After years of development hell following the lackluster Rob Zombie remakes, in 2016, a new Halloween sequel was finally announced. This time the production rights went to Blumhouse, the go-to studio company for modern-day horror films. David Gordon Green was set to direct while Danny Mcbride wrote the script, which was a weird choice since they were known for their more comedic films but John Carpenter gave them his blessing. Though as you can see from my trailer reaction last year, I was very excited to see Jamie Lee Curtis in a Halloween film again. It's just good to see Laurie Strode living, breathing, and kicking ass. From what I've seen, people actually liked the movie, going so far as claiming it to be just as good as the original. Sure, fine, I mean although I do like certain scenes of the film, I wasn't really impacted by it. I'm not saying it's a bad movie, it's just not that memorable. Though I would say it's lightyears better than the sequels and the Rob Zombie films.
The Story: It's been 40 years since the Halloween killing spree in 1978. Podcasters Aaron and Dana are doing a research project on notorious Haddonfield slasher Micheal Myers. They meet with his recent psychologist Dr. Sartian to get more information about his mental diagnosis, though, there appears to be no sign of recovery on Micheal's part.
They soon stop by to interview the Haddonfield sole survivor Laurie Strode, who is still traumatized by the events of 1978. She is now a recluse who has now been twice divorced and has a restrained, distant relationship with her adult daughter and teenage granddaughter. Laurie hopes for the day that she is well enough prepared to face off with Micheal whenever he gets a chance to escape the sanitarium. But soon the news gets out that Micheal has in fact escaped, resulting from a bus crash as he was getting transferred.
Now it's up to Laurie to protect her family from the boogeyman that has been haunting her for all these years.
Jamie Lee Curtis was the best thing in this movie. She really stole the show by giving a tour-de-force performance by capturing the inner turmoil that Laurie is going through. It's a bit similar to how her character was portrayed in H20, being a borderline alcoholic and a traumatized paranoiac but now it's on an extreme level.
Laurie is now a full-on survivalist. Setting up traps, gearing up weapons, and building a panic room. She is well-enough prepared but my issue with this is I wish they would've played this off much more in a subtle way. It's even to the point where in the past, she forced her daughter Karen to get into survivalist training at a young age. I thought that was a bit forced, and guys don't come for my head for this but I think this could've worked better If Micheal Myers was still her brother, giving the reason why Laurie has become a paranoid survivalist. The movie would have more of a flow in my opinion because there isn't any indication that Micheal is even thinking about going after her. He's way too busy going on a murder-happy killing spree to target one specific person. Overall, Jamie Lee Curtis is by far one of my favorite actresses and a legend in her own right.
It's good to see Judy Greer in meaty role again. I think she's a very underrated actress and should get more credit than she deserves than playing the typical "wife" and "mom" roles. The character of Karen is portrayed as really passive at first, which shows the dynamic between her and Mother. Laurie is fully aware of the danger that is lurking once Micheal sets foot in Haddonfield yet Karen just wants to move on, have a normal life, and not cling on to the past like her mother did. But furthermore, all those survival skills that Laurie taught her has paid off when going toe-to-toe with Micheal, which seems to be a cathartic moment because, throughout the movie, she came off like the usual oblivious parent character you see in most horror films.
Let's just squeeze Karen's annoying husband Ray for good measure. He's mostly just there for comedy relief, telling really stale jokes and being useless and unfunny throughout the duration of the film. Nope, not much to say about Ray.
We have Laurie's granddaughter Allyson and her friends who really don't get that much characterization beyond that. They're not your stereotypical slasher movie characters, they are portrayed realistically, but they still came off as bland.
Allyson seems to fair better when it comes to characterization. She doesn't get that many scenes when compared to Laurie and the podcasters but she's decent enough and the actress Andi Matichack works well with what she's given especially the scenes between her and Jamie Lee Curtis.
There's not much to say about Cameron played by Dylan Arnold. At first, he comes off as Allyson's handsome, charming, doting boyfriend but soon he shows his true colors by shamelessly making out with a girl in front of Allyson during a Halloween party and during an argument with her, he drunkenly drops her phone into some pudding. And that's pretty much the last we see of him.
We also have the lecherous and annoying Oscar, who is Cameron's best friend. He seems to have a crush/obsession with Allyson and stupidly makes the moves on her just after she had a fight with her boyfriend. So yeah, he's not endearing in the least.
Vicky, Allyson's friend fairs much better and unlike the previous Halloween films (the Rob Zombie Films notwithstanding), she actually cares about the kids she babysits and even shows her checking up on him and tucking him in, which shows she is way more likable and better developed than Annie and Lynda.
Dave is...just Dave. A typical stoner with mild likable qualities.
The podcasters Aaron and Dana get enough screentime for the most part but I didn't find myself invested in them that much. They are just randomly killed off without serving any purpose to the plot. What if the filmmakers dig deeper as to why Aaron is so obsessed with Micheal Myers which in turn would consume him and make him just as monstrous. However, Aaron and Dana are swept aside to only start the plot along and get killed halfway through.
Deputy Hawkins was an interesting enough character given how he was involved with the events of the first film but he is too shoved away with giving much purpose to the story.
Dr. Sartian is basically a carbon copy of Dr. Loomis but unlike Dr. Loomis, who happens to be his mentor, is incompetent. He is the reason why Micheal escapes which would lead to spoilers later in the review.
Micheal Myers is probably at his most brutal in this movie. Even in his old age, he has unstoppable strength. Not to mention, *spoilers* Micheal, for the first time in the series, actually kills a preteen kid. It's shocking, it's disturbing, and it just comes out of nowhere. It proves how sadistic Micheal Myers really is.
The story surrounding him was changed here and there. For instance, after the events of the first film, Micheal is somehow captured and placed at a sanitarium for 40 years. It's never mentioned how he got captured so easily in the last few minutes of the 1978's Halloween but I can roll with it either way. Say what you will about the rest of the movie, but David Gordon Green and Danny Mcbride did a good job of capturing the old school Micheal Myers that keeps him apart from other slasher villains.
The deaths in the movie were pretty realistic until then, though, this is just a small nitpick, it got a little over-the-top and gory by the third act.
The other compliment that I would give to the movie, besides Jamie Lee Curtis' performance is the directing style, giving off a sort of retro feel to it, embracing the spirit of the 1978 original. The writing, on the other hand, is a mixed bag. For the most part, the story and the characters are portrayed well yet unnecessary humor just didn't do it for me. I know certain horror movies don't always have to be totally serious all the time, though, what seems to be a serious, gritty update of the Halloween franchise made things a little less scary with cringy dialogue and unfunny, annoying characters who are labeled as comedy relief.
Now on to the biggest gripe that I have with this movie...the third act. *spoilers.*
Then out of the blue, Dr. Sartian stabs Deputy Hawkins, puts on Micheal's mask for the thrill of it, props up Micheal's unconscious body in the backseat of the car while Allyson is inside, and runs over Deputy Hawkins body as he speeds away. And I was like...What? This twist just happens out of nowhere. We never really get to explore why Dr. Sartian is obsessed with Micheal. There's never even any hints because there's not much focus on the character. Like I said, this would've worked best if Aaron was the one obsessed.
The one thing that Dr. Sartian wants out of Micheal is for him to just say one word but as Micheal awakens which gives time for Allyson to escape, he pins down Dr. Sartian who urges him to say something only for Micheal to crush his head in one stomp. Well, that was a waste of a twist. While all of this happens, the scene suddenly cuts to two cops having a meaningless conversation about sandwiches. Again, I go like...What? It just kills the pacing and the suspense of the third act. And this is why I say the writing is a mixed bag. I know that Danny Mcbride is trying to humanize these people before their deaths but I thought that the scene was totally unnecessary.
Thankfully, the film makes up for it once Laurie and her family go toe-to-toe with Micheal.
So yeah, that's why I think this movie is just...Okay. Just like H20, I thought this would be a fitting finale for the series. However, there's not only going to be one but two sequels in the making. So all this adds up to 13 Halloween movies. That's a lot of movies involving a guy with a knife and a Captian Kirk mask.
Anywho, the movie is meh in some places. I wanted to like it but it had me stuck in the middle.
My Last Word: watchable but forgettable.
