Halloween III: Season of the Witch

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Halloween III: Season of the Witch

R

Released Oct 22, 1982

1h 38m

Holiday

Horror

Mystery & Thriller

Sci-Fi

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Popcornmeter

49%

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39 Reviews

30%

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50,000+ Ratings

Hospital emergency room Dr. Daniel "Dan" Challis (Tom Atkins) and Ellie Grimbridge (Stacey Nelkin), the daughter of a murder victim, uncover a terrible plot by small-town mask maker Conal Cochran (Dan O'Herlihy), a madman who's planning a Halloween mass murder utilizing an ancient Celtic ritual. The ritual involves a boulder stolen from Stonehenge, the use of Silver Shamrock masks and a triggering device contained in a television commercial -- all designed to kill millions of children.

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Critics Consensus

Its laudable deviation from series formula not withstanding, Halloween III: Season Of The Witch offers paltry thrills and dubious plotting.

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Chris Stuckmann

ChrisStuckmann.com

Absolutely atrocious. I admire the fact that they did try to propel the story in a different direction. But the story they chose was insanely boring.

Rated: D-

Nov 3, 2018

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Aja Romano

Vox

This movie is a dirty trick on all Halloween fans.

Oct 19, 2018

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Time Out

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.

Jun 24, 2006

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Bryce Hanson

Horror Movie Talk

The reality is, the critics got it right the first time. This film is not underrated. It is rated. It’s bad.

Rated: 2/10

Sep 18, 2025

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Patrick Cavanaugh

The Wolfman Cometh

Abandoning Michael Myers is the best thing the franchise could have done, as we got this silly and spooky experience that embraces the sinister side of All Hallows Eve.

Rated: 4/5

Sep 11, 2025

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Joe Leydon

Houston Post (Texas)

Silly and slackly paced, this film exists solely to wring the last few bucks from an exploitable title. This is a trick, and it's no treat.

Aug 27, 2025

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Rafael S

Average movie, it's acceptable

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

10/08/25

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Sean C

Its actually kind of funny if you let it be.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

10/07/25

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TheRealMyers 7

Do I even need to explain. Yeah it doesn't have Michael Myers. But even without him, it still makes for a weird and wacky sci-fi horror film. Do I enjoy it. Yes. But I'd rather watch a movie that features the flagship villain than not. 3.7/10. And it's a hard not recommended if you want to watch a slasher. Hard recommend though if you enjoy more slow burn thrillers with that science fiction element.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

10/03/25

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MaryAnn M.

Every year on Halloween this is on my list of movies to watch. Good luck getting the song out of your head

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/28/25

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Julian S.

Inventive for its time with some memorable kills, but without Myers the title lands like a trick with no treat.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

09/22/25

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Shahid K

Anyone watching the film for the first time might feel cheated that it was not another Michael Myers type of Halloween film but if you can cast that aside and watch it as an individual horror film then maybe like me, you will think the film is quite good and stands up much better than a lot of the films of recent years. I have seen the film about 4 times over the decades and it gets better with every watch.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

09/22/25

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Tommy Lee Wallace

Director

Tom Atkins

Daniel Challis

Stacey Nelkin

Ellie Grimbridge

Dan O'Herlihy

Conal Cochran

Ralph Strait

Buddy Kupfer

Michael Currie

Rafferty

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Synopsis

Hospital emergency room Dr. Daniel "Dan" Challis (Tom Atkins) and Ellie Grimbridge (Stacey Nelkin), the daughter of a murder victim, uncover a terrible plot by small-town mask maker Conal Cochran (Dan O'Herlihy), a madman who's planning a Halloween mass murder utilizing an ancient Celtic ritual. The ritual involves a boulder stolen from Stonehenge, the use of Silver Shamrock masks and a triggering device contained in a television commercial -- all designed to kill millions of children.

Director: Tommy Lee Wallace
Producer: John Carpenter, Debra Hill
Screenwriter: Tommy Lee Wallace
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Universal Pictures, Dino De Laurentiis Productions
Rating: R
Genre: Holiday, Horror, Mystery & Thriller, Sci-Fi
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 22, 1982, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 11, 2015
Runtime: 1h 38m
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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