“Halloween” (2018): A Slasher Stuck in the Past
A 70s-style slasher that has absorbed the worst genre clichés of the last 40 years.
Two journalists visit the infamous serial killer Michael Myers at a mental institution for the criminally insane. Michael has long been a legend, having gone through about forty different psychiatrists, each of whom developed their own theories about his personality, but all of them eventually came to the same conclusion: “This guy is evil incarnate.” For 40 years, Michael has barely communicated with anyone, so the journalists’ attempts to get him to utter a single word justifying his bloody rendezvous usually end in failure. They then decide to seek out his main victim, Laurie Strode, who has spent the last 40 years preparing for a meeting with Michael, turning her home into a fortress and alienating her family due to her nervous breakdowns. But she doesn’t reveal much either. One thing is clear: Michael will soon be transferred to another medical facility, and if he escapes, Laurie will be ready to greet him with a lead salad.
Of course, Michael breaks free, otherwise, instead of a franchise continuation, we’d have a plot for a post in the “Ideas for Uninteresting Movies” group. There are few surprises here, and woe to you if you’ve seen the trailer, because in that case, you’ve basically seen the movie (or rather, the culmination of several of the most intense moments). And if you’ve already heard the news that there will be a sequel, you know that Michael won’t be killed. Don’t rush to accuse the author of spoilers: eliminating the most resilient maniac in the world, given that shooting at point-blank range is like lava, is fundamentally impossible. In the slasher universe, a final shot to the forehead doesn’t exist; we’ve long accepted this fact, let’s move on.
From the first minutes, it becomes clear that the film is in trouble. In the opening scene, suspense is built literally out of thin air in the most shameless ways. Instead of tension, you feel awkwardness due to the helplessness of what’s happening on the screen. This continuation of the legendary horror has absorbed all the most tiresome genre clichés that one can remember. Moreover, you can’t even justify the director’s choice as an attempt to return to the roots and make a canonical slasher like in the good old 70s. Even in the original, the characters’ actions were much more logical, and you wanted to sink into your seat more while watching. Analyzing anyone’s motivation here is as useless as applying the laws of physics to flying cars in “Fast & Furious.” You just have to accept it as a given and try to enjoy the viewing.
The film could have been released under the slogan “I’ll go take a look.” A bus with psychos crashed on an empty road at night? I’ll go take a look. The door to the house is broken down and there’s blood everywhere? I’ll go take a look. This legendary trope has been ridiculed everywhere; it not only doesn’t work in 2018, but it was already causing laughter with its triviality back in '98. Why a perfectly good and inventive director like David Gordon Green decided to dust off the old templates and shoot a new part of the franchise using them is unclear. His attempt to tickle nostalgic feelings by staging some moments exactly like in the original doesn’t save the situation, but it works flawlessly as a test of knowledge of the first part.
The redeeming qualities
What is truly pleasing in the film is the wonderful Jamie Lee Curtis, who has only become more charismatic over the years. With a rifle in her hands or without, it’s hard to argue with her character’s ability to defeat the most infernal psycho. Judy Greer is playing a mother/wife again; soon it will be difficult for her to get rid of this role. But it’s worth continuing to follow the young and talented Andi Matichak. The soundtrack, to which John Carpenter himself contributed again, can also be added to the pluses. Although it’s mostly the old and slightly improved theme, you can listen to it forever.
Final thoughts
The new “Halloween” as an ordinary slasher may not look bad, but we’re still talking about a status horror film with a rich history and a huge fan base. From the long-awaited sequel, the audience expected something more than just entertainment for one evening. All these attempts to get into Michael’s head seem superfluous. We learned back in the first part that he is pure evil; for genre cinema, this knowledge is quite enough, let’s get down to business.