Halloween (2018)

Halloween (2018) (see below for trailer and preview images)

Directed by David Gordon Green
Written by David Gordon Green, Jeff Fradley, Danny McBride
 
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Nick Castle, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, Will Patton, and Virginia Gardner
 
IMDb 7.4/10                Rotten Tomatoes 79%            Metacritic 67/100

​This is said to be final installment of the Halloween series.  Jamie Lee Curtis does a fantastic job reprising her role of Laurie Strode.  The movie definitely builds, starting at the very beginning and going all the way up to the finale.
 
I don’t want to give a lot away because I know there are still people out there that haven’t seen this yet. But I have a few things I want to point out.
 
First and foremost, I give great applause for the performance of Jamie Lee Curtis.  I love her in this role.  She is the ULTIMATE scream queen to me and even though she doesn’t like horror movies, doesn’t watch horror movies, she does a fantastic job in bringing our virtuous heroine to the screen.
 
Also, there are a number of things in this film that struck me as an homage to the original.  If you pay attention and know the original well, you’ll be able to see them and appreciate them.
 
Now, for a few complaints.
 
One of the things I noticed right away was that Michael Myers walked so much faster than he did in the first one.  Part of the scariness of the boogeyman (and in most slasher films) is that no matter how fast you run, no matter how far you go, no matter where you hide, Michael Myers is RIGHT THERE…and yet the man walks slower than a hundred-year-old with a walker.  His slow and steady walk that always seemed to keep him caught up with his victims is gone. Now, he walks with gusto and purpose. That seems so opposite of what we know Myers to be.  Not to mention the fact that this IS forty years later and one would think he would move slower in his older age, not faster.  So, that’s the first complaint.
 
Then, I am listening to the theme song, which the original Carpenter theme song is my ringer on my phone so I am VERY familiar with it, and they’ve modernized it.  They’ve added things and layered tracks.  It just made it a little “off” for me.  One of the reasons that music, like that of Jaws or the creepy “ki ki ki, ma ma ma” sound of Friday the 13th, is its simplicity.  The bare and basic compositions are so eerie and when you inflate them and complicate them, the theme songs are no longer as effective.  I mean, you know when you here the Jaws music or the original Carpenter music for Halloween that SOMETHING is about to happen.  However, when a more complex version of that music is playing throughout the film during general scenes instead of slasher scenes, it loses its effectiveness.
 
I will also say that, for me, I expected more of a showdown between the heroine and the killer.  I felt the film did a superb job of building up to a big ending battle between Laurie and Michael and I just felt that it fell flat compared to the rest of the movie.  There were parts that were obviously tried to offer a twist but they weren’t a surprise.  I expected a number of them because of the route the movie was going.
 
Lastly, the new doctor (our replacement for Dr. Loomis) seems out of place for this film.  His attitude and personality for someone replacing the good Dr. Loomis is off.  This character seemed like a necessary evil almost.  It’s like the filmmakers said “We need a doctor and Donald Pleasance is dead so…let’s do THIS.  I feel like the character was almost an afterthought.  It just didn’t fit the rest of the movie to me, especially how he was portrayed.
 
All in all, I enjoyed the film.  But, even though they tried to equal the original, it just can’t happen.  Magic on film like that is a crazy concoction that cannot ever be reproduced.  It doesn’t mean it’s an inferior film, it’s just not the same.
 
Now, here’s the big question…Is it worth going to the show to see it OR is it best to wait for the DVD/Blu-ray?  I think it’s worth paying the money to go to the show to see it once.  I wouldn’t pay to see it in the theater more than once but, it was definitely worth going for.
 
I know there are a lot of reviews online saying this is the best sequel of the Halloween series and things like that.  I don’t know that I would agree 100% with that but, I do feel it was well done.
 
RATINGS
3.5/5 Stars