Halloween

Movie Name: Halloween
Year of Release: 2018

Director: David Gordon Green

Stars: Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, James Jude Courtney, Nick Castle, Toby Huss, Haluk Bilginer, Will Patton, Rhian Rees, Miles Robbins

Genre: Thriller, Horror

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
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Synopsis & Review:

Eclectic director David Gordon Green is back, this time around tackling one of the most iconic horror movie franchises of the last forty years. The film drinks heavily in style, ambiance and characters from John Carpenter's iconic 1978 staple of the same name. This time around, the film introduces us to an older Laurie Strode, who has become a hardened survivor following the events of the original film (this film discards all the interminable sequels that were done during the 80s, 90s and the more recent - and terrible - Rob Zombie ventures into the franchise). Laurie is estranged from her daughter and grand-daughter, due to the fact that she simply can't get the past behind her. Michael is still imprisoned, and to all matters and purposes, has absolutely no emotion, speech capacity or reaction. However, when he's about to be transferred to a new treatment facility, he manages to escape, and goes back to Haddonfield, in order to finish what he started 40 years ago. It's up to Laurie, and her resourcefulness, to escape the menace from an unstoppable killer.
David Gordon Green is a very smart and resourceful director. Initially having made a name for himself with a handful of stunning independent features, the director started testing out other genres and styles, some with more success than others (for every "George Washington", "All the Real Girls" and "Snow Angels" for instance, there's always less successful fare such as "Your Highness" and "The Sitter"). "Halloween", which followed last year's "Stronger", captures a lot of what made John Carpenter's original feature such an iconic film: the killer is unstoppable, undeterred and there is no reasoning or bargaining with him. He is very much like a terminator, only operating in a typical suburb, and apparently unstoppable. It's a film that relies primarily on the relationships that it builds around the central characters, with Jamie Lee Curtis creating a version of Laurie, that is eroded by years of living with the fear or being attacked again, and who has become a resilient survivor. This fixation of hers, has also alienated the rest of her family, but as the menace looms, there's a family bonding that is restored. The film has a more humanistic perspective than the original, which isolated Laurie and made her somewhat more reactive. Even if the film doesn't bring as much of a departure to the content and style of this franchise, it's still an interesting take on a series that has lasted and has influenced so much of the horror films produced since the 80s. Worth watching.