HALLOWEEN
Year of Release: 2018
JR's Rating:
(9.2 out of 10, Impressive)
JR's Rating:
(9.2 out of 10, Impressive)
"The Hunted Becomes The Hunter"
There's a reason why the "Halloween" of 1978, our first glimpse at Michael Myers, remains a masterpiece in its genre. It's the very reason why we love masked serial killers in film. "Halloween" of 2018 comes close to the grandeur of the first movie paying homage to the original by continuing the story of Michael vs Laurie and by incorporating details that are subtle references to the first movie. In this year's "Halloween", the entire slate is clean neglecting all the 9 movies that came after the 1978 classic in an attempt to know if Michael is indeed an immortal boogeyman or Michael can be killed by the same being he haunted years back, Laurie Strode, in a case of the hunted becoming the hunter. When "Halloween" of 1978 pits Michael Myers as the monster, the "Halloween" of 2018 creates the unstoppable force that is Laurie Strode. The question now is whether Laurie would prove to be successful or not. The iconic score, clean and strategic kills and attention to detail, the reasons why we loved the original Halloween is the same reason you'll like this year's Halloween. (Insert Halloween theme here...)
🚩🚩🚩SPOILERS AHEAD 🚩🚩🚩
Here are some important points I had on watching "Halloween" (of 2018):
✅ The Iconic Halloween Theme
- It's really sweet to hear again the iconic theme by John Carpenter. As the opening credits roll comes the theme which sets the tone and tension of the movie. The theme of Michael Myers stands as one of the best themes in cinema especially in horror.
✅ Michael Myers
- Michael Myers spearheaded the breakthrough of slasher films in American cinema and the chills is just there watching him back on screen after his first outing way back 1978. This is my first time seeing him on large screen as the first and much of the sequels I watched through TV. The evil is just within him and his eyes (as Dr. Loomis described) and he is a force that kills relentlessly without any known purpose. With his use of the iconic kitchen knife, anticipate the mischief he'll do in this year's Halloween as his murderous streak piles up.
✅ Jamie Lee Curtis
- Jamie Lee Curtis returns as the scream queen Laurie Strode we popular know her for. After her first encounter, she is now with a thirst for Michael's blood. She waited for 40 years for Michael to escape the mental facility he is in to wage war and eventually kill him, an Ellen Ripley if you might say. Jamie Lee Curtis plays Laurie Strode at her best and I can't think of anyone, both actor and character, who can wage a war better against Michael. It's history in the making and it's a question if she can prove to be successful.
✅ Opening "Pumpkin" Credits
- Modern-age cinema viewers get the chance to experience the thrill of anticipation as they watch the opening credits coupled with the iconic Halloween theme, reminiscent of the same Halloween opening credits of 1978. It's beautifully made and definitely nostalgic.
✅ References to the Original
- This year's Halloween is faithful to the original evident from the attention to detail the production made in the film. We first see a trio of friends with Laurie's granddaughter Allyson walking to school reminiscent of Laurie and her friends walking to their homes from school. The escape of Michael Myers during his transport to another facility is a nod to his escape from a mental facility years earlier. Some kills made on his film are also references from the original, an example when one involving a babysitter's boyfriend gets killed in the same fashion as the one killed in the first movie, his babysitter girlfriend though gets to hide under a ghost costume after getting murdered the same which Michael wore before killing Laurie's friend in the first movie. I wanted to list many more references but I would have made this review very, very long.
✅ Role Reversal
- In addition to references I mentioned earlier, it is really a treat for Halloween fans to see Laurie play scenes that Michael came to play in the first movie. We see Laurie play Michael as she watches her granddaughter outside the window of her school and another when Laurie hunts for Michael amongst closets in her home later in the film when she was the one who hid in the closet 40 years earlier. Two which really impressed me the most involves the one where Michael pushes Laurie outside the window but eventually gets lost in view (just as Michael gets shot by Dr. Loomis numerous times making him fall a balcony but getting up eventually) and the one where we see Laurie's glimpse / shadow behind Michael just about as he was going to be trapped in the bunker later in the movie (reminiscent of Michael hiding in the shadows as he was about to kill Laurie). There are many more role reversals in the film I may haven't mentioned but the message is clear, Laurie Strode is now the monster who gets to hunt after being haunted and hunted, a force that was formed by another force.
✅ Clean Kills
- Many kills made by Michael on this film are quite unique. A favorite would definitely when Michael gets to kill Allyson's admirer from the backyard of a motion-activated spotlight. The one you always see on trailers where Michael gets to taunt the interviewers he had at his facility is also a clean kill made in the film that you just have to see. Many more to mention especially when Michael reaches Haddonfield and eventually Laurie's secluded home.
✅ Continous Shot in Haddonfield
- Where we see a continuous opening sequence in Halloween (1978), Halloween (2018) is unique for its single shot sequence when Michael is on a murder spree upon walking the streets of Haddonfield on the eve of Halloween. This is when he gets to kill two inhabitants of the community and eventually get his known kitchen knife weapon. The scene was just clean and well-coordinated, longer and for me, a step up from the original.
✅ Bittersweet Ending (or Is It?)
- The ending for me is bitter and also sweet. Bitter in the sense that it killed the serial killer that I've always admired in film and sweet as Laurie successfully accomplishes her plan against Michael. The ending was well-planned and well-coordinated that no one will ever see it coming, again a step up but now for slasher films in general. The ending we see might be an indication of Michael's demise but is it really an indication we won't see Michael again. The breathing of Michael on the end of the credits might indicate he still might be alive after all that happened to him from the film's ending but on my perspective, I don't really know because if there's one thing I learned from slasher (and horror) films, you can never really kill serial killer icons and they'll find a way back on screen. My bitterness might be pointless after all as Michael might be well and alive.
With 9 good reasons to watch and no reasons not to watch,
"Halloween" is a 9.2/10 for me.
#Halloween #HalloweenMovie #JohnCarpenter #Horror
#2018Movies #MovieReviews #JRMovieReviews
Watched at: Ayala Malls - Glorietta (22 October 2018)
There's a reason why the "Halloween" of 1978, our first glimpse at Michael Myers, remains a masterpiece in its genre. It's the very reason why we love masked serial killers in film. "Halloween" of 2018 comes close to the grandeur of the first movie paying homage to the original by continuing the story of Michael vs Laurie and by incorporating details that are subtle references to the first movie. In this year's "Halloween", the entire slate is clean neglecting all the 9 movies that came after the 1978 classic in an attempt to know if Michael is indeed an immortal boogeyman or Michael can be killed by the same being he haunted years back, Laurie Strode, in a case of the hunted becoming the hunter. When "Halloween" of 1978 pits Michael Myers as the monster, the "Halloween" of 2018 creates the unstoppable force that is Laurie Strode. The question now is whether Laurie would prove to be successful or not. The iconic score, clean and strategic kills and attention to detail, the reasons why we loved the original Halloween is the same reason you'll like this year's Halloween. (Insert Halloween theme here...)
🚩🚩🚩SPOILERS AHEAD 🚩🚩🚩
Here are some important points I had on watching "Halloween" (of 2018):
✅ The Iconic Halloween Theme
- It's really sweet to hear again the iconic theme by John Carpenter. As the opening credits roll comes the theme which sets the tone and tension of the movie. The theme of Michael Myers stands as one of the best themes in cinema especially in horror.
✅ Michael Myers
- Michael Myers spearheaded the breakthrough of slasher films in American cinema and the chills is just there watching him back on screen after his first outing way back 1978. This is my first time seeing him on large screen as the first and much of the sequels I watched through TV. The evil is just within him and his eyes (as Dr. Loomis described) and he is a force that kills relentlessly without any known purpose. With his use of the iconic kitchen knife, anticipate the mischief he'll do in this year's Halloween as his murderous streak piles up.
✅ Jamie Lee Curtis
- Jamie Lee Curtis returns as the scream queen Laurie Strode we popular know her for. After her first encounter, she is now with a thirst for Michael's blood. She waited for 40 years for Michael to escape the mental facility he is in to wage war and eventually kill him, an Ellen Ripley if you might say. Jamie Lee Curtis plays Laurie Strode at her best and I can't think of anyone, both actor and character, who can wage a war better against Michael. It's history in the making and it's a question if she can prove to be successful.
✅ Opening "Pumpkin" Credits
- Modern-age cinema viewers get the chance to experience the thrill of anticipation as they watch the opening credits coupled with the iconic Halloween theme, reminiscent of the same Halloween opening credits of 1978. It's beautifully made and definitely nostalgic.
✅ References to the Original
- This year's Halloween is faithful to the original evident from the attention to detail the production made in the film. We first see a trio of friends with Laurie's granddaughter Allyson walking to school reminiscent of Laurie and her friends walking to their homes from school. The escape of Michael Myers during his transport to another facility is a nod to his escape from a mental facility years earlier. Some kills made on his film are also references from the original, an example when one involving a babysitter's boyfriend gets killed in the same fashion as the one killed in the first movie, his babysitter girlfriend though gets to hide under a ghost costume after getting murdered the same which Michael wore before killing Laurie's friend in the first movie. I wanted to list many more references but I would have made this review very, very long.
✅ Role Reversal
- In addition to references I mentioned earlier, it is really a treat for Halloween fans to see Laurie play scenes that Michael came to play in the first movie. We see Laurie play Michael as she watches her granddaughter outside the window of her school and another when Laurie hunts for Michael amongst closets in her home later in the film when she was the one who hid in the closet 40 years earlier. Two which really impressed me the most involves the one where Michael pushes Laurie outside the window but eventually gets lost in view (just as Michael gets shot by Dr. Loomis numerous times making him fall a balcony but getting up eventually) and the one where we see Laurie's glimpse / shadow behind Michael just about as he was going to be trapped in the bunker later in the movie (reminiscent of Michael hiding in the shadows as he was about to kill Laurie). There are many more role reversals in the film I may haven't mentioned but the message is clear, Laurie Strode is now the monster who gets to hunt after being haunted and hunted, a force that was formed by another force.
✅ Clean Kills
- Many kills made by Michael on this film are quite unique. A favorite would definitely when Michael gets to kill Allyson's admirer from the backyard of a motion-activated spotlight. The one you always see on trailers where Michael gets to taunt the interviewers he had at his facility is also a clean kill made in the film that you just have to see. Many more to mention especially when Michael reaches Haddonfield and eventually Laurie's secluded home.
✅ Continous Shot in Haddonfield
- Where we see a continuous opening sequence in Halloween (1978), Halloween (2018) is unique for its single shot sequence when Michael is on a murder spree upon walking the streets of Haddonfield on the eve of Halloween. This is when he gets to kill two inhabitants of the community and eventually get his known kitchen knife weapon. The scene was just clean and well-coordinated, longer and for me, a step up from the original.
✅ Bittersweet Ending (or Is It?)
- The ending for me is bitter and also sweet. Bitter in the sense that it killed the serial killer that I've always admired in film and sweet as Laurie successfully accomplishes her plan against Michael. The ending was well-planned and well-coordinated that no one will ever see it coming, again a step up but now for slasher films in general. The ending we see might be an indication of Michael's demise but is it really an indication we won't see Michael again. The breathing of Michael on the end of the credits might indicate he still might be alive after all that happened to him from the film's ending but on my perspective, I don't really know because if there's one thing I learned from slasher (and horror) films, you can never really kill serial killer icons and they'll find a way back on screen. My bitterness might be pointless after all as Michael might be well and alive.
With 9 good reasons to watch and no reasons not to watch,
"Halloween" is a 9.2/10 for me.
#Halloween #HalloweenMovie #JohnCarpenter #Horror
#2018Movies #MovieReviews #JRMovieReviews
Watched at: Ayala Malls - Glorietta (22 October 2018)
Image Reference: Halloween Movie (Official Facebook Page)
Time Published: 27 October 2018 (08:00 PM)
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