10 Best Movie Character Introductions Of All Time

It's easy to take Halloween's chilling opening scene for granted now that it's been buried beneath a stack of inferior sequels and remakes, but try forgetting everything you know about what Michael Myers becomes and watching it over.

The intro begins with a POV shot. There are a couple of horny teens fooling around inside a house in idyllic US suburbia and someone, or something, is watching them from the shadows. Eerie piano work from director John Carpenter adds to the sense of creeping horror.

As the sequence unfolds, it soon becomes apparent that the viewer is looking through the eyes of a child. But what sort of kid reaches for a butcher knife and then proceeds to murder his sister with in? It's as mysterious as it is harrowing.

The opening scene concludes with a crane shot of Michael's parents discovering him on the front drive, holding a blood-stained butcher knife and wearing a hauntingly vacant expression. Everything about this shot is a contradiction in terms: it would almost be a picture of childhood innocence if not for the bloody knife in his hand.

Carpenter poses a burning question early on, forcing the audience to consider why a young boy from a privileged, white, middle-class background would commit such an unspeakable act without batting an eyelid. Our first impressions of Myers are what makes Dr. Loomis "I met him 15 years ago..." speech so chilling. If this is what Michael is capable of as a child, what kind of damage will he do as a fully-grown adult?

That's a question that's been answered over and over again.

Which other character introductions deserve to be here? Let us know your favourites down in the comments.