‘Halloween’ Franchise, Ranked: the Soundtracks & Scores

Halloween wouldn’t be nearly as terrifying without its blood-curdling score. The plaintive thickness of such pieces as “Laurie’s Theme” pair nicely against the frantic, throat-throbbing nature of the classic “Halloween Theme,” and other moments like “The Shape Stalks” elevate peak story beats into godly territory. John Carpenter’s genius in the first film, from his unnerving long shots to the slow-burn pacing, cemented not only one of the greatest horror villains in Michael Myers but he made music history with simple, yet sinister, compositions that have and will endure for all time.

It’s infamously known that when Carpenter was shopping a cut of the film, then still without any music, a film studio told him it just wasn’t scary. Once he headed back to the drawing board, over the course of three days, he emerged with a body of work that has redefined storytelling in horror themes, scores and music, at large. Only then did the initial story of a stalker killing babysitters transform into something truly special and utterly iconic.

Over 40 years and 10 sequels, many others have come forward to try and emulate Carpenter’s classic blueprint. Some work; others miss the mark completely. From Alan Howarth to Tyler Bates and Cody Carpenter, musicians and creative thinkers and innovators have dabbled in expanding what a Halloween soundtrack could be, often reaching into wells of synth music and more grungy, twisted touch points, to cultivate new soundscapes to riddle your mind with fright.

Below, B-Sides & Badlands runs through every single installment, including the Myers-less Halloween III: Season of the Witch, to pick apart the scores and spotlight the most unsettling moments. What are YOUR favorite musical compositions? Let us know in the comments!

11. Rob Zombie’s Halloween (2007)

Composer: Tyler Bates

Key Tracks: “Halloween Theme 2007,” “Don’t Fear the Reaper,” “Mr. Sandman,” “The Shape Stalks”

You can say plenty about Rob Zombie, but you can’t call him boring. He at least makes choices, and that’s more than tons of filmmakers out there. His bloody grindhouse brand of horror is certainly not everyone’s cup of tea, so his interpretation of the source material is certainly… something. But we’re not here to discuss the film itself; we’re talking music! Halloween depends far too much on classic rock and pop music than building up tension and mood with orchestral- or synth-driven original compositions. Nan Vernon’s rendition of “Mr. Sandman” is quite ethereal, and the inclusion of “Don’t Fear the Reaper” is always welcome. It’s more soundtrack, or perhaps Halloween party ready, than eliciting any feelings of dread.

10. Halloween Resurrection (2002)

Composer: Danny Lux

Key Tracks: “Main Titles,” “The Ceremony,” “The Tunnel”

It’s almost offensive how largely uninspired this Halloween extravaganza is. It’s not always hip to be a square, and from the flat cinematography to the bogus re-writing of Halloween H20‘s triumphant finale, the eighth installment never feels like a Michael Myers movie. Danny Lux’s reimagining of the classic Halloween Theme is quite extraordinary, however, as it is peppered with spooky booms and clangs that somehow elevate the mood innately present. Too bad the rest of the score doesn’t quite strike upon that same unnerving chord. “The Tunnel” and “The Ceremony” are promising entires, almost southern gothic in their layers ⏤ but such innovation is wasted with such an unappealing film.

9. Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later (1998)

Composer: John Ottman, Marco Beltrami

Key Tracks: “Main Titles,” “Laurie’s Nightmare,” “The Showdown”

The first anniversary film remains a fan favorite ⏤ story-wise, it’s lean and mean with some outstanding character work. Jamie Lee Curtis is flanked with several bright newcomers, including Josh  Hartnett, so it’s a bit unfortunate the score is so deflating. It’s public knowledge how much of the orchestral-driven arrangements were lifted directly from Scream, which had just come out two years prior, and the lack of creativity is one of many glaring missteps with a film that takes no prisoners. The “Main Titles” is an exemplary reimagining of John Carpenter’s classic Halloween Theme, smothered with a bit of a noir mystery and weighted melancholy. But little else has enough spark or heart to stand above being more than just mundane and uninteresting.

8. Halloween II (2009)

Composer: Tyler Bates

Key Tracks: “I Killed a Man,” “I’m Angel Myers,”

Let’s detach ourselves from the actual movie for a moment. Where Rob Zombie’s first Halloween foray heavily on popular music to drive the score, the second feature goes for the jugular with some truly terrifying mood-based work. That’s not to say it all works, but moments like “I Killed a Man” and “I’m Angel Myers” do a marvelously disturbing job in making you look over your shoulder every five seconds. There’s a generally dirtier feel to the music, lingering on ghostly “ooo”s and “ahh”s while tearing your eardrums apart with grating percussion and other instrumentation. There’s a tendency to clutter the room with needless distortion and components that actually deflate rather than enhance.

7. Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989)

Composer: Alan Howarth

Key Tracks: “Halloween 5 – The Revenge of Michael Myers,” “The Shape Rises,” “Jail Break”

The fifth installment of the Myers saga certainly took bold risks. From the southern gothic-style Myers House to tinny, cartoon sound effects to killing off a beloved character, Revenge didn’t shy away from a vision all its own. The score possesses its own special charm, too, and surprisingly has a sinister reimagining of the classic Halloween Theme. Shadows bounce off piano, reflecting back the more gruesome nature of the flick, at least in the opening titles and first scene. “The Shape Stalks,” as well as various original stingers, is retooled periodically and layered with rhythmic percussion and a frenzied general approach. It certainly doesn’t stand apart much outside of that, but there’s remains several essential moments to sink your knife into.

6. Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)

Composer: Alan Howarth, John Carpenter

Key Tracks: “Halloween TV Commercial,” “H3 – Season of the Witch,” “First Chase,” “I Really Love This”

Fang-toothed lasers don’t just shoot out of Silver Shamrock masks. Alan Howarth utilizes the gruesomely unnerving kills as a base point in constructing his own audio interpretations. Smack dab in the synth-pop wave of the ’80s, his compositions fit snuggly in-line with what you might expect from a low-budget sci-fi thriller. Much of the roster is standard, creepy fare, but it’s the TV commercial that’s the cream of the crop. It has enough weight beneath it, particularly now in retrospect, to strike a similar chill as the Michael Myers-centric Halloween Theme. Tommy Lee Wallace’s voice comes booming out of the speakers, too, enticing all younglings to grab their Halloween masks for one night of terror. That’s what nightmares are really made of.

5. Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995)

Composer: Alan Howarth

Key Tracks: “Michael’s Back,” “Look Out,” “The Birthing”

For its messy storyline, Curse certainly has one of the better displays of innovation when it comes to the score. Of course, Alan Howarth rarely misses in his attempts to elevate the onscreen tension and mood-dripping sequences with woven synth work that feels throwback and contemporary. He harvests classic themes, including “Laurie’s Theme” and “Myers’ House,” for more ambience that is fitting for the ’90s, post-grunge audience. The Halloween Theme is given an electric rock guitar overhaul, and it largely works to give such moments as Jamie’s escape a far more intense and visceral layer. It’s often when Howarth colors with numerous themes or sound cues in tandem that work best, eliciting chilling effects that make the movie somewhat palatable.

4. Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988)

Composer: Alan Howarth

Key Tracks: “Halloween 4 Opening,” “Still He Kills,” “Michael’s Finale”

Moody and ambient, much of Alan Howarth’s work for the fourth chapter excavates classic themes but smothers them with a more fog-like glaze. “Halloween 4 Opening” is easily the cream of the crop, a sequence which sets the tone alongside the atmospheric opening titles. Images of decorations and farm equipment pair rather nicely to the stormy build of the music, a choice that is stylized and forebodes the mayhem to come. “Still He Kills,” which often feels at times a rebirth of “Better Check the Kids,” blended with the Halloween Theme, is another outstanding composition. It rides at just the right moments to twist the emotional screws even further at the start of the third act. “On the Road” and “Shape Attack” keep that momentum going with other ghoulish flavors as Rachel and Jamie fight evil to the deadly finish.

3. Halloween II (1981)

Composer: John Carpenter

Key Tracks: “Halloween II Theme,” “Mrs. Alves,” “The Shape Stalks Again,” “Mr. Sandman”

Alan Howarth quickly became a series staple, and here, he displays a remarkable knack, working alongside Carpenter, to heighten signature themes with metallic, creepy edges. The shimmers are heavy on the synths, a trend which rose to prominence throughout the 1980s, and it somehow makes the “Halloween Theme” sound much more twisted and uncertain. The score is peppered with eerie, gutting chords that create a magnificence that casts the entire film in a haunting, satanic glow. “The Shape Stalks Again” blisters with dynamic, off-kilter production layers, mirroring the adrenaline rush of the climatic final chase scene; the pounding synths twist and break in the skin. “Mrs. Alves” appears as a classic theme in its own right, while “Laurie’s Theme” pings with a tinny echo. “Mr. Sandman,” famously recorded by The Chordettes in 1954, has since taken on a new meaning in the pop culture pantheon. It’s not longer an innocent ode to romance, now taking on a macabre and fateful tone.

2. Halloween (1978)

Composer: John Carpenter

Key Tracks: “Halloween Theme,” “Laurie’s Theme,” “The Shape Stalks,” “Better Check the Kids”

The original is the perfect storm. Every creative choice ⏤ from John Carpenter and Debra Hill’s visionary script to barebones musical cues to The Shape itself ⏤ melts together to produce one of the most terrifying campfire tales of all time. An argument can certainly be made that the 1978 film has the best score, switching between visceral crackles to the slow, methodical percussive elements, it falls just short of being much more dynamic than it could have been. Regardless, the “Halloween Theme” is, perhaps, the most iconic horror theme, and other essential pieces as “Better Check the Kids” and “The Shape Stalks” go right for the jugular. There’s a clear reason why the infamous studio executive did not find Halloween particularly scary without the music; the music lives and breathes as a monstrous entity that has become irrefutably engrained in the darkness through which The Shape lurks.

1. Halloween (2018)

Composer: John Carpenter, Daniel Davies, Cody Carpenter

Key Tracks: “The Shape Hunts Allyson,” “The Shape Returns,” “Prison Montage,” “Michael Kills Again”

Whoa, boy! Controversy alert! If there’s anything the 2018 reboot/sequel got right, aside from James Jude Courtney’s sensationally grim performance as The Shape, it’s the score. It both works as an apt companion piece to the 1978 original, updating classic themes with a bit more grittiness or even some stunning melancholy, and a completely new beast that thrives off The Shape’s own murderous meanderings. “The Shape Hunts Allyson” is unequivocally the best of the batch, a chilling crescendo that supplies the character of Allyson with an addition emotional gut punch, but “Michael Kills Again” is an astonishingly dirt and grinding thematic piece that works electric guitars and strings into overdrive. It throbs from the inside out, accented with the haunting Halloween Theme right at the end. Even “Laurie’s Theme” is laced with a heavy weariness that just slathers the film with even greater poignancy.

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