Zanobard Reviews

John Carpenter’s iconic Halloween score is such an incredible beginning, with its hauntingly malevolent synthwave style establishing a richly atmospheric soundscape for the franchise that together with the stalking motifs that accompany Michael himself cement this sinister soundtrack as one of the horror music genre’s very best.

Ah, Halloween. Probably the most iconic horror film score ever composed, John Carpenter’s eerily electronic soundscape provided not only an incredibly atmospheric musical backdrop for the iconically silent Michael Myers as he stalked and stabbed his way across the screen in 1978, but also an acutely memorable one as the uniquely stylised synth together with a simplistic yet skillfully-crafted repeating motif came together to form the now very well-known Halloween Theme – which then went on to represent Myers across over forty years of subsequent films – and so it’s there that this review shall begin, and incidentally where the score begins too. High-pitched piano notes start to play right off the bat as the three minute track opens opposite an ominously repeating electronic percussive background, and the full Halloween theme then slowly rises from the synthy ambience to tensely dramatic and malevolent effect. Like I say it’s a very simple theme for Myers overall, but its ominous repetition hammers home its memorability all across this theme track’s runtime, and the unwaveringly creepy piano notes paint a decidedly ’80s horror picture soaked in dramatic atmosphere throughout; perfect for the start of an iconic slasher franchise.

The score starts fully with “Laurie’s Theme”, but I’d like to briefly talk about track five “Michael Kills Judith” first as it’s here that the atmosphere of Halloween really begins to establish itself as the first of the musical ‘stings’ debuts. I’ve always been fascinated with this aspect of Carpenter’s score actually, the way the music binds itself to Myers in representing almost his every move is really fascinating and such a cool approach to a horror score. This track in particular opens with a dramatically high-pitched sting, a burst of electronics that plays whenever Myers is suddenly revealed onscreen – usually as a character walks out of frame to reveal the iconic killer behind them – which I’ll now call the Myers Reveal motif for ease. Moody piano notes then occupy much of the three minute cue’s remaining runtime, with a thunderous burst of frightening electronics briefly interrupting at around the minute mark. But anyway, enough skipping forward – back to “Laurie’s Theme”, this motif is similar to the overarching Halloween one in its repeating structure and general eeriness, but paints a slightly more hopeful and atmospheric picture to represent Laurie herself as the sort of antithesis of Michael.

“Shape Escapes” then reprises the titular Halloween theme but in a much faster, almost frenzied style with rapid backing percussion thundering the ominous piano notes along interspersed with the occasional sinister burst of electronics. Laurie’s theme then sombrely reprises in “Myer’s House”, with those downtrodden piano notes returning alongside an eerie synth backing that’s deeply laden in atmosphere. This dense moodiness continues for much of the track’s five and a half minute runtime before jumpscare-esque electronics reveal the full Halloween theme that then chases the track to its end a minute later. Said theme continues into “Loomis And Shape’s Car” at an even higher pitch, elevating tension and mood with interspersing ambient electronics driving home the eeriness across the track. The moodily repeating piano notes from “Laurie’s Theme” then return in “The Haunted House”, with backing synth slowly rising in both volume and intensity as the three and a half minute cue continues until high-pitched, additional electronics then signal the arrival of Myers in the final thirty seconds.

“The Shape Lurks” introduces what I’ll call the Myers Chase motif – one piano note quickly followed by two more, forming a tensely frenetic three note repeating theme which then unnervingly chases the listener throughout this ninety second setpiece. With tensions now considerably higher, “Laurie Knows” reprises Laurie’s theme in ever-worrisome, ambient form for its first two minutes before then briskly bringing back the overarching Halloween theme to sow the seeds of murder. High-pitched synth and piano notes then drive the dramatic eeriness home in “Better Check The Kids” with Laurie’s theme playing quietly in the background for much of its three minute runtime, until final track “The Shape Stalks” reprises the Myers Chase motif one last time as Michael focuses his murderous attention on Laurie – sharp rapid electronic stabs accompany the motif throughout the track here, with additional harsh synth rising in intensity until a tense finishing crescendo is finally reached, and the soundtrack then dramatically ends.

Overall, John Carpenter’s tensely atmospheric score for Halloween is such an intriguing beginning – you can really feel how such an iconic franchise started with this music, particularly of course with the “Halloween Theme”. Those intensely memorable repeating notes together with the other stalking motifs for Michael – the Myers Reveal and Chase themes as I’ve dubbed them – are cemented properly in sequel soundtracks to come, but even in their debuts here they’re solidified excellence, and I love how the score is as much a part of Michael as his knife as it accompanies and indeed enhances his murderous actions throughout this first film. Supporting the themes too is of course Carpenter’s well-known ’80s synthwave soundscape, and it paints such a richly eerie atmosphere for the 1978 film that the score does as much worldbuilding as the visuals frankly, if not more so. Even when the iconic title theme isn’t playing the world of Halloween is soaked in this intensely unnerving synth vibe that never quite lets you go, and its hauntingly malevolent nature is still one of the most iconic in all horror cinema as a result – if not the most.

Score: 9/10

Standout Cues: Halloween Theme – Main Title/Michael Kills Judith

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