John Carpenter’s 1978 horror classic “Halloween” is one of my favourite horror films of all time, and a film that inspired me due to how Carpenter managed to achieve so much with so little. Because of this, I was naturally intrigued by the trailer to this 2018 sequel (strangely adopting the same title as its predecessor) mainly because it showed glimpses of greatness, and seemingly straying away from the tropes of modern horror. So, did this film satisfy my twisted needs of wanting to see my favourite masked, knife-wielding psycho? Yes, but also no.
If there is one thing that this film does right, it would be Michael Myers; he is the same entity from the original movie, and despite the fact that he has aged 40 years, he still feels like the same old Michael, which I loved, as it made him seem almost impervious to his own age, and his need for blood just keeps him pushing forwards. His mask finally looks great, after so many horrid versions of it in the past, and his slow, robot-like movements are just as creepy as they were in the 70’s. Unlike the Halloween sequels that portray Michael as someone who is downright invincible, Michael is rather an unstoppable force that just keeps taking damage but carries on getting back up and moving forward; he is the boogieman, not a god, which is the way he should be.
Another returning character from the original Halloween is Laurie Strode, played excellently once again by Jamie Lee Curtis. This is not the same Laurie from 40 years ago; here she is damaged, mentally and physically scarred and preparing for the inevitable. Her progression as a character is realistic, transgressing from the sweet teenage victim to the paranoid but tactical woman who’s skills as a predator are almost level with Michael himself.
As for the other members of the Strode family, I was not too impressed. The granddaughter of Laurie had no purpose, other than screaming and running; while the actress did a fine job, I believed her to be terribly written. Interestingly, I had the opposite opinion of Laurie’s daughter who had a fairly decent backstory and a handful of memorable moments, but Judy Greer often flipped between being satisfactory, and sometimes downright terrible. In one scene in particular where she talks about her childhood, her line delivery was so stale that I was genuinely convinced that an outtake had been edited into the film. As for Laurie’s son-in-law played by Toby Huss, he was easily one of the most out of place characters in the movie, mainly due to his cringe-worthy jokes that just stuck out like a sore thumb.
Speaking of things feeling out of place, this movie is filled with entire scenes that don’t feel like they belong in the Halloween franchise. Not to give any spoilers, but three specific scenes got under my skin; one of which takes place at a party that contained teenage relationship drama and bright flashing lights. When I think of Halloween films, these things do not come to mind. Another scene happens in a police car with two officers making jokes about what they are eating. Nothing significant happens in this scene and its only purpose is to provide comedy, which is just unwanted. Both of these scenes make the tone feel inconsistent. The 1978 Halloween had a very consistent tone, giving creepy reminders that Michael was lurking and that his intentions were deadly, making the audience feel unnerved at the thought that the masked antagonist could appear at virtually any time to end lives. The trouble with this movie’s tone is that police officers making jokes about sandwiches and chocolate pudding makes me forget about Michael, and make me wonder if I’m watching a comedy, which is clearly a huge problem. Again, without spoiling anything, but by far the most infuriating scene is a downright stupid twist that occurs just before the final act of the film. This twist was just so illogical that I sat with a furrowed brow and gaping mouth. Not even was this twist a foolish decision to make, but it was instantly forgotten about, and the film just continues like it did not even happen.
While there may be moments that feel unsuitable, others brought a pleased smile to my face as they gave a nice nod to the previous film. Some small elements such as a scar on Laurie’s shoulder that came as a result of Michael slashing her 40 years ago was a small but pleasing detail, as well as a brief glimpse at Michael’s blinded eye, caused by Laurie jabbing him with a coat hanger. Some camera shots also acted as callbacks to the original, along with the opening credits, which were orange and slightly blurry, alongside a reversed shot of a decaying pumpkin. Small details like these helped to emphasise the link between this installment and John Carpenter’s classic, even if they do contrast with the strange humour sprinkled throughout.
Halloween 2018 reminds me of Star Wars: The Last Jedi in a way; upon first viewing, I thought it was a fairly good and entertaining film that definitely had some problems, but problems that I was willing to look past for the sake of appreciating the movie. However, the more I think about the increasingly apparent downsides of this film, the more I dislike it. I do not hate this film by any means; Michael and Laurie are easily the highlights, with there being some lovely gory moments and nods to the original film, but there is still a bucket load of problems that are massively harmful to both tone and characters. Although this film may be standalone, the ending hints at a sequel, so I’m just hoping these problems are resolved so that we can be treated to a solid Halloween film again.
My Cinematic Ramblings 