Halloween (2018)

Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, James Jude Courtney, Nick Castle, Haluk Bilginer, Will Patton, Rhian Rees, Jefferson Hall
Directed by: David Gordon Green
Rating: R
Genre: Horror, Thriller
2018

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) finally confronts Michael Myers, decades after he nearly killed her during his murderous spree.

Review:

Tim: Now, I have a lot of thoughts about David Gordon Green's Halloween. Most of them are positive, because this is a good movie. In fact, I think it's the third best film in the whole franchise, behind only the original two movies. That means it's the best film in the franchise in something like 38 years. That's really positive. It's shocking, in fact. So overall, I need you to know I feel relieved and ecstatic that we finally got another good Halloween movie. This film is a success for that reason.

I do want to nitpick about a few small things that ultimately didn't impact the film's quality, but bothered me nevertheless. The first is that this film ignores all the other sequels, except for the original. Many franchises have done this and it's fine- it's a little annoying that the time and energy we invested in previous film don't count towards the experience of watching this one, but when a franchise has so gone off the rails like this, some rewriting of history is required. This bothered me even more, though, because Jamie Lee Curtis already made the first sequel, plus she made another movie 20 years later and another four years after that. It's one thing to erase some of these forgettable sequels, but the ones that highlight the main character of the franchise are slightly more troubling to me. Still, while annoying, I get it.

The other annoying issue is that if this film is the new sequel to the original, that means we have two films both named Halloween and one isn't a reboot, it's a sequel. That is pretty confusing, especially when you throw in the poor 2007 remake. So now, this franchise has 11 films in it and three of them are called Halloween. Again, small thing, but it's stupid.

Now, back to the positives. Green directed a film that feels more like the Halloween franchise should than any of the previous 8 films Michael Myers is evil incarnate, but he's not a supernatural being. He's tough but not indestructible. The aura of his evil rampage is still present, but the film felt grounded in reality. There wasn't unnecessary tongue-in-cheek humor and you actually cared about the characters. In some ways, it was brilliant to center the film on Laurie Strode's family. She's always been the central character and it was fascinating to see how trauma could impact multiple generations of a family. That was one aspect of the film that was unexpected but entertaining. It took this horror film in a slightly different direction.

It was great to see Jamie Lee Curtis return to this role, although it was presented like the most amazing thing for her to return to this role when this is her fifth Halloween film. It was cool to see her again after 16 years, absolutely- but it's not the most novel thing. The amazing thing about it is that we've seen her play Laurie Strode in so many different decades. I liked the casting of Judy Greer. She doesn't get to do as much as I'd like, but she gets some really cool moments. Andi Matichak was fine, but I can't say her performance made me feel like the torch had been passed. She wasn't as strong as she needed to be. I liked seeing Will Patton, but he doesn't get enough to do. Haluk Bilginer had some good moments, although he wasn't quite as memorable as he needed to be. The rest of the supporting cast was fine.

Two things I really loved about this film- when Michael gets his mask back- that scene was incredibly cool and it's hard not to get goosebumps if you're a horror movie fan. And secondly, I thought Michael's rampage was excellently done. He methodically moves throughout the town, killing anyone he comes across. It was entertaining and felt believable, true to the character of Michael Myers. Those were fun to watch.

Halloween is a good movie and it's a return to form for a classic horror franchise that has languished in poor quality for decades. It might not be as great as the original, but you have to feel happy about the reversal here. I'm hoping we get another movie, just please don't call it Halloween II since we already have two films with that title.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Halloween (1978), Halloween II (1981)