10 Double Movie Features From Hell

John Carpenter's Halloween launched countless imitators. After the model of low budget horror proved successful, producers looking to cash in on the slasher phenomenon, from Harvey Weinstein to Sean S. Cunningham, were increasingly taking the wrong lessons from Carpenter's film. Friday the 13th piled on the gore and breasts, while Halloween used barely a bucket and remained fairly conservative in the nudity department.

One aspect some imitators successfully captured was the film's atmosphere. Be it a summer camp, a holiday or just a shoddy cabin, Carpenter set a kind of shorthand for the creepy aesthetic that would echo through the genre, although the original remains the finest example.

So what film could detract from the original's greatness? One from its own franchise, which has seen many wrong turns and cul-de-sacs. The history of the franchise is one of sharp divides between writers, directors and producer Moustapha Akkad.

Akkad held the rights to Michael Myers until his death via terrorist attack, and pushed for his prominence in the franchise. Carpenter himself regretted adding to the killer's lore on a beer-drunk whim.

At least Halloween II is true to the spirit of the original. Director Rick Rosenthal tried to keep the gore, then popular in slashers, to a minimum. It was Carpenter that pushed for more.

Rosenthal did eventually direct an entry that completely jettisoned what made Myers compelling and terrifying. Halloween: Resurrection not only kills off the franchise heroine at the start, it replaces her with Busta Rhymes.