Directed by: David Gordon Green
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Anthony Michael Hall, Judy Greer, Will Patton, Thomas Mann, Charles Cyphers, Nick Castle, Kyle Richards, Nancy Stephens, Andi Matichak
The sequel to the Halloween reboot (or direct sequel to the 1978 horror classic actually) has its share of grisly killings which are par for the course. I'm learning quickly that criticizing movies like Halloween Kills for its blood and gore is like chastising a dog for not picking up on geometry. However, Halloween Kills has other issues. The Halloween series and reboots have forgotten what made the 1978 original such a horror masterwork. It was an excellent work of suspense; the stuff nightmares are made of. A movie like Halloween Kills forgoes shock for gory violence. The killings aren't entertaining or provocative.
Halloween Kills picks up right after Michael Myers is seemingly incinerated in Laurie Strode's basement which was transformed into a quasi-crematorium. Not only does Michael survive, he thrashes a group of firefighters trying to fight the blaze. In the meantime, Laurie and her daughter and granddaughter arrive at the local hospital (the same one that was infamously near-vacant in 1981's Halloween II, which we are supposed to forget ever happened) thinking Michael is dead. They should know better. It's a laugh when other characters try to beat Michael to death with a baseball bat. This guy survived an inferno, being shot more than a dozen times, and falling off a balcony way back in 1978. Do they think a few bats are going to do him in? Apparently so.
While Laurie and her family are transported to the hospital, a group of survivors from Michael's 1978 spree reunite each year at a local bar. The group led by Tommy Doyle (Hall), whom Laurie babysat on that fateful Halloween night, is seemingly unaware of Michael's latest spree. No one in the bar, or in Haddonfield, Illinois for that matter, uses Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or even seems to own a cell phone in 2018. This is especially helpful when one character has to break bad news to Laurie, such as "Michael Myers is alive". I believe the phrase "haven't you heard?" is uttered at least three times in this movie.
Once Tommy learns Michael is alive, he organizes a mob which for inexplicable reasons makes it way to the hospital. If the hospital was damn near empty in 1978, it is packed now with nearly every town resident. Michael Myers may be a lot of things, but he doesn't seem stupid, so he wisely avoids being at a place where everyone is looking for him. "Evil Dies Tonight" is the mob's rallying cry, which we hear more often than "Haven't you heard?"
On top of all of this silliness, Laurie spouts profundities about Michael's nature and how she will ultimately kill him or at least remove his mask. Good luck with that. The only modicum of suspense left in this franchise is what Michael looks like without a mask. It's amusing how the camera avoids capturing his entire face once his mask is briefly removed. Or how the picture of Michael is blurred out when the local TV news provides updates on the night's events. I'm reminded of the contrived pains Sex and the City took not to reveal Mr. Big's actual name.
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