Halloween night, 1963. Haddonfield, Illinois.

After witnessing his teenaged sister Judith Myers and her boyfriend, six-year-old Michael Myers dons a clown mask brutally stabs her. He is discovered by his parents, who are horrified at the sight.

Fifteen Years Later…

Smith’s Grove, Illinois. October 30, 1978.

Planning to escort him to court the next day, Dr. Samuel Loomis and nurse Marion Chambers are en route to pick him up. They are surprised to discover multiple inmates roaming freely in the rain, but it’s only after Dr. Loomis leaves the vehicle to open the front gate that Michael strikes. He attacks Marion, scaring her out of the car and stealing it to begin his drive back home.

Haddonfield, Illinois. Halloween.

After being reminded by her father to drop off the key to the old Myers house, Laurie is joined on her walk to school by Tommy Doyle, the young child she babysits. Along the way, Tommy is horrified to discover that Laurie needs to deliver a key to the Myers house, and both are oblivious to The Shape watching them from inside the house.

Back in Smith’s Grove, Dr. Loomis is debating with another doctor, Terrence Wynn, about whether or not Michael has returned to his hometown in Haddonfield. Dr. Wynn doesn’t think Michael could drive to Haddonfield, and blames Dr. Loomis for not warning the staff about the potential for Michael’s outburst. However, Dr. Loomis disputes his claims and begins his own drive back to Haddonfield.

Later that day, Laurie sits in her English class where she notices The Shape staring at her from outside. Her teacher calls on her to answer a question; when she’s finished, she looks back out and notices that Michael has disappeared.

With that, the school days start to come to a close. Tommy Doyle is leaving elementary school when he’s harassed by a group of bullies, convincing him that the Boogeyman is real and causing him to break the pumpkin he had planned to carve with Laurie. One of his bullies runs into the waiting hands of Michael Myers, who lets him leave before briefly stalking Tommy in his car.

Halfway between Smith’s Grove and Haddonfield, an increasingly frustrated Dr. Loomis is on the phone with the Haddonfield police department, attempting to warn them of Michael’s arrival. It’s only after he finishes his car that he discovers a broken down truck nearby. Though he recognizes signs of a struggle – and notices personal belongings from the night before, such as Marion’s matchbook from the Rabbit in Red lounge – he is oblivious to the murdered body, stripped of its jumpsuit, lying in the bushes nearby.

Laurie and her friend Lynda begin to walk home from high school, and are soon joined by their friend Annie Brackett. The three discuss their plans for the school dance later on, before noticing a familiar looking station wagon driving down their street. Annie heckles the driver, only for Michael to stop the car and leave all three with an uneasy feeling. Before too long, Lynda arrives at her house, and Laurie and Annie continue on.

It’s then that Laurie catches a glimpse of The Shape behind a hedge and alerts her friend. Annie decides to confront him, only to discover nobody there and assume Laurie is hallucinating. Laurie eventually arrives at her house, following a brief run-in with Annie’s father, Sheriff Leigh Brackett. In her room, Laurie once again catches a glimpse of The Shape in the clothes lines, but is distracted by Annie calling to confirm their plans for that evening.

Four o’ clock rolls around, and right on schedule, Annie is there to pick up Laurie. Across town, Dr. Loomis has finally arrived in Haddonfield and is visiting the cemetery with the assistance of a caretaker. Dr. Loomis is there to find Judith’s grave, ignoring the caretaker’s tales of Haddonfield lore, which is cut short when they discover Judith’s headstone has been ripped from the ground.

Laurie and Annie begin to drive around town, oblivious to Michael following them in his own car. They come across Sheriff Brackett, who is investigating a burglary at the local general store where a mask, a set of knives, and a rope have been stolen. After the two of them drive off, Dr. Loomis is finally able to meet Sheriff Brackett, and tells him that there are urgent matters that need to be discussed. In the background, Michael drives off, his presence unseen by Dr. Loomis.

After driving around town to kill time, Annie and Laurie arrive at their destinations, still unaware that Michael has been following them this whole time. Laurie is dropped off at the Doyle residence, while Annie makes her way across the street to the Wallace residence to babysit Lindsay Wallace.

Sheriff Brackett and Dr. Loomis make their way to the old Myers house. After discovering the carcass of a dog, Dr. Loomis recognizes that Michael has made his way home. Dr. Loomis takes the time to educate Brackett on Michael’s history, before Brackett leaves to relay the message to the other officers in the department.

I met him, 15 years ago; I was told there was nothing left; no reason, no conscience, no understanding in even the most rudimentary sense of life or death, of good or evil, right or wrong. I met this… six-year-old child with this blank, pale, emotionless face, and… the blackest eyes – the Devil’s eyes. I spent eight years trying to reach him, and then another seven trying to keep him locked up, because I realized that what was living behind that boy’s eyes was purely and simply… evil.

Laurie and Annie have settled into the evening’s festivities – Laurie and Tommy read through books and Tommy’s hidden collection of comic books at the Doyle residence, while Annie is busy in the kitchen while Lindsay watches The Thing From Another World in living world at the Wallace residence.

Annie kills time by calling Laurie, breaking the news to her that she’d spoken with Ben Tramer – Laurie’s crush – and mentioned Laurie thought he was cute, much to Laurie’s annoyance. Unbeknownst to both of them, Tommy has spied The Boogeyman across the street and tries to draw Laurie’s attention to his presence. By the time Laurie looks, Michael has once again vanished, instead spying on Annie from the windows and doorways to the kitchen.

The Wallace’s pet dog Lester discovers Michael lingering outside and tries to make his presence known, but is ignored by Annie. Michael instead disposes of Lester, and continues to watch Annie in the kitchen. Annie, oblivious to Michael’s presence outside, instead spills butter on her shirt and makes her way to the laundry room. Michael once again lingers outside, his presence unknown, before locking Annie in the laundry room.

Hyperfocused on the television, Lindsay’s attention is finally pulled away by Paul – Annie’s boyfriend – calling to talk to Annie. Lindsay discovers Annie stuck in the laundry room’s window after trying to escape, and helps her out. Annie returns to take Paul’s call, and the two of them make plans for Annie to pick Paul up before Lynda and her boyfriend arrive.

Annie ultimately convinces Lindsay to spend the rest of the evening with Tommy and Laurie, and the two of them make their way across the street. Laurie is hesitant at first to take on the task of watching Lindsay, but eventually relents when Lindsay immediately gets settled in with Tommy to continue watching the movie.

Annie makes her way back to the Wallace house, discovering that her car is locked and she left her keys inside. Upon her subsequent return to the car, she realizes a moment too late that her car is now unlocked. Before she can put two and two together, Michael sits up from the back seat and attacks. There’s a struggle at first, before Michael ultimately slices Annie’s throat, killing her.

Tommy decides to play a prank on Lindsay, hiding behind the curtains in his living room and tormenting her. While she searches for him, Tommy looks out the window and again catches a glimpse of The Boogeyman – this time with Annie’s dead body draped across his arms. He panics, drawing the attention and ire of Laurie, who ultimately scolds him for his behaviour.

Back at the Myers house, Dr. Loomis spots Lonnie and the rest of Tommy’s tormentors from earlier on. The boys are all egging Lonnie to run inside the Myers house, but are quickly scared off by Dr. Loomis calling at them from the bushes. Sheriff Brackett then returns to let Dr. Loomis know that they’ve combed through the streets of Haddonfield without any successful sightings.

Lynda and Bob arrive at the Wallace house, surprised to find it dark and completely empty. The two of them begin to make out on the couch, completely unaware that The Shape is watching them from the shadows of the doorway.

Across the street, Laurie has finished carving the jack o’ lantern with Tommy and Lindsay, when Lynda calls to inquire where Annie is. Upon discovering that Lindsay is gone for the night, Lynda and Bob make their way upstairs to have sex.

As before, the two of them are oblivious to Michael’s presence, and only stop when the phone rings. Lynda correctly deduces that it’s the Wallaces and doesn’t want to answer to save Annie from getting in trouble. Afterward, Lynda coerces Bob into getting them beers from the living room, and Bob reluctantly agrees.

In the kitchen, Bob begins to hear strange noises and thinks it’s Paul and Annie pulling a prank on him. He upons the pantry, only for Michael to lunge out and pin him against the wall. There, he shoves a knife through Bob’s body, and watches on as the life drains from him. Michael then poses as Bob in a ghost costume to taunt Lynda, who teases him to no effect. Annoyed by what she perceives as Bob’s lack of response, Lynda decides to call Laurie so they can find out what happened to Annie.

Laurie answers the phone, but before Lynda can speak, she is attacked from behind by Michael. He wraps the phone cord around her neck and strangles her, as Laurie listens on the other line. After Michael hears her voice, Laurie hangs up and calls back, only to find nobody answers.

Worried by the phone call, Laurie checks on Tommy and Lindsay – now asleep in the upstairs bedroom – and decides to investigate what could be happening across the street. Meanwhile, still alone at the Myers house, Dr. Loomis discovers the station wagon abandoned and realizes that Michael must be near by.

Laurie makes her way to the Wallace house, completely dark except for a small light coming from upstairs. Upon opening the door to the bedroom, she discovers her friends’ dead bodies – Annie on the bed with Judith’s headstone above her; Bob swinging from the closet doorway, and Lynda in a cabinet.

Laurie takes refuge in the hallway, where The Shape creeps from behind and slices her arm. She stumbles over the railing, injuring her ankle in the process, but escapes before Michael can reach her. After finding the front door jammed, she makes her way to the kitchen door that she had previously entered, only to find it locked as well. As The Shape nears, she manages to free herself and runs back over the Doyle house.

It’s there she discovers her keys missing, and manages to wake Tommy up to come let her back inside. Now believing Tommy’s earlier claims, she tells him to go upstairs and hide with Lindsay while she calls for help. She discovers that the phone lines have been cut, and an open window confirms her worst fears.

As Laurie cowers against the couch, Michael lunges from behind, attempting to stab her. Laurie manages to instead stab his neck with a sewing needle and renders him unconscious. Returning upstairs to check on the children, she begins to tell them their nightmare is over, only for the two to see The Shape climbing up the stairs behind Laurie.

The three of them hide, Tommy & Lindsay in the bathroom, and Laurie in the bedroom closet. The Shape quickly makes his way towards the closet, where Laurie attacks him with a wire hanger and then his knife, knocking him down once more.

With their Boogeyman seemingly dead, Laurie tells Tommy & Lindsay to run down the street to a neighbours’ house and have them call the police. The two of them obey her orders, leaving Laurie alone as she tries to recover from the ordeal. Behind her, The Shape has risen once more.

Tommy and Lindsay run screaming from his house, drawing the attention of Dr. Loomis – finally discovering where Michael is. Inside the house, Laurie is unaware that The Shape has crept up behind her until he attacks once more.

Laurie manages to get the upper hand by pulling The Shape’s mask free. Michael steps back, pulling his mask back on, and is met by Dr. Loomis firing at him.

Dr. Loomis keeps firing until Michael falls off the back porch and lands with a thud down below. Laurie, fully convinced it was indeed the Boogeyman who attacked them, sobs. Dr. Loomis looks over the edge of the balcony, where – as he had already anticipated – Michael has vanished.

The movie concludes with Michael’s breathing over a montage of all of the places he has been. Somewhere, the boogeyman is still out there…