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Halloween III - Season of the Witch (1982)

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No Score Yet...

Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 3
Fresh: 2 | Rotten: 1

audience

28

liked it
Average Rating: 2.3/5
User Ratings: 50,848

My Rating

Movie Info

The only installment of the Halloween series to abandon the Michael Myers story line, Halloween III: Season of the Witch is an intricate sci-fi horror hybrid. A week before Halloween, an older man named Harry Grimbridge (Al Berry) is wounded by a mysteriously dispassionate group of assailants in an industrial parking lot. After receiving treatment at a local hospital from Dr. Dan Challis (Tom Atkins) -- a hard-drinking divorced father of two -- Grimbridge is killed by an assassin who later sets

R,

Science Fiction & Fantasy, Horror

Tommy Lee Wallace

Aug 31, 2004

MCA Universal Home Video

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All Critics (18) | Top Critics (4) | Fresh (6) | Rotten (11) | DVD (8)

The end result is a bit of a mess but hugely enjoyable, and often (thanks to Dean Cundey's camerawork and John Carpenter's close supervision as producer) as striking visually as its predecessors.

June 24, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out
Time Out
Top Critic IconTop Critic

This is one of those Identikit movies, assembled out of familiar parts from other, better movies.

October 23, 2004 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Mr. Wallace clearly has a fondness for the cliches he is parodying and he does it with style.

August 30, 2004 Full Review Source: New York Times | Comments (6)
New York Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Halloween III, while not a complete success, at least offers something different from the norm.

October 13, 2012 Full Review Source: Creative Loafing
Creative Loafing

Halloween III: Season of the Witch might have been hated back in the day, but it simply doesn't deserve the anger and animosity nowadays.

September 26, 2012 Full Review Source: IGN DVD
IGN DVD

It is high time for viewers with a hang-up to reevaluate the pleasures that Halloween III: Season of the Witch has to offer.

October 29, 2008 Full Review Source: DustinPutman.com | Comment (1)
DustinPutman.com

There are more than enough giant logic holes, stilted characters and idiotic developments to make sure that it is bad for reasons transcending its simple poorness as a sequel

July 27, 2008 Full Review Source: Antagony & Ecstasy
Antagony & Ecstasy

Has little connection with first two "Halloweens," including true terror.

February 19, 2008 | Comments (5)
Video-Reviewmaster.com

Though the film certainly isn't awful, the filmmakers couldn't decide on their focus.

August 27, 2007 Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide
TV Guide's Movie Guide

Something stinks!

March 11, 2005
Moviehole

Were it not for the middle 30 minutes, which take approximately 73,000 hours to watch, forgetting it would be easy.

November 29, 2003 Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com
EricDSnider.com

Oh boy, this is a howler, justly ranked as one of the worst films in history and shocking in that it didn't kill Carpenter's career outright.

September 30, 2003 Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | Comments (6)
Filmcritic.com

Very peculiar variant on Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Connected to the Halloween series in name only.

April 21, 2003
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Points for trying something new, but the results are more laughable than terrifying.

July 26, 2002
eFilmCritic.com

Audience Reviews for Halloween III - Season of the Witch

Ah, Halloween III: the black sheep of the series. This one gets ignored and dumped on since it strays from the others and has nothing to do with the rest of the series. For the longest time I vowed to never see this, simply for that reason. However, as time went on, I gave it some thought, and decided to reconsider upon learning that, from the start, John Carpenter had envisioned an anthology where, each subsequent film in the series (save for part 2) was unrelated, save for taking place on/around and involving Halloween. Think of the possibilities. They're basically limitless.

Unfortunately most people didn't seem to get that, weren't happy about it, confused as to why this one deviated, and eventually forced the rest of the films to bring back Michael and stick to formula. That kind of thinking is rather unfortunate, and I feel bad for being so narrow minded, especially when I learned about Carpenter's intentions.

Okay, enough with the backstory.

Our plot concerns a doctor who, along with the daughter of a recently deceased patient, get caught up in a malevolent conspiracy involving the founder of a Halloween mask manufacturer who wants to return the holiday to its ancient, sacrificial origins. It sounds nuts, I know, and the specifics are even weirder, but this actually shows a bit of thought and uniqueness, despite not making a lot of sense.

Tom Atkins is okay as the doc, and Stacey Nelkin is passable as the daughter, but the one who steals the show is Dan O'Herlihy as the head of the mask company. He's creepy, unnerving, and absolutely nuts. It made me even happier when I soon realized that he's also the same guy who played the CEO of OCP in Robocop. Sweet.

The film's got a dark, moody tone that's really comparable to the previous two films, and a lot of that is thanks in part to Alan Howarth and John Carpenter's score, which is really eerie, atmospheric, and unsettling, establishing the perfect mood and tone. The cinematography by Dean Cundey is also quite good. The plot is off the wall, but there's some decent effects, and the fact that the filmmakers wanted to be risky and make the primary intended victims is commendable. I don't condone violence towards kids, but I do applaud balsiness.

The film does have a lot of issues with story and some of the acting, and it does start to fall apart towards the end, but I do give it credit for having some neat ideas and doing something different.

This really isn't THAT terrible of a film, and it's unfortunate that it's so underrated. If you have an open mind, you might want to give it a chance.
September 28, 2007
cosmo313
Chris Weber

Super Reviewer

Androids, the mystical powers of Stonehenge, rattlesnakes and magical Shamrock coins are all enveloped into one conspiracy theory. What might sound like a bizarrely exhilarating rollercoaster is actually a laughable, groan-inducing shadow of Carpenter's talents. It possesses the incontrovertible trademarks of Carpenter: the priceless keyboard score, the sparse style and Dean Cundey's legendary cinematography. However, none of the characters are remotely sympathetic (Atkins is essentially a lecherous gigolo who flirts with every ample-bodied female), the gore is wildly overcooked (a beheading and nostril dislocation) and the bombarding, annoying theme song is repeated ad nauseum. When the protagonists are hiding behind a mask rack, it's like a scene directly from a 'Scooby-Doo' episode. I was never an overwhelming fan of the franchise, but this disconnected sequel is among the most taxing to watch, let alone enjoy.
October 22, 2011
Cory Taylor

Super Reviewer

    1. Conal Cochran: Oh and, Happy Halloween.
    – Submitted by Casey C (11 months ago)
    1. Conal Cochran: I do love a good joke and this is the best ever: a joke on the children.
    – Submitted by Rocky F (15 months ago)
    1. Conal Cochran: You know what you really need to see is a demonstration and there's one coming right up.
    – Submitted by Paul B (21 months ago)
    1. Dr. Daniel Challis: You haven't know, is there a vacancy here in this motel? My wife and I need a place to stay.
    2. Rafferty: You've come to the right place. It's cozy, it's quiet, and the price is right.
    – Submitted by Creep F (2 years ago)
    1. Betty Kupfer: I think this whole thing is a big joke. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha.
    – Submitted by Creep F (2 years ago)
    1. Dr. Daniel Challis: (on the phone) The third channel, it's still on. Please, take off the third channel. The third channel, it's still running. Stop it, please, for God's sake, please stop it. There's no more time! Please stop it. Stop it now. Turn it off! Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! Stop it! STOP IT!
    – Submitted by Creep F (2 years ago)

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