I’m kind of still dwelling with the fact if I liked this film or just thought it was ok. As you can see from my rating I’m leaning more towards liking Rob Zombie’s version of Halloween, but there were just some things that I liked about the original film better. There were just some things that bothered me while watching this film made me cringe. However there were also some scenes where I felt Zombie paid tribute to Carpenter’s classic in which made me respect the filmmakers decision on using a certain idea or shots from the original film. There were a lot things that made me wonder really what Zombie motive was for the film, because the movie has a lot of things about it that kind of left me up in the air.
I’ll get started by stating the obvious things that bugged me about the film. First off this Halloween film starts off almost like a prequel to Carpenters film. Zombie’s script focuses mainly on Michael Meyers and not on Lori Strode like the original film did. Yes, Lori is a big part of the film, but not until the second act. We’re given a good half hour on the origin of Michael Meyers from his life as a young kid, to him murdering half his family, up until the present day with Michael as an adult living in an asylum for the criminally insane. There is a whole back story that includes a murder trial and everything. The second part of the film is pretty much a re-imaging of the original. Zombie does use some of the scenes that made the original the classic that it is, but he also adds his own twists and crediblity to the story as well. For the most part it is kind of like a remake of the original, story wise; but at the same time, especially towards the end, it becomes a whole other movie. Speaking of the ending, I can’t really talk about it much without spoiling the conclusion; however as a critic, I’m kind of half and half on whether I thought the way in which Zombie ended the film was for the better or worse of the film as a whole. Let’s put it this way, Some might say that this is the way the original should of ended, while others will think the ending was really bad. I will say this though, it does not end the same way Carpenter’s film did. It’s similar, don’t get me wrong, but not in the way in which the original did. My other pet peeve about the film was (and those of you who saw it will understand this.) that this film felt like a versus movie. In the fact that I felt as if an alterative title for the film could of been Michael Meyers vs. The Devil’s Rejects. Now Michael does not confront and kill everyone from the Devil’s Reject’s, but zombie heavily cast the movie’s supporting characters with cast members from his sophomore effort. The film was so full of Reject’s cameo’s that it actually took away from the film. I understand that the cast are faces that Zombie is used to working with, and yes most of the cast members from Devil’s Rejects were in small roles. But for me it took away from the fear in which zombie was trying to portray on screen. It could be because I’m a fan of Zombie’s work, that I felt left out of the scares. The crowd I saw this film with was very much afraid of the film, and their were plenty of screams in the theater mainly from men. But I think the average hardcore horror fan won’t be scared by watching Michael Meyers fight Bill Moseley and Tom Towles. Maybe its just me because I’m a big fan of Reject’s, but that’s the way I felt. I could be wrong but I feel that if other people were cast in these roles it might of been more effective for me.
On that note, let me get into my feeling on the script, which I was; as I mentioned above kind of so-so with. I though that Rob Zombie did a decent job with the story and character development. Zombie has always and still does have my respect when it comes to character development. I felt the way in which he developed Michael Meyers from a boy to a mad man was really awesome. We really get to know Michael Meyers as a character. The only downfall with the over development of Meyers is that he is not as scary as he was in Carpenters script. He’s less mysterious, but at the same time you can’t help but be drawn in by him. One thing Zombie does do right with Meyers is that he keeps him evil, at all costs. Zombie does a great job at convincing the audience that Meyers might give in to some of the characters and be sympatric. But if you pay close attention their are elements within the script that show how truly dark of a soul Meyers has. Zombie also develops Sam Loomis and Laurie Strode characters decently, however they are only secondary to that of Michael. The scripts dialogue is not the greatest, there were just certain lines that some of the characters used that I don’t think went over well at being convincing to the audience. For example the very first scene has some of the most vulgar and repulsive dialogue ever used on the silver screen, and I’m kind of surprised that the MPAA did not go ape shit over this the first scene of this film in which a drunken William Forsythe throws every word in the book at a young Michael Meyers while arguing with his Mother (Sherri Moon Zombie) who’s trying to feed a young baby that’s crying in fear at all the screaming and yelling. It’s as almost if Zombie decided to create the most fucked up environment for the worlds most dysfunctional family unit. This scene can also be compared to that of Devil’s Reject’s and House of 1000 Corpses as well. It’s got that vulgar yet creative dialogue that worked with those films, but I felt did not work with this one. The scripts a crapshoot. I thought the over character development worked to a point, as did the story. But felt that the dialogue was weak for the most part.
The acting is the strong point for the film for the most part. I mean the good performances far out weight the bad ones. There is a lot of characters and people who are in this film, so I’ll go on record as saying the majority of the people in the supporting roles did a good job with the small parts they had. The roles played by the likes of William Forsythe, Brad Dourif, Tom Towles, Bill Moseley, Leslie Easterbrook, Ken Foree, Sid Haig, Ezra Buzzington, Clint Howard, Udo Kier, Dee Wallace and the many others who had small cameo roles in this film where all good, but you get the point when I say that we have a Devil Reject’s/ horror actors reunion going on here. Shit! It’s almost like the set of Halloween was a horror convention. Sheri Moon Zombie was surprisingly very good in her role as Deborah Meyers. At first I was not so sure she was fit for the part, but as the first half of the film moved along I really got into her character, and felt that she was a lost soul of a mother who was only trying to do the right thing for her kids. She just feel short in life at being the world best mother, and Sheri Moon Zombie I felt did a great job with the role. Daeg Faerch who played the young Michael Meyers I felt also did a great job. Playing a young psychopath is a hard role for a young ten year old kid to play, but Daeg I felt was brilliant in the role. He did a great job at first as coming off as a young lost kid, no friends, picked on in school etc.; Hell he even at first makes the character of Michael Meyers come off as some screwed up anti-hero, but as the character becomes more developed and more dark is when the young actor performance shines the most. Malcolm McDowell was pretty good as Dr. Sam Loomis. He’s no Donald Pleasance, but I think if Mr. Pleasance were alive today he would of praised McDowell performance in the film. Playing one of the most respected horror characters to date is a hard job to accept, let alone pull off, but I think that McDowell was the right choice for the role and I think he did a decent job with it. Scout Taylor-Compton whom played Laurie Strode was not as good as Jamie Lee Curtis was in the original but I felt for the most part she did a decent job with the role and gave the character a more up to date look and feel. She still had the good girl feel to her, a lot more that Jamie Lee did in the original film. But was more of a Mom and Dad princess type. Zombie also placed a emphasis on the character of Laurie by dressing her in a sweet shirt that had two skulls on the back of it, however from far away they looked like angel wings which showed that the character of Laurie was innocent, but at the same time she was a fighter, one that has the fire inside of her when it comes to defending herself. It also showed that her past life was that of hate and terror as well. Scout Taylor Compton was a good choice for the role, she was pretty convincing but does not live up the Laurie Strode character that Jamie Lee Curtis bought us to the screen so many years ago. This however can also be argued because in Carpenters script the focus was more on Laurie, where in this film it’s on Michael. Finally I just wanted to touch base on two other performances in the film. One’s a women who’s been part of both Halloween franchises, Danielle Harris, while her role in the film was somewhat bigger than most of the characters as she played Laurie friends Annie. Danielle’s performance was actually one of the better ones in the film and I leave it at that, however the rumors that many heard of her being topless in the film are not rumors at all. For all you horny fan boys who lick your lips and slobber at the site of her; you might as well give this film a four star review and praise Rob Zombie for giving you your fantasy wet dream come true. It’s true! You get a good seven to ten minutes of Danielle Harris running around topless. However it’s one small role in this film that I though was the best and that is actor Danny Trejo who plays Ismael the janitor of the insane asylum in which Michael Meyers is confined too. One can almost say that his character was the only friend that Michael had, and can even blame him for giving Michael the secret to becoming the monster that he is. Trejo performance I though was the best in this film. It was a small role but he came off as a very sympatric character, something we’re not used to seeing Danny Trejo play.
The production value for this film is great. I don’t know what kind of film stock Zombies uses but he seems to know how to use the perfect amount of light and use of colors to create the mood. With House of 1000 Corpses he gave us a feel of chaos, with Reject’s he gave us the feel of hopelessness. With Halloween we get the feel of always being in the dark. From an artistic standpoint Zombie use of the lighting and sets always seems to represent the darkness around the main focus. It’s the darkness that Michael Meyers uses to his advantage and it also represents Meyers and the type of character he is; dark and soulless. Everything from the set design to the costume design in the film all seem to focus on the theme of darkness. I was very impressed with how Michael Meyers mask and jumpsuit were used. If you think back to the original film series the mask and jump suit always seemed to be clean and plain. In Zombies version, the Meyers costume is full of the filth of the darkness that he represents. It’s almost symbolic to his nature, faceless, soulless and full of hate. The film is full of a lot of symbolism and reflections on today’s society. It does not jump out at you like some films do, but it’s there in the darkness with Meyers himself. It’s hard to pick up, but it’s there. And I praise Zombie for making the movie more than just a horror film.
Overall, I’m mixed on the film as a whole. There is a lot that I didn’t like about the movie at all, but then there is a lot that I truly did like about it. There was really nothing in-between that could per sway me to give the film a negative or positive review. It has it’s flaws and its great moments. The film does have some good scares here and there, ones that will make the basic horror fan jump. However I don’t think its a film that will give the hardcore fans a good scare. It’s a film that you really need to go into with limited expectations. It’s entertaining to say the least, but it’s not a masterpiece like Carpenters film was. Still I give credit to Rob Zombie for taking on the task of making over one of the best horror franchises of all time. No one can deny that Zombie at least gave us the full back story to the character of Michael Meyers, and that his effort as a good director can’t go unnoticed. To some the word of making a remake of a classic is as bad as a family members death, but with all due respect I think Zombie pulled over a half decent remake of a film in which the original will always remain as the top of every horror fans list.
– Horror Bob
DVD Bonus Features – unrated and theatrical versions
17 Deleted Scenes With Optional Director’s Commentary
Alternate Ending
Bloopers
View the Film With Writer/Director Rob Zombie – Audio Commentary
A Conversation with Rob Zombie
The Many Masks of Michael Myers
Re-Imagining Halloween
Meet the Cast
Casting Sessions
Laurie Strode Screen Test
Play the online Halloween game: Click Here
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- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
