Character Spotlight- Rachel Carruthers- Halloween 4 & 5

**This post contains spoilers**

Michael Myers has his sights set on returning to Haddonfield, Illinois, after a violent escape during a late night ambulance ride. Myers’ new target? His eight year old niece, Jamie Lloyd (Danielle Harris). Jamie, haunted by nightmares and visions of Myers, leans on her adoptive family for support. Jamie’s stepfather, Richard (Jeff Olson), and her stepmother, Darlene (Karen Alston) are dedicated to building and providing a loving home for Jamie. But her stepsister, Rachel (Ellie Cornell) is more concerned about having to cancel her date with Brady (Sasha Jenson), because she’s the fill-in babysitter for Jamie. 

Rachel is stressed out. Brady quickly moved on with Kelly Meeker (Kathleen Kinmont). But Rachel has to put the Kelly (aka “little miss hot panties”) dilemma on the back burner, while Michael Myers tears through Haddonfield on Halloween. A night of trick-or-treating with Jamie takes a disastrous turn, leaving Jamie and Rachel with three options: run, hide, or stand and fight.

This is Michael Myers we’re talking about after all. The Shape, The Boogeyman, or as Jamie also calls him, The Nightmare Man. Michael single-handedly annihilated the entire police force, and Myers, the unstoppable killing machine, doesn’t show any signs of slowing down.

Sure, Jamie has a handful of supporters ready to protect her: Dr Samuel Loomis (Donald Pleasence), Sheriff Ben Meeker (Beau Starr), Brady, and I can’t forget about local bar owner Earl (Gene Ross) and his gang of “beer bellies.”

A collection of townspeople and Dr. Loomis are all armed to the teeth, but bullets are not enough to completely stop Myers. Jamie also needs emotional support, and that’s why Rachel plays a crucial role in Halloween 4: The Return Of Michael Myers.

The relationship between Jamie and Rachel has a few awkward ups and downs. There’s the one scene, where Rachel feels the need to have a tricky conversation with Jamie about their relationship, explaining the differences between biological sisters and stepsisters, while reminding Jamie she still loves her all the same. 

Rachel whines and pouts about having to cancel her date with Brady. She quickly apologizes to Jamie (after a few strong and harsh words from her father), and you could say Rachel was just throwing the kind of tantrum that’d you expect from a teenager, who’s upset about missing out on a date.

But Rachel slowly corrects her mistakes, confidently stepping into the role of a big sister. Is she nervous? Scared at times? Sure. Still, Rachel fiercely acts as a shield for Jamie throughout the movie. She’s willing to risk her life during a deadly cat and mouse game. After tossing Earl’s corpse on the side of the road, Rachel, exhausted and fed up with Myers, hits the gas on the pickup truck to run Myers over. Yeah, hitting Myers with a pickup truck wasn’t enough to take him out, but it’s still a big moment in the movie. A few good shots with blood smeared on Rachel’s face, determined and deadly serious about delivering the final blow to Myers. 

Michael Myers is back in Halloween 5, ready to leave another trail of bloody destruction to get to Jamie. Rachel knows how truly dangerous Michael is now. You have to believe she’s more prepared for a fight this time around. Protecting Jamie is the main goal. But there’s a big problem with Rachel’s role in the story for The Revenge Of Michael Myers, because Michael murders Rachel during the early stages of the movie.

Killing off Rachel well before the halfway point of the movie is one of those weird decisions I’ve never been able to understand. She was an important character, filling the role of Jamie’s guardian and her protector, the big sister, who threw herself in harm’s way to ensure Jamie’s safety. 

Rachel’s death is easily one of the more disappointing death scenes in the Halloween franchise. They didn’t even give Rachel a chance to fight back. Michael surprises her, stabs her with the scissors….and that’s it. No struggle, no big chase scene, or any kind of tension to at least give Rachel a chance to survive. Rachel deserved a better send-off. Her death scene is the kind of throwaway kill you save for a newbie character to add to Michael’s kill count. You don’t do THAT to Jamie Lloyd’s big sister.

You can see and feel Rachel’s absence after her death. Sheriff Ben Meeker is still around, but he’s busy trying to organize his police force to hunt Myers. Dr. Loomis is deadly serious about putting an end to Michael’s reign of terror, but age is catching up with him.

So who else can Jamie depend on? Tina (Wendy Kaplan)? She’s more concerned with partying, pulling pranks with Spitz (Matthew Walker) and Samantha (Tamara Glynn), and dealing with her boyfriend, Mike’s (Jonathan Chapin) mood swings. Deputy Nick Ross (Fran Como) and Deputy Tom Farrah (David Ursin)? They’re both numbskulls and bumbling fools. You can take one look at Ross and Farrah, and you’ll instantly know they don’t stand a chance against Myers.

The final images of Rachel in the Halloween series? Her corpse is sitting up in a chair amongst Michael’s creepy collection of dead bodies in the attic. It’s an emotional scene. Rachel is dead, and Jamie is heartbroken, calling out to Rachel for help, because she knows Myers is closing in. To be clear, I’m not against killing off Rachel, BUT her death should’ve meant something. Rachel could’ve been by Jamie’s side during the big finale, fighting with her sister until the end, and maybe Rachel’s death would’ve had a bigger overall impact on the story.

Rachel deserves a spot on Halloween’s list of memorable characters. Ellie Cornell always delivered earnest performances, and the sisterly bond with Danielle Harris was believable. Rachel was forced to make life or death decisions. You always got the impression she was someone, who had to quickly figure things out before Michael had a chance to get his hands on Jamie, a real person dealing with the dangers of trying to survive relentless attacks from a maniac. 

Of course, my only complaint about Rachel is, she should’ve had more screen time in Halloween 5. Rachel and Jamie only have one scene together. Rachel visits Jamie at the children’s clinic, and that’s it. Maybe they didn’t want to do a retread of the events in Halloween 4, reusing the Jamie and Rachel run and hide from Michael, waiting for the right opportunity to strike back formula. But I would’ve preferred watching Rachel guide, and protect Jamie through the madness of surviving Halloween night against Michael Myers over seeing her dead body added to the collection of corpses for Halloween newcomers. 

Character Spotlight- Sheriff Ben Meeker- Halloween 4 (1988) & Halloween 5 (1989)

**This post contains spoilers**

"Martians could land on Ben's doorstep, and all he'd do is spit once, and get himself a shotgun."

That's a direct quote from Earl (Gene Ross), the owner of a bar in Haddnonfield, Illinois, after the announcement of a mandatory curfew for locals as a precautionary measure for Michael Myers' return. Earl wanted answers for closing the bar early and losing money. Earl and his buddies provided a helping hand in the fight against Myers, but that's another story for another time. Think about Earl's quote for a second. Sheriff Brackett's (Charles Cyphers) replacement didn't have a problem standing face to face with the little green men from Mars, so you know he's ready for the fight against Michael Myers.

Beau Starr is a tough and grizzled enforcer as Sheriff Ben Meeker. There's no fear in Meeker, and his daughter Kelly (Kathleen Kinmont) is off limits. Ben warned Brady (Sasha Jenson) about "groping" his daughter with a promise of having to answer to a shotgun for disobedience, and Kelly threw in her two cents, as Brady passed second base (Ben's arrival with Rachel and Jaime interrupted Brady and Kelly's make out session the couch in Ben's home). The price for Ben catching Brady and Kelly in the act? Ben will "skin" Brady alive without thinking twice about it.

It's hard to forget about the relationship between Ben Meeker and Donald Pleasence's Dr. Loomis. As always, Loomis is the paranoid old warhorse, who will do anything to stop Michael Myers. At first, Meeker is reluctant to trust (Halloween 4: The Return Of Michael Myers 1988) Loomis, but after Kelly's death, Meeker lowers his guard for accepting Loomis' help in the next chapter (Halloween 5: The Revenge Of Michael Myers 1989). 

Highlight moments for this relationship include a heated argument on the steps of the police station in Halloween 4. In an attempt to control an outbreak of panic, Meeker wants Michael Myers' return to remain a secret, but Loomis spills the beans in front of Earl and his buddies. Loomis mentioned Myers' name as motivation for Earl and his friends. Remember, Michael's massacre at the police station? Well, Loomis wanted to use Earl and his friends as a temporary police force, but Meeker doesn't like the idea of a bunch of town drunks and their ring leader running around in the dark with shotguns. And the bickering between Loomis and Meeker during the sting operation in Halloween 5? Hilarious.

Unfortunately, Sheriff Meeker was a victim of The Man In Black/Dr. Wynn's raid on his police station. Michael Myers escapes a lifelong prison sentence, and Ben Meeker suffered a brutal death during the shootout. A bittersweet ending for the Sheriff, but Ben Meeker earned a spot on my list of memorable and likeable Halloween characters.

Also, remember the cliffhanger at the end of Halloween 4? Loomis had his finger on the trigger, as Jaime Lloyd (Danielle Harris) stood at the top of the staircase with a bloody pair of scissors. Myers was dead, but Jaime Lloyd was ready to kill anything in her path. Loomis almost pulled the trigger on his gun, but who stopped him at the last second? Sheriff Ben Meeker. Just think about that for a second as some food for thought in the Halloween franchise. Without Sheriff Ben Meeker, there's no Jaime Lloyd in Halloween 5 or Halloween 6/The Curse Of Michael Myers.

Stake Land (2011)

**This review contains spoilers**

Unaware of the vampire plague sweeping through the United States, a teenager named Martin (Connor Paolo) and his family work on fixing their only car one night. But a vampire attacker slaughters Martin’s mother, father, and infant sibling. Alone and looking for help, Martin is saved by a loner and ruthless vampire hunter named Mister (Nick Damici). With Mister’s help, Martin gets his first vampire kill by driving a stake through the heart of the vampire, who murdered his family.

Using vampire fangs (vampire fangs can also be used to buy food and other goods, because anyone, who possesses vampire fangs receives the utmost respect) as fare to pass through the blockades in the ravaged and lawless United States, Mister and Martin journey north in hopes of finding the rumored safe haven free of vampires. Along the way, Mister rescues a Sister (Kelly McGillis) from two thugs, and Mister agrees to let The Sister tag along for the trip up north.

But Martin, Mister, and The Sister run into some trouble, when they’re taken hostage by Jebedia Loven (Michael Cerveris), the leader of The Brotherhood, a vicious Christian extremist group that controls most of the post-vampire world in the United States, and The Brotherhood controls the airwaves by pushing their religious propaganda to listeners. Wanting revenge for the death of his sixteen year old son (Mister killed Loven’s son, who happened to be one of the men, who raped and attacked The Sister), Loven decides to leave Mister in the darkness to fight for his life against four vampires, while taking Martin and The Sister as his hostages.

Eventually, Martin and The Sister escape Loven and The Brotherhood. After surviving Loven’s trap, Martin finds Mister first and The Sister makes the trio whole again during a reunion in a new town. After an attack from The Brotherhood, Mister regroups with a new gameplan, allowing a young pregnant woman named Belle (Danielle Harris) and an ex-Marine named Willie (Sean Nelson) to join the team. Mister continues to train Martin against vampire attacks, while teaching him life lessons, but Loven is out for revenge, and will stop at nothing to kill Mister and everyone under his command.

Mister is a hard-ass and a man’s man. Damici’s performance as the rugged hunter is spot on, and he was able to show some believable vulnerability during Mister’s more softer moments (training and mentoring Martin, carrying Belle through the woods, because she was exhausted from too much walking, etc.). Paolo’s Martin is the type of character you want to root for (more on that later). He’s a shy and scared kid, who’s forced to adapt and survive in a hellish situation, and because of his extended screen time (Martin is the main character), I give the nod to Paolo for the second best performance in this film. BUT my runner up would be Harris. Although, her character doesn’t appear until the later stages of the film, and when she finally pops up, Belle doesn’t last long. And Cerveris is decent enough as the primary antagonist, doing the best he could with the “delusional, and self-righteous cult leader” character.

Real character depth and a heartfelt story separate Stake Land from other modern-day low budget horror flicks, that feature tons of blood and nasty gore. Martin is easily the best example of this. Martin is put through hell. He witnesses his entire family die brutal and agonizing deaths, and he’s forced to grow up and become a man FAST, or else he won’t last long in the post-vampire plagued US. Mister refuses to let his softer side get in the way, or cloud any issues 98% of the time, but Martin finds some solace in Belle….until Loven returns as a vampire to attack her. And Martin, refusing to let Belle suffer from Loven’s bites, kills her. Martin’s heart is ripped out and stomped on throughout the movie. And you finally get to see the rewarding moment of triumph for Martin’s pain and suffering at the end, when Martin, using Mister’s training, runs out into the night, and kills a vampire on his own without any help from Mister.

Director Jim Mickle pulls everything together by providing the perfect hopeless and dreary atmosphere, and if you’re a fan of vampire flicks, Stake Land is worth the time. Stake Land is a bloody and gruesome post-apocalyptic vampire film, that features a poignant coming of age story. Another surprise for me this year, because after looking at the movie poster, I was expecting another dull and forgettable gorefest. 

Rating: 8/10

ChromeSkull: Laid To Rest 2 (2011)

**This review contains spoilers**

Following the events of Laid To Rest, Tommy (Thomas Dekker) and The Girl With No Name, or “Princess” (Bobbi Sue Luther) narrowly escape the wrath of the ruthless killer, ChromeSkull (Nick Principe). After unknowingly pouring booby-trapped glue into his chrome mask, ChromeSkull’s face was destroyed by a corrosive substance. Tommy and Princess were the only living suriviors after ChromeSkull’s recent rampage, and after the final showdown in a convenience store, Tommy and Princess escaped before the police arrived.

As investigators and local police arrived at the convenience store to examine ChromeSkull’s seemingly lifeless body, ChromeSkull’s special team, led by his top assistant, Preston (Brian Austin Green) infiltrated the crime scene. Preston and ChromeSkull’s team killed everyone on the scene, and they escaped with ChromeSkull’s body before backup arrived to help out. Eventually, ChromeSkull was taken to one of his hideouts for surgery by a secret team of surgeons. The surgeons reconstructed ChormeSkull’s mangled face, and ChromeSkull was given time to rest and recover.

Meanwhile, Preston tracks Tommy and Princess to a hotel. Tommy agreed to look after Princess for a while, but the hotel was the end of the line. But when Tommy goes out to get food, Preston sneaks in the hotel room, and murders Princess. Tommy returns to find Princess’ dismembered body, and Tommy is rushed to the local police station for questioning and protection.

Three months later, ChromeSkull is fitted with a new chrome skull mask, and he’s looking for his revenge against Tommy. Tommy is the one that got away, and ChromeSkull doesn’t miss his targets. And ChromeSkull isn’t alone, because he receives help from his underground network of associates. While Preston tries to locate Tommy, ChromeSkull targets a new victim. Jess (Mimi Michaels) and her friend are home alone one night, when ChromeSkull sneaks in. He murders Jess’ friend, and takes Jess to his hideout as a hostage.

Detective King (Owain Yeoman) and his trusted co-worker, Max (Christopher Nelson) work together to find Jess, while keeping Tommy safe at the station. Meanwhile, a series of problems within ChromeSkull’s organization could spark a catastrophic implosion. Preston is tired of living in the shadows, and his role as the clean up guy. Preston wants to be the new ChromeSkull, but ChromeSkull isn’t ready to retire anytime soon. And ChromeSkull is still bitter towards Preston for killing Princess, because he likes to kill and “catch his own fish.” On top of all that, ChromeSkull’s more loyal and trusted assistant, Spann (Danielle Harris) plots to turn ChromeSkull against Preston (Spann‘s #1 rival within the organization).

One night, Preston slips inside the station, and kidnaps Tommy. Tommy and Jess are prisoners of ChromeSkull at his hideout. Detective King launches a last second mission to save Tommy and Jess, and put an end to ChromeSkull’s murderous rampages.

Ugh, why, oh WHY did they have to kill off Lena Headey in Laid To Rest! Thomas Dekker, Brian Austin Green, and Lena Headey in the same cast could’ve  provided the perfect Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles reunion. Yes, I know. I’m probably one of the very few people, who actually wanted to see this, but a TSCC reunion in Laid To Rest 2  would’ve been a great nostalgia kick for die hard fans of the show.

Anyway, the cast is solid enough. Nick Principe is still intimidating and creepy as ChromeSkull. Brian Austin Green is OKAY, but he tries way too hard most of the time. Thomas Dekker is given more screen time in part two, and he delivers the best performance, as the broken and traumatized victim. Yeoman and Nelson are decent enough, but Mimi Michaels’ is kind of annoying at times (the character, not her performance). And you won’t see too much of Danielle Harris here. Her character’s screen time is limited to here and there appearances

Robert Hall (the writer and director for both Laid To Rest films. Well, he co-wrote the screenplay for part two, because he had some help from Kevin Bocarde, but still) picks up where he left off in Laid To Rest 2. And he provides more details to fill in some of the giant plot holes in the first film. How is ChromeSkull pulling all of this off by himself? It’s the one question that constantly popped in my mind during Laid To Rest, and Hall answers those questions here. Well, ChromeSkull was working with an old man at a funeral home (the old man kept an eye out for police, and would hide dead and alive victims in the funeral home, because ChromeSkull used the funeral home as a storage space for his victims), but still, one old man helping the mass murderer wasn’t enough. It was too far-fetched, but adding a network of assistants tied up the remaining loose ends.

Hall also downplayed  ChromeSkull’s camera on the shoulder POV stuff here. ChromeSkull likes to record his murders as they happen, so he wears a camera on his shoulder. They really abused this POV in Laid To Rest, but Hall toned it down for the sequel.

Killing off Bobbi Sue Luther’s character during the intro was a good call, because Laid To Rest 2 is loaded with a bunch of sub-plots: Preston being jealous of ChromeSkull, and wanting to become the new ChromeSkull. Spann plotting against Preston, and seemingly developing a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship with ChromeSkull. Jess struggling to fight for her life, and Tommy trying to survive another attack from ChromeSkull. The survival of Princess would’ve cluttered the story into a bigger mess, so I’m happy they pulled the trigger early. Also, I’ve seen some interviews with her, and she’s on the video commentary for Night Of The Demon’s ’09. Bobbi Sue Luther seems like a nice and humble person in real life, and as far as looks go, she’s a ten in my book, but she’s a terrible actress. Her character was beyond annoying in Laid To Rest, and it’s a problem, because Princess is the primary protagonist.

Laid To Rest 2 provides more inventive and brutal deaths, as ChromeSkull hacks his way through another slaughter fest. Problem is, it’s nothing you haven’t seen before. The VAST majority of kills in this film don’t have that sickening shock factor, because they really pulled out all the stops in Laid To Rest. A lot of nasty and bloody stuff in this film, but for me, the deaths couldn’t reach any squirming levels of disgustingness, because they gave away all of the good stuff in part one.

Hall is building towards a part three, he planted a lot of seeds for another sequel, and there’s a cliffhanger at the end. But instead of going with another sequel, the third entry in Laid To Rest is going to be a prequel, explaining the origins of ChromeSkull, and “how it all began.” I wasn’t too crazy about part two, but the story progressed, and now you’re going to backtrack into a prequel? I dunno. It just feels kind of weird to me.

Anyway, ChromeSkull: Laid To Rest 2 isn’t something to brag about. Laid To Rest 2 is a dud with a very messy and convoluted story. You still won’t see ChromeSkull’s face, and he still doesn’t speak a word in the sequel, so his character maintained the silent and deadly monster mystique. Still, Laid To Rest 2 is just another mediocre and forgettable slasher.

Final Rating: 3/10