to seeing something new and different with every chapter. Only now the “new and different” was familiar. With the severe route of Origins a mere speck in the rearview mirror, director Kotanski implemented a “back to basics” approach that garnered better reception than Zach Lipovsky’s own undertaking. The one-two punch of preposterous humor and grisly horror was in full force again.

LEPRECHAUN

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

With Warwick Davis sitting this film out — his own choice — there was the foremost challenge of finding his replacement. Returns found Davis’ successor in Linden Porco, who admirably filled those blood-stained, buckled shoes. And what would a legacy sequel be without a returning character? Jennifer Aniston obviously did not reprise her final girl role of Tory Redding. So, the film did the next best thing and fetched another of Lubdan’s past victims: Ozzie, the likable oaf played by Mark Holton. Returns also created an extension of Tory’s character by giving her a teenage daughter, Lila (Taylor Spreitler).

It has been twenty-five years since the events of the ‘93 film. The incident is unknown to all but its survivors. Interested in her late mother’s history there in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, Lila transferred to the local university and pledged a sorority — really the only one on campus — whose few members now reside in Tory Redding’s old home. The farmhouse-turned-sorority-house is still a work in progress; Lila’s fellow Alpha Epsilon sisters were in the midst of renovating the place when a ghost of the past found its way into the present.

The Psycho Goreman and The Void director’s penchant for visceral special effects is noted early on as the Leprechaun tears not only into the modern age, but also through poor Ozzie’s abdomen. The portal from 1993 to 2018 is soaked with blood and guts as the Leprechaun forces his way into the story. Davis’ iconic depiction of the wee antagonist is missed, however, Linden Porco is not simply keeping the seat warm in case his predecessor ever resumes the part. His enthusiastic performance is accentuated by a rotten-looking mug that adds to his innate menace.

LEPRECHAUN RETURNS sequel

Pictured: Taylor Spreitler, Pepi Sonuga, and Sai Bennett as Lila, Katie and Rose in Leprechaun Returns.

The obligatory fodder is mostly young this time around. Apart from one luckless postman and Ozzie — the premature passing of the latter character removed the chance of caring about anyone in the film — the Leprechaun’s potential prey are all college aged. Lila is this story’s token trauma kid with caregiver baggage; her mother thought “monsters were always trying to get her.” Lila’s habit of mentioning Tory’s mental health problem does not make a good first impression with the resident mean girl and apparent alcoholic of the sorority, Meredith (Emily Reid). Then there are the nicer but no less cursorily written of the Alpha Epsilon gals: eco-conscious and ex-obsessive Katie (Pepi Sonuga), and uptight overachiever Rose (Sai Bennett). Rounding out the main cast are a pair of destined-to-die bros (Oliver Llewellyn Jenkins, Ben McGregor). Lila and her peers range from disposable to plain irritating, so rooting for any one of them is next to impossible. Even so, their overstated personalities make their inevitable fates more satisfying.

Where Returns excels is its death sequences. Unlike Jones’ film, this one is not afraid of killing off members of the main cast. Lila, admittedly, wears too much plot armor, yet with her mother’s spirit looming over her and the whole story — comedian Heather McDonald put her bang-on Aniston impersonation to good use as well as provided a surprisingly emotional moment in the film — her immunity can be overlooked. Still, the other characters’ brutal demises make up for Lila’s imperviousness. The Leprechaun’s killer set-pieces also happen to demonstrate the time period, seeing as he uses solar panels and a drone in several supporting characters’ executions. A premortem selfie and the antagonist’s snarky mention of global warming additionally add to this film’s particular timestamp.

Critics were quick to say Leprechaun Returns did not break new ground. Sure, there is no one jetting off to space, or the wacky notion of Lubdan becoming a record producer. This reset, however, is still quite charming and entertaining despite its lack of risk-taking. And with yet another reboot in the works, who knows where the most wicked Leprechaun ever to exist will end up next.


Horror contemplates in great detail how young people handle inordinate situations and all of life’s unexpected challenges. While the genre forces characters of every age to face their fears, it is especially interested in how youths might fare in life-or-death scenarios.

The column Young Blood is dedicated to horror stories for and about teenagers, as well as other young folks on the brink of terror.

Leprechaun Returns movie

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

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