by NOBODY LOVES WHEELIE » Sat Sep 01, 2007 11:31 pm
- Weapon: Double Barreled Multi-Purpose Launcher
*****SPOILERS*****
As most of you know I'm a BIG Halloween fan, and even more importantly a fan of John Carpenter's work...
BUT
I went into this very excited Rob is a big fan, and for him to reboot this franchise seemed like a great idea.
Seemed.
Okay I'm not gonna outright crap on this film as it does have it scares, and it is trying to put a fresh spin on this property, but there's a fresh spin, and then there is just change for the sake of change.
RZHalloween is a part remake, part prequel, which attempts to give us a better explaination of why Michael Myers does what he does, it gives him a crappy home life, stripper mom, and her scumy abusive boyfriend, slutty sister and his baby sister he seems to actually care about. We also get an amazing amount of cursing to show how crappy his family is. Mikey also gets a kick out of killing animals, and wearing a clown mask.
Now by comparison JCHalloween gives us no real reason for what he does, by all accounts his parents are normal well adjusted people. I my opinion that makes what happens much more scary.
Anyway to up the body count or just change the story some kids make fun of his mom being a stripper, and after school he kills one of them. By the way Loomis is called in for the pictures of dead animals and the dead cat in the ziploc bag Mikey has.
We slide back into the normal story where his sister passes on taking Michael Trick Or Treating for some sex....(Mom's off stripping while Her boyfriend is drinking heavily) Mikey takes himself, and then decides homocide is the best way to pass the time.
He kills stepdad by duct taping him in a chair while he sleeping and then kills him.
Meanwhile his sister is getting banged by her boyfriend (conventantly wearing the infameous Myers mask) when their done she listens to 'Don't Fear the Reaper' on headphones (a nod to the original film this song is used there as well) so she won't hear her boyfriend killed in the kitchen with a baseball bat. Mikey then goes up stairs to fine the mask and kill his sister. This looks so rediculous like mini Myers with a clown body.
Anyway he goes away the mental hospital. Were he seemingly has no recall of what he has done, but makes alot of paper mache masks for himself. The interviews start off well enough, but Mikey slips deeper into his world of masks, and just wants out. Hey what multiple murder doesn't want out? Anyway Mikey still slips deeper, even with his mom coming to visit. On one visit he kills a nurse.
Mom goes home and blows here head off.
Jump 15 years ahead. Loomis decides that he can do no good with the now FRIGGIN HUGE Myers and is quitting, where he does what any good doctor would do writes a book to cash in on what happened and tour collages to speak on it.
Myers breaks out killing even more people, including Leslie Easterbrook (Callahan from the Police Academy movies). He then moves on to a truck stop to obtain a jumpsuit by killing another add on pointless character.
We then slide back into the original story....with Scout Taylor-Compton in the Jamie Lee Curtis role...a capable actress, but no replacement by any means. This part seems so rushed along as we are introduced to the characters Laurie friends the slutty Lynda who says 'Totally' alot....(again a nod to the original), and the Sherifs daughter Anne Brackett, played by Danielle Harris (Who played the little girl Jamie Lloyd in Halloween 4 and 5 marking her return to the franchise) oh and the Sherif is played by Brad Dourif who is the voice of Chucky and played the Gemini Killer in Exorcist III.
Anyway we rush throught the stalkings, and kill Lynda and Bob who are now screwing around in the Myers (were Mickey had stashed the mask and knife) house which again makes little sense seeing as how it's supposed to be a place most people avoid.
For little reason Myers then dispatches of Lauries adoptive parents the Strodes (her mom is played by Dee Wallace of ET, and The Howling fame).
Meanwhile Loomis has been called and informed of the situation. He stops to buy a gun from former Monkee Micky Dolenz, and warns Sherif Brackett.
A rush to have Annie drop Linsey off at Tommys house where Laurie is babysitting.
And a rush back to Linseys house...funny thing Annie refers to Paul (her boyfriend) as Bob, and Myers quickly dispatches Paul. Annie gets attacked yet we never do find out her fate as we do see her alive but hurt when we last see her. For fans of Danielle Harris she does the remainder of her scenes topless. NICE!
Laurie again for no reason as she knows that Annie is likely getting her freak on brings her charge Lindsey back to the house to find a dead Paul, and injured Annie. Lindsey is sent back across the street, as Laurie calls 911, which will bring Loomis and Brackett to the scene. Meanwhile Myers attacks Laurie curiously leaving Annie hurt badly but alive.
Laurie makes way back to the house were Tommy and Lindsey are holed up, Myers follows, and kills two cops that show up there....again no real reason except up the body count. Myers drags a struggling Laurie out of the bathroom, and again how this happened I have no idea cause it's nothing we ever see takes an unconcious Laurie back to the Myers house.
That is about where the story completely deviates from the original.
Brackett and Loomis find Annie alive and Brackett stays with her. Loomis finds Lindsey and takes off after Myers.
Laurie and Michael play cat and mouse in the house, where Laurie gets trapped in an empty pool.....(why did a poor family like the Myers have an in ground pool?).....Loomis shows up and sorta saves the day, but Michael gets the upper hand crushing his head (dead or not is never clear) Laurie and Michael again play cat and mouse only now Laurie finds Loomis's gun.
One tackle off the second floor later and Laurie (I believe) blows Michaels head off with the gun. Again we see her with the gun at his head, and we see Michael grab her wrist, and hear the gun fire but we can not be 100% sure.
Loomis comes off as an uncaring man who gave up, which kills me cause in the orignal movies Loomis cared so much he couldn't stop being the keeper, by putting his carreer, and life on the line.
Laurie while doing a decent run and hide job is no Curtis, hell she's no Harris either. But she just doesn't have that innocence and reserved look Curtis had. She blows this in her first scene by making a sexual joke with her Mom. Curtis's Laurie was reserved and shy she never would have been that foward.
Annie actually comes off okay, and I think this is because Danielle Harris is familar with the property.
Michael Myers is given a more human side to him that while interesting is clearly not consistant with his backround previously. And yes I realize this is a remake and won't be exactly what it was before, but as I said before Myers is scarier when you don't have reasons for what he does.
As a side note Zombie apparently felt the need to have three women topless in the movie, the actress that played Judith Myers, the actress that played Lynda, and the before mentioned Danielle Harris. All three actresses spend a great deal of their camera time topless, I'm not complaining about the amount of breasts in this movie, I just don't understand why the logical character that should be showing her breasts (Michaels mom the stripper) didn't. Could it be because it's Sheri Moon Zombie? Rob sister.
Overall it hit some marks, and did have it's scary moments, I found it fun to watch someone elses vision of this classic tale, but if given the choice I will chose John Carpenters version.
The bottom line?
An interesting take on a classic, but can't touch the original. It will however meet the designed objective to reboot an ailing series.
I'd still rather watch Carpenters version, and the subsequent sequels.
This movie is the Psycho 1.0 of the Halloween franchise, but not as bad as Psycho 1.0.
Wait til Cable is my opinion.
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