Halloween: The Scores of Michael Myers, Part 2

by Michael Mays

See yesterday's column for reviews of Halloween 1, 2 and 3.

Here are three scores that are definitely the best of the franchise's soundtracks. Alan Howarth is probably not very well-known to even most film score fans, possibly as a result of most of the films he's had the misfortune to score (The Dentist and The Dentist II: Brace Yourself come to mind). But after having worked on the score to Escape From New York (and later on Carpenter's Christine, Big Trouble In Little China, Prince of Darkness, and They Live), Howarth had "learned from the master,"* and was able to take on the reigns of composing the music for the next few films. ". . . if there's anybody who knows how to make a John Carpenter movie soundtrack, I got it."* I couldn't agree more.

When Carpenter left the series after the disappointing performance of Halloween 3: Season of the Witch, Howarth was able to bring in his own style, now that he was completely on his own. Adding bass, drums, and some of what he calls "Pink Floyd textures," Howarth created a score very different from the previous ones.

Instead of opening with the main theme, Howarth sets the tone of what is to come with some quiet, moody music as the opening credits montage of the Illinois countryside plays out. During the track, Carpenter's "stalking theme" is subtly played underneath, in more of a elongated-throbbing way than the straight-forward pounding. This main title track, "Halloween 4: The Return," then jumps forward to present us with an exhilarating rendition of the "Halloween Theme" as the comatose Myers is wheeled from the psychiatric ward to a waiting ambulance.

The first new theme of the score is "Jamie's Theme," introduced in the second track, "Jamie's Nightmare." It's almost a rather beautiful piece of music you wouldn't expect to find in a horror film, but it doesn't last for long, as pounding drums and screeching come sharply into play and build in the climax as she has nightmarish visions of The Shape.

Towards the end of track four, "Be Back By 9:30," Howarth has a little fun. Some of the townspeople form their own little lynch mob to hunt Myers down, and he underscores their scene with a semi-militaristic march.

Howarth also brings the "stalking theme" back full-on for some scenes, and the "Myers' House Theme" reappears in track nine, "Downstairs Alone."

The standout track on the album is "Myers' Finale." The climax of the film begins with "Jamie's Theme," but is soon interrupted by suspense music as Myers appears on the pickup truck the heroes are using to get out of town, and the music takes off in chaos. The "Halloween Theme" takes over as Myers reaches in for Jamie, her foster sister desperately trying to keep the vehicle under control. We hear the "stalking theme" briefly after Myers is thrown from the truck and rammed head-on, and the "Halloween Theme" returns as Myers meets his fate down an abandoned mine shaft.

The ending track, "Halloween 4: Reprise," is a slight variation on a previous track, "Gas Station." A long moment of eerie quietness plays before exploding into a new and fascinating version of the "Halloween Theme."

Missing from the CD (among other music) is the powerful final track, which I call "The Evil Returns," for the last scene in the film when little Jamie attacks her foster mother. The track culminates in a slow version of the "Halloween Theme" that is down-right creepy.

Better structured, less repetitive, and more melody-driven, this is the best of the post-Carpenter Halloween scores, and features a lot of very good material that should not be overlooked by fans of horror scores.

Here, Howarth took even more distance from the previous scores. This time, his work is built around a tingling descending motif that is first heard in the eerily-thrilling main title, "Halloween 5/The Revenge." But that famous theme isn't too far away. It slowly rises up from the new material toward the end of the credits and plays under a recap of the previous film's climax.

"The Shape Also Rises" is a fantastic combination of tribal-like drum beats, distorted grunts, and low-toned electronic riffs, and it all makes for a really frightening track. Jamie gets a new theme in this film, which is first hinted at with a brief motif in track eight, "The Evil Child Must Die." In track ten, we're introduced to a motif for a new character, the mysterious Man In Black, and the "Myers' House Theme" appears subtly towards the end of track ten, "A Stranger In The House."

This score also marked a progression for Howarth, as he began integrating acoustical instruments as well as sound effects into his music with this film. As creepy as track eleven, "Tower Farm," already is (with its excellent blending of drums, the "Halloween Theme," the "stalking theme," and some driving synth strings), the addition of those female screams are sure to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end.

"Stop The Rage" opens with a wicked, too-brief combo of the "stalking theme," the "Halloween Theme," those relentless synth strings, and electric guitar.

"The Attic" features a mix of both the "Halloween Theme" and the new "Jamie's Theme," as the little girl finds herself trapped in the attic of the Myers house, where she convinces her maniacal uncle to remove his mask.

"Jail Break" opens with the theme for the Man In Black, then builds in mystery as little Jamie wonders back into the police station, only to find her uncle has escaped. The track ends with a quiet version of the main theme's opening notes, without wrapping anything up, musically confirming that the evil is gone and will return.

With the final track, "Halloween Finale," Howarth gives us yet another variation on the main theme as the end credits roll. Though much darker than Halloween 4, it's just as effective. The pop/rock songs at the beginning of the album may seem out of the place, but the songs themselves aren't too bad. And at least they're songs that actually appear in the film.

For the first Halloween film of the '90s, Howarth went with a more contemporary sound, at the request of director Joe Chapelle. To get things rolling right from the start, track one, "Jamie's Escape," features a grooving electric guitar replacing the main theme's piano. "I thought that actually was a good update on the Halloween theme."*

Track two, "Birth Ceremony," appears only in the much-sought-after Producer's Cut of the film. It's a very gothic, synth-choir piece that plays over the opening credits as mysterious cultists curse the newborn son of the now-teenage Jamie.

We also get to hear more of Carpenter's original music after a long absence. Appearing for the first time since Halloween II in track four, "Empty Stomach," is "Laurie's Theme," which Howarth brings back as we are introduced to the new residents of the Myers' house, relatives of the people who adopted Laurie. "Michael Kills Judith" (from the first film) also returns, playing throughout track five, "Watching Mom."

The "Myers' House Theme" starts off "Kara Returns," with some eerie 'spacey' music (almost like what you hear standing in line for Disneyland's Space Mountain) playing as Kara wanders through her deserted home, wondering why no one is there.

Similar to the "stalking theme" and a piece from Ennio Morricone's "The Thing" is a pulsing beat theme Howarth created to represent the mysterious Thorn Cult in track seven, "Thorn," which underscores the long-awaited origin of the murderous Michael Myers, with the gothic music from "Birth Ceremony" taking over midway through the track.

Track ten, "Look Upstairs," begins with terror as Kara Strode discovers her young son has gone back into the Myers house. Once inside, more of "Michael Kills Judith" plays as Kara discovers the bodies of her family and best friend in the house. Missing from the album but featured in the film is the climax of this track, a thrilling version of the "stalking theme" (complete with electric guitar) as she and her son flee the pursuing Myers.

"It's His Game" is a haunting version of the Thorn theme that plays as heroes Dr. Loomis and Tommy Doyle head back to the Smith's Grove Sanitarium for a showdown with the Man In Black, who was revealed to be one of Loomis's associates at the hospital. During a sequence of the "stalking theme," the track unnoticeably merges with the very next track.

The final two pieces are a mix of both scenes' theatrical and alternate-cut version. Since these scenes were the most heavily-affected when the film was drastically recut by the director, the music changed. "Maximum Security" opens with the 'spacey' music and is filled with drum beats, guitar, and the "stalking theme" as Tommy rescues Kara from the maximum security ward.

The lengthy final track, "Operating Room," begins quietly before erupting with a chaotic massacre, with chase music breaking out as The Shape stalks the heroes through the basement and halls of the hospital. There's also an interesting section in which the "Halloween Theme" is briefly performed on a cymbal. The music slows as they find themselves trapped in a large lab and he searches for them, before finally exploding into action when Tommy confronts and fights the masked killer. The track ends with a slow version of the "Halloween Theme," leaving the door open for more mystery.

Through the use of state-of-the-art synthesizers, Howarth created a lavish-sounding score, with some synth pieces that are so well designed and performed they sound completely acoustical.

Missing from the CD is the Brother Cane song played over the end credits, "And Fools Shine On." Which gets no complaints from me, seeing as how the song was out of place in the film itself.

With these three being the best of the series' soundtracks, it's hard to determine which is the best of them. They all are certainly great pieces of work, ones the composer should definitely feel proud of. Personally, if I had to choose, I would pick Halloween 4 as my favorite of the three, simply because it features my favorite rendition of the "Halloween Theme" (Howarth's, as well), and because "Jamie's Theme" is one of my all-time favorite themes, from any score. Seriously.

I think it's also interesting to point out that, a recent event in New York called Behind the Screams with Kevin Williamson, the screenwriter said that he listened to all of the Halloween soundtracks over and over while writing the first Scream, "especially Halloween 4." So apparently, I'm not the only one who recognizes just how great this score is.

* Excerpts from a 1998 interview with the composer. To read more about Howarth's involvement in the series, and how he remastered the original Halloween score for the twentieth anniversary CD, check out this great interview at the following URL: http://www.halloweenmovies.com/site/interview_ah.htm

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