Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998)

As expected, Jamie Lee is the best thing in the seventh film. It likes to think of itself as the real sequel to the first film, although it incorporates elements of the second and even has remnants of an explanation for Laurie’s absence in the fourth, fifth and sixth from a previous script, which it pretends didn't happen. It’s clear that Dir. Steve Miner hadn't a damn clue what film he wanted to make. There’s no explanation for MM’s return. There’s no proof it’s even him. It’s just a guy in a mask with a knife who likes to stick it in people.
There’s some decent camerawork early on and the editing was functional, but by halfway through the running time I was feeling the pangs of regret.
H20 isn't even the last one. They made another one afterwards! Finality and credibility go out the window when there’s money to be made.

2 new eyes out of 5

PSYCHO [1960]

This film is my favorite film of all time. Hitchcock is at the top of his game with Tony Perkins' performance portrayed to awkward perfection. The string only score from Bernard Herrmann is a one of a kind and has been copied but never topped since. Saul Bass' frantic titles design mixed with Herrmann's skiddish Psycho theme is pure gold that puts the viewer on edge from the very get go.
George Tomasini and Hitchcock's editing job (particularly the shower scene) is breathtaking. Segueing from motel to house is mixed flawlessly.
...and yes the house. Oh yes, the house. Just as iconic as the "screeching" violins bleeding all over the torn shower curtains.
In an era where the audience feared getting to know the killers all too well, like in The Collector, Peeping Tom & Twisted Nerve, Hitchcock's Psycho did it best.
If I could I'd give it a 6.

5 Cars In The Marsh out of 5

The Fog (1980)

The fictional Antonio Bay is the setting for a traditional ghost story with a John Carpenter twist. The Bay's residents are proud of their community, unaware that it has a shady past. But when their 100 years celebration comes around, the sins of the past demand a recompense from the present.
There's not much more to the plot other than scary fog and green lights, but it’s the atmosphere, the tension and the overall Carpenter vibe that raise The Fog above its B-Movie origins. Fans of the director will know what I mean.

3½ gold doubloons out of 5