Happy Halloween, folks.
It's that time of year when greedy kids are given candy, when lazy
adults sit around and watch horror movies, and it's also the night he
came home!... for the tenth time. Yes, this year we get to see the
eleventh film (Michael Myers wasn't in the third movie) of the
legendary Halloween franchise of slasher films, and I'm
psyched. For over a decade I've been a fan of the Halloween
movies and this is the first one I've gotten to see in theatres. The
Halloween films are infamous for their nonsensical chronology
– in fact this is the third film in the franchise simply
entitled “Halloween” – but can the 2018 instalment make you
forget about all that and keep you entertained while honouring the
series' legacy? Let's find out!
So the deal with
Halloween (2018) is that it is the only film taking place
after the 1978 original Halloween (making this at least the
fifth possible timeline in the series. I'm writing an article on
this!) and is appropriately set 40 years later. As such the only
recurring characters from the first film are Laurie Strode and
Michael Myers and it suits this film just fine. This film
more-or-less serves as a return to form for the series. Gone is the
weird cult stuff, gone are the unimaginative backstories, and gone
are the reality shows and celebrity guest appearances. Halloween
is a back to basics approach to slasher movies which doesn't quite
nail the chilling atmosphere of the original but it at least tries.
I'd say its tone and (to some extent) story are comparable to
Halloween (1978) and Halloween 4 (1988). After 40 years
in a mental institution Michael escapes and continues his murderous
ways, but fortunately Laurie Strode, the sole survivor of his 1978
killing spree, has been spending the past 40 years meticulously
preparing for his return, much to the detriment of her personal life. It's a film that
includes plenty of nods to the original as well as some unique setups
of its own, such as a killing in a yard covered in motion-activated
lights or Michael hiding in a room full of mannequins. It's a film
full of tense scenes, from the opening scene to the final battle.
This is helped by the uneasy musical scoring from John Carpenter
himself, solidly building upon the established classic sound of the
series. All this combines to make this year's Halloween one of
the scariest entries of the series. Rob Zombie's two Halloween
films (2007 and 2009) were pretty scary but they suffered from
excessive violence and gore whereas this new one has the benefit of
not being so over the top (though it is brutal at times).
As mentioned before,
there are two returning characters. The first, Laurie, is
marvellously played once again by Jamie Lee Curtis. A slightly
unhinged badass, she's let her 1978 experience drive her into
obsession. Taking on an air of creepiness similar to Michael's in the
first film, she's now a grandmother who will do anything to protect
her family from the masked killer. Nick Castle returns to the role of
Michael Myers after 40 years in a chilling, silent performance. I
like how the film acknowledges that Myers has aged but without
showing his full face. After all these years Michael is still a
creatively freaky and effective murderer. The other character of note
is Dr. Ranbir Sartain (played by Haluk Bilginer), Myers'
psychiatrist. He's the obsessed, intense doctor who knows Michael too
well. In the words of Laurie, he's basically the new Loomis... sort of.
So that's Halloween,
the one one from 2018. It's a thrilling addition to the franchise
which pays homage to what made the classic entries in the series so
great to begin with. While not as great as the original that started
it all, I would say Halloween is possibly the best sequel of
this undying franchise. Much like its star killer, Halloween
will take you straight to the point and leave you speechless.
Grade:
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