David Pierdomenico
It was the slasher that jump started the entire craze all the way back in 1978. And ever since, the series has meandered between awesome sequels, terrible sequels, divisive remakes, and a sequel that had absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the films. Now, for the original’s 40th anniversary, it seemed fitting to revisit Haddonfield, and to bring back Jamie Lee Curtis once again; especially considering how unceremoniously she was disposed of in the universally panned Halloween: Resurrection. But with that amount of anticipation, does the new film live up to the hype?
Too Many Timelines?
The Halloween franchise is one that has been repeatedly retconned and rebooted several times over. Including Rob Zombie’s remakes and Season of the Witch, there are a total of five, three of which all use the original film as their basis point. It was decided early on that this film would only follow the first, and ignore even Halloween II, which was controversial to many fans. The first sequel picks up at the very scene where the last film ended and takes place that very same night. For many, the first two films are just two parts of one larger story. And it was in the second that Laurie Strode is revealed to be the younger sister of Michael Myers. This has always been such a defining characteristic of the series that fans worried how the new film would proceed.
Starting Fresh
The film opens at Smith’s Grove Sanitarium, where an elderly Michael Myers has been for 40 years. Two investigative journalists arrive to interview Myers, which seems pointless considering he still hasn’t spoken a word since he was a six year old boy 55 years ago. They also reach out to Laurie Strode, who now exists as a hermit in a house built like a fortress, and is filled with enough weapons and ammo to take Normandy. We learn that she has a strained relationship with her daughter and granddaughter due to the harsh, paranoid manner in which she raised her daughter.
And here is where we find the main issue with retconning the other sequels. For Laurie, she is no longer his sister, and she only dealt with him that one night. It doesn’t explain why she builds him up so much, or why she believes he’ll specifically come for her. Michael Myers is a legend to the audience because of the franchise, but in this context, it’s not as justified. It would even make more sense if this had followed H20, and Laurie is now paranoid because she tried to start a new life and Michael found her anyway.
As expected, Michael escapes and goes on a killing spree in Haddonfield once again on Halloween night. Unfortunately, we’re forced to suffer through a great deal of screen time with Laurie’s granddaughter Allyson and her friends. In a film that’s supposed to about dealing with trauma and Laurie’s struggles with it, we get to watch Allyson and her incredibly annoying friends toil with clichéd teen drama. The only benefit to this is we’re all the more satisfied watching Myers come after and kill some of them.
The Legendary Scream Queen
Despite the rampant issues this film has, Jamie Lee Curtis is, by far, the best thing it has going for it. She plays a version of Laurie Strode that is just as badass as Sarah Connor, but also tragic and vulnerable. Laurie is convinced that the world is an evil and frightening place, so she is well armed and prepared for Myers’ return. She goes through life paranoid, but absolutely hates the fact that she must be. It’s clear that she wants nothing more than to be a good and loving mother to her daughter, but must accept that safety and preparedness come first. When she finally comes face to face with Myers once again, she goes from Scream Queen to Warrior Queen, as she fights him back with all the same feral ferocity he brings. It’s a shame that Allyson is more the main focus, rather than Laurie. Had she been the main character, this would have been a much better film.
Not Sure What It Wants to Be
There is much more attempted humor in this film than one would expect from a slasher. Screenwriter Danny McBride’s signature style of comedy is sprinkled throughout, but it doesn’t seem very fitting here. He’s known for his sarcastically witty, but also immature jokes. And while that may work for Vice Principals and This is the End, it just detracts from the tone here. It struggles to maintain tonal consistency by going from out of place jokes to intense stabbings and killings. The film also tries to throw in a plot twist that seems to come out of nowhere, feels completely unjustified, and doesn’t really go anywhere. It just feels like the screenwriting team wanted to shake things up a bit, so they threw it in for good measure.
It’s admirable the way that David Gordon Green and Danny McBride tried to bring the series back. However, aside from Jamie Lee Curtis’ performance, the film fails on many of the objectives it sets out to do. It’s not as bad as Halloween: Resurrection or Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers, but H20 did a much better job revisiting the concept years later. Given the nature of the series however, it wouldn’t be out of the question to reboot or remake it entirely once again.
