Reviewed October 17, 2021 - 1ST viewing 10/14/21 in Dolby at AMC
Universal Studios - Rated R - Directed by: David Gordon Green
Based On: Sequel/John Carpenter
The Halloween franchise has certainly had a sordid history, with a spattering of mediocre sequels and clichéd remakes, however this latest installment offers a dichotomy of excellent ideas bogged down by a painstakingly slow pace in an amateurish effort to slow the events down to drag this latest reboot out into a trilogy.
Halloween Kills (2021) picks up following the events at the end of its predecessor, Halloween (2018), where Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis, Karen (Judy Greer), and Alyson (Andi Matichak) are riding away from their home, now engulfed in flames, with Michael trapped in the basement as it burns around him. They yell at first responders as they pass them, going to extinguish the fire they'd hoped would end their collective nightmare once and for all. Some players from the original are included in this installment as well, including the great Will Patton as present-day Officer Hawkins, Robert Longstreet as Lonnie Elam, Anthony Michael Hall as Tommy Doyle, Kyle Richards as Lindsey, and Nancy Stephens as Marion.
Returning to once again co-write and direct, David Gordon Green does an exceptional job paying attention to the minute details to honor the source material and offer fans lots of easter eggs and subtle nods to previous films, including some of the less popular sequels. The death scenes are appropriately graphic and iconic, not only paying homage to previous iterations, but the ever-popular video game as well. The choice to one again incorporate the original theme song and keep the opening credits as an updated mimic of the original was a smart one, lending the all-too-familiar eerie quality from the beginning. As previously mentioned, many of the original characters return, with the original story elaborated.
Where interest begins to wane is in the second act when the plot becomes repetitive and slow, seeing Tommy run around recruiting an army and simultaneously inciting fear, and Laurie stuck in the hospital much the same as Halloween II (1981), pacing in her room after invasive abdominal surgery talking about what needs to be done. To that end, as someone who was blissfully unaware of the planned sequel, there was a certain expectation for some sort of resolution by the end of the film. Trilogies only work as individual films if there still exists some sort of payoff and bookend to the chapter for each installment, and unfortunately that does not happen here. Instead, the audience is left with an unsatisfying cliffhanger ending of sorts after enduring a repetitive series of events ultimately leading nowhere, with our characters learning much of nothing, save Laurie who effectively gets to do exactly that in the entirety of the film.
FINAL VERDICT: While respecting, incorporating, and expounding upon the source material is appreciated, the writers should have included more substance into the middle chunk of this film instead of reducing its lead characters to monologuing hospital patients. By the end, the audience is left with nothing but a mild dissatisfaction and a bad taste in their mouths. A lazy way to turn this otherwise well-conceived remake into a trilogy.
6.5 = 1.5,1,1,0,0.5,0.5,0.5,0.5,1 - Rewatch Value: 3.
The Halloween franchise has certainly had a sordid history, with a spattering of mediocre sequels and clichéd remakes, however this latest installment offers a dichotomy of excellent ideas bogged down by a painstakingly slow pace in an amateurish effort to slow the events down to drag this latest reboot out into a trilogy.
Halloween Kills (2021) picks up following the events at the end of its predecessor, Halloween (2018), where Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis, Karen (Judy Greer), and Alyson (Andi Matichak) are riding away from their home, now engulfed in flames, with Michael trapped in the basement as it burns around him. They yell at first responders as they pass them, going to extinguish the fire they'd hoped would end their collective nightmare once and for all. Some players from the original are included in this installment as well, including the great Will Patton as present-day Officer Hawkins, Robert Longstreet as Lonnie Elam, Anthony Michael Hall as Tommy Doyle, Kyle Richards as Lindsey, and Nancy Stephens as Marion.
Returning to once again co-write and direct, David Gordon Green does an exceptional job paying attention to the minute details to honor the source material and offer fans lots of easter eggs and subtle nods to previous films, including some of the less popular sequels. The death scenes are appropriately graphic and iconic, not only paying homage to previous iterations, but the ever-popular video game as well. The choice to one again incorporate the original theme song and keep the opening credits as an updated mimic of the original was a smart one, lending the all-too-familiar eerie quality from the beginning. As previously mentioned, many of the original characters return, with the original story elaborated.
Where interest begins to wane is in the second act when the plot becomes repetitive and slow, seeing Tommy run around recruiting an army and simultaneously inciting fear, and Laurie stuck in the hospital much the same as Halloween II (1981), pacing in her room after invasive abdominal surgery talking about what needs to be done. To that end, as someone who was blissfully unaware of the planned sequel, there was a certain expectation for some sort of resolution by the end of the film. Trilogies only work as individual films if there still exists some sort of payoff and bookend to the chapter for each installment, and unfortunately that does not happen here. Instead, the audience is left with an unsatisfying cliffhanger ending of sorts after enduring a repetitive series of events ultimately leading nowhere, with our characters learning much of nothing, save Laurie who effectively gets to do exactly that in the entirety of the film.
FINAL VERDICT: While respecting, incorporating, and expounding upon the source material is appreciated, the writers should have included more substance into the middle chunk of this film instead of reducing its lead characters to monologuing hospital patients. By the end, the audience is left with nothing but a mild dissatisfaction and a bad taste in their mouths. A lazy way to turn this otherwise well-conceived remake into a trilogy.
6.5 = 1.5,1,1,0,0.5,0.5,0.5,0.5,1 - Rewatch Value: 3.