You’ll never guess who finally saw the new Halloween movie?
Yes… I finally got to see the latest installment of my all time favorite horror franchise. Still can’t believe it took me this long. No joke, trying to apply your social media filter to try and avoid any outside influence is one of the hardest things that one can endure, aside from running a marathon. Believe me, Halloween 2018 has a mountain of good things I can say about it. If you’re a fan of the series, I see no reason for disappointment. Even for being a couple weeks since its release, the theater was almost packed so you still have time to check it out before the film descends into pre-DVD purgatory.
When I first heard David Gordon Green and Danny McBride were next in line to bring the franchise back to the big screen, my mind originally went to Kenny Powers throwing baseballs at Michael Meyers in the same way Busta Rhymes threw down some sick martial arts moves while battling a masked serial killer in hand to hand combat.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsvvUKgq0ZY
However I was wrong, in the best possible way. Never in my life have I been so happy to be so wrong.
On top of putting together a pretty solid horror movie, Green and McBride put together something that not only entertains a modern audience, but pays homage to its predecessor in many beautiful ways. My favorite being these reversals of imagery between the original and the new Halloween. In 1978, Michael Myers falls on to the lawn then disappears. In 2018, Laurie Strode does it. This is just one of the many examples peppered in throughout the film but you get the idea. Again… Jamie Lee Curtis, phenomenal.
But in all the positivity, once again, there is a ton of it, for some reason I couldn’t help but wonder if making a direct sequel to the first Halloween was the right move here. Continuity went out the window years ago, and in no way will I say the fourth movie is shear genius. However, as the Meyers saga has gotten bigger through time, the subsequent chapters have included some pretty cool elements I don’t feel should have gone unignored. We have old Tommy Doyle, that weird Thorn cult, Jamie Lloyd’s daughter, Josh Hartnett. Maybe not worth devoting an entire feature presentation to, but if it came down either one of those, or the predictable Judy Greer distancing daughter turned ace with a rifle… I’m picking an old Tommy Doyle cameo. At least it would have surprised me.
I will say this was the best Michael Meyers we have seen since the 1995.
If you want to look at Halloween 2018 as a part of the franchise overall, it’s hard to define exactly what the movie means. I was under the impression Rob Zombie was going to reboot the whole thing. Then it turned out to be just a double shot and done. So naturally I thought this was going to be the reboot. Maybe start over by bringing closure to the signature character while reintroducing Michael Meyers to a new audience. Judging from the way it ended, I’m not sure there was ever any intention to back door reboot the series.
Was it a business decision? You bet it was. Halloween celebrated its 40th anniversary this year. I couldn’t imagine the studio not releasing a Halloween movie to commemorate the occasion. Jamie Lee still has it so why the hell not. Believe me, money will trump continuity every single time. Plus, right now there only so many directions the story can go. Horror is evolving, getting more and more intelligent, the slasher may need an anniversary to stay relevant, for at least the next few years.
So where do we go from here? Of course you can always just press the reset button. Have Judith Meyers die on screen, again. But I don’t think that will be the case here. H2018 did give us Judy Greer and her daughter Allyson, played by Andi Matichak so if playing the killing the bloodline card is still in the deck… there’s two potential leads already built into the universe. I personally hope the studio avoids the Jason Takes Manhattan route when it’s just Michael Meyers taking lives in a different area code. If they send him to Mars I’m done.
I might be too analytical here, and it’s not my intention to downplay David Gordon Green’s work. You should go see this movie if you haven’t already. I’d pay to see it again no problem. Something can be entertaining as hell then leaving you asking so many questions, or wanting more. If the folks at the studio are ever in need of ideas, hit me up.
By Adam Chmielewski
@PolishKaiju
Photo Credits – Universal
What are your thoughts on the new Halloween movie? Let Nerdbot know in the comments!!
