(1988) **1/2
Believe it or not, I had never seen this movie before. I was hoping to come away from it with more of a sense of Michael's identity in the wide world of serial slashers. Sure, Jason's the knockoff, but by 1988 he's three whole movies ahead. His vibe is down. This started quite promisingly, with Officer Exposition letting us know that neither The Shape nor Loomis died in the flaming endgame of Halloween II. It's ten years later, and Michael suddenly goes for a walk.
The idea of him spending his in-between times in hospitals appealed to me. Very much like the backstory of the first movie. And Loomis is there, and he was always a big part of maintaining the killer's rep. Now that I think of it, the early confrontation scene between the two of them is probably the best scene in the movie. Michael in his coveralls, but with his face still covered in bandages. Creepy. I liked the way this movie was shot.
I was also extremely pleased with the general reaction to the news. The skeptic gets hardly any play in this, and when Loomis arrives in Haddonfield the cops immediately start circling the wagons. When they hole up in the sherrif's house, does the sherrif get in a twist about the young punk about to do his daughter? Nope, he gives him a honking big shotgun. It makes sense that the folks of Haddonfield just would NOT screw around with Mr. Myers.
Unfortunately, Michael is a precise planner in this situation. He takes out the police station and its radios, he knocks out the power. He doesn't lurk as much, but he spies on the right people. He stays one step ahead of the good guys through the whole movie.
Which, if you think about it, is totally LAME. So all of a sudden he's Jason Bourne? It seems that instead of Michael's unique slasher signature, we're getting the flavor of the day. I was reminded of Resurrection, which I watched last year,and its message that Michael's main ability was to only walk past TV cameras when nobody was looking at the monitor. In this he's like a Navy SEAL. He racks up an impressive body count, but since his mission is the meat of the story, half of the killings are off screen.
And at some point the good guys' admirably proactive decisions took a wrong turn. You don't escape from a bulletproof person by hiding out in a dark house. You get in a car and drive, and you don't stop. Their fortress turns into dead end in no time flat, and I was disappointed.
Of the little girl, Michael's niece: Awful. The "Michael's sister" thing wasn't that great in the first place, and this is worse. The acting, scripting, plot points, the characters associated with her...I just disliked everything about her being onscreen. The ending twist was unexpectedly ballsy, but she was simply bad.
You totally think you're going to see the sheriff's daughter topless, but you never do. This whole movie felt like that.
8 comments:
The cinematography is unusually good for a low-rent horror film. The moment when Loomis sees Michael for the first time is great.
Yeah! I was so encouraged by that, they'd gotten his Shapeness back for a second.
They were never able to capture the mask the right way after part II. It's never looked quite right. They should grab Shatner and cast a new one.
Actually, I thought the mask in part II seemed lumpy compared to the first one.
How is it the same mask is on the market 10 and then 20 years later? Because he's a real person? Are there John Wayne Gacy clown costumes on sale?
Good point about the mask. That's so true. I mean, Michael is pretty presumptuous to assume that the same mask will always be available! Also, it's funny to think that Michael actually has a personal preference. When he goes to the mask shop is he thinking, "Hmmm, no, not the Pinhead mask, let's see, hmmmm, no, not Darth Vader. . .Damnit, where's my favoirte white mask?!"
And then he settles for a Power Puff Girls mask. Fortunately it's Buttercup, the tough one.
Octo, I have a copy of the Halloween part 6 director's cut on VHS with 45 minutes of alternate footage. It's actually much better than the theatrical release, you really should review it back to back. I'll try to send it out to you ASAP.
Excuse me, Summerisle, I believe that copy is mine, purchased at a nerd convention many moons ago. I don't know if I trust the shifty Octopunk with it. . .
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