"Halloween" Retrospective: HALLOWEEN: RESURRECTION (2002)

HALLOWEEN: RESURRECTION (2002)
Director: Rick Rosenthal
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Busta Rhymes, Tyra Banks, Brad Loree, Bianca Kajlich, Sean Patrick Thomas, Thomas Ian Nicholas, Katee Sackhoff

Rick Rosenthal is back to the series after having directed Halloween II. The eighth film in the franchise picks up a couple years after the night Michael Myers was reunited with his sister Laurie Strode (Curtis). She is now staying in a psychiatric care facility. It turns out the man that Laurie beheaded at the end of Halloween H20 was not Michael. Laurie is now silent and only stares out the window. The orderlies believe she is a suicide risk. Michael (Loree) has tracked Laurie down at the facility and is now back to kill her off once and for all.

Back in Haddonfield, the old Myers house is now the subject of a new reality web event produced by Dangertainment. Its creator Freddie (Rhymes) and his assistant Nora (Banks) hope to unleash some new terror in the house, uncover some old secrets, and bring a new audience to the Myers legend. The web event is naturally being shown on Halloween night. Six college students are selected to be a part of the project. Smarty pants Sara (Kajlich) gets spooked quite easily and almost drops out. Her friend Jen (Sackhoff) is looking to become famous after this. There are numerous cameras planted throughout the house and each of the participants will wear head cameras to capture every move. The viewers can then decide which camera they want to watch. Michael comes back and I bet you can guess what happens next to the people using his old home for entertainment purposes. Sara’s cyber friend Deckard (Ryan Merriman) watches from a Halloween party and soon the whole party is watching and can’t figure out if what they are watching is all fake for the cameras or real.

The Myers house has definitely gone through inconsistencies throughout the series. The fifth film uses a completely different style for the house. In the sixth film, it is completely renovated and remodeled for the new Strode family who was living there. The production designers decided to go back to the run down idea for this film, which I prefer. The house hasn’t been lived in for decades and is covered dust, cobwebs, creeky wooden panels, dilapidated walls. The design team does a pretty decent job at recreating it based on the look and layout of the house used in the original.

One of the reasons why they are checking out the house is to find clues about why Michael went crazy. Apparently they are ignoring all of the Thorn/Man in Black storyline that was a part of the fifth and sixth entries. Outside of Laurie Strode and the house, there are no other connections to any other plotline or story from the series. Part of the main overarching concept was that Michael was always going after a family member and the people in their lives. After he kills Laurie, there are no more family members or relatives for him to attack. Her son John is not mentioned at all.

All of this just adds to the fact that this eighth entry feels very unnecessary. It does not really enhance the franchise or take it into a new direction. Halloween H20 could have been a great way to end the franchise if this film hadn’t been made. The film is only eleven years old is already feels very dated. We also learn that Busta Rhymes and Tyra Banks should stick to other projects.

RATING: * (1 out of 5 stars)

My Ranking of the Franchise
1. HALLOWEEN (1978)
2. HALLOWEEN H20: 20 YEARS LATER (1998)
3. HALLOWEEN II (1981)
4. HALLOWEEN 5: THE REVENGE OF MICHAEL MYERS (1989)
5. HALLOWEEN 4: THE RETURN OF MICHAEL MYERS (1988)
6. HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH (1982)
7. HALLOWEEN: RESURRECTION (2002)
8. HALLOWEEN: THE CURSE OF MICHAEL MYERS (1995)

"Halloween" Retrospective: HALLOWEEN H20: 20 YEARS LATER (1998)

HALLOWEEN H20: 20 YEARS LATER
Director: Steve Miner
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Josh Hartnett, Adam Arkin, Michelle Williams, Jodi Lyn O’Keefe, Adam Hann-Byrd, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, LL Cool J

Like the title suggests, twenty years have passed since that fateful night where masked killer Michael Myers went on a killing rampage involving some babysitters, nurses, doctors, and other innocent bystanders as he made his way toward Laurie Strode (Curtis). She has since survived and is now living under the new identity of Keri Tate, the headmistress of Hillcrest Academy High School in California. The nightmares haven’t stopped as she knows Michael is still out there. The only person that knows her past is her son, John (Hartnett). He is desperate for her to move on and not let the thought of Michael’s return ruin their lives any longer. Even her boyfriend Will (Arkin) is unaware of that night. To top it off, Laurie has been hitting the bottle and popping the pills. Can you blame her? I would be severely messed up if I was the target of someone’s butcher knife.

John, his girlfriend Molly (Williams), and their friends duck out of a trip to Yosemite National Park to roam the school grounds on Halloween night to fool around and have a night to themselves. Laurie believes they are on the trip after John begged and pleaded to go. What a sneaky move on his part. Leave it to maternal instincts for Laurie to realize John never made it to Yosemite. She and Will head to Hillcrest in order to find John and Molly only to come face to face with Michael for the first time in twenty years.

The horror genre was going through a resurgence at this time with the release of Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer, and The Faculty. Even though it was the twentieth anniversary of Halloween, this new found love of the genre must have played a part in the studio wanting to make another Halloween film after the sixth one bombed. Kevin Williamson was in high demand at the time and came in to write a treatment of the script. Some of his ideas were still used in the movie. His treatment is floating around the internet, but who knows if you can trust if it is his or not. He is a great writer and I am curious to see what his film would have turned out like.

I and many other fans rejoiced as Scream Queen Jamie Lee Curtis made her return to the role that made her famous. She has stated it was her idea originally to get the ball rolling on making this film a reality. She knew the anniversary was coming up and wanted to see what Laurie Strode was like after all these years. If you remember correctly from Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers, it was stated that Laurie Strode died in car accident. That is justified here when she admits to faking her death to go into hiding. That is the only factoid and storyline from films 4, 5, and 6 that is referenced in H20. The writers purposefully chose to ignore that timeline, and there is no mention of Laurie’s daughter Jamie who was one of Michael's previous targets. The film also marks the return of Nancy Stephens as Nurse Marion Chambers who also appeared in the first and second movies. She acts as the catalyst on how Michael was able to track Laurie down in hiding. Even though Donald Pleasance had passed away by the time they made this, there are newspaper and audio clips of his character Sam Loomis from the first film. Horror icon and Jamie Lee’s mom Janet Leigh appears in one of her last big screen roles as Norma who also works at Hillcrest. Miner and screenwriters Robert Zappia and Matt Greenberg have fun with this as they drop little odes to Psycho in regards to her character. You may also notice that Hartnett's character was named after series creator John Carpenter.

No other film in this series could ever top the original, but Halloween H20: 20 Years Later is the next best one in the series. Yes, it is missing the John Carpenter/Debra Hill touch. Director Steve Miner has experience with horror having director Parts 2 and 3 of the Friday the 13th series. He is able to bring some good scares and shocking moments to the movie. I have yet to really talk about the infamous Michael Myers mask throughout the retrospective. The mask can sometimes make or break the character, and the mask here is pretty plain and simple. I wish they would have taken more time in developing the subtle nuances it can have. The film boasts a pretty great cast with series regulars like Curtis and Stephens, horror icon Janet Leigh, and young stars Michelle Williams, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Josh Hartnett. They are all smart actors that were actually given decent characters. No obnoxious whiny annoying teens in this one. This comes in as the shortest film in the franchise, which is somewhat of a bummer as the movie is pretty good. I would not have minded another ten or fifteen additional minutes. I oftentimes find myself going back and re-watching this one over any of the other sequels.

RATING: **** (4 out of 5 stars)

My Ranking of the Franchise
1. HALLOWEEN (1978)
2. HALLOWEEN H20: 20 YEARS LATER (1998)
3. HALLOWEEN II (1981)
4. HALLOWEEN 5: THE REVENGE OF MICHAEL MYERS (1989)
5. HALLOWEEN 4: THE RETURN OF MICHAEL MYERS (1988)
6. HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH (1982)
7. HALLOWEEN: THE CURSE OF MICHAEL MYERS (1995)

"Halloween" Retrospective: HALLOWEEN II (1981)

HALLOWEEN II
Director: Rick Rosenthal
Written by John Carpenter and Debra Hill
Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Pleasance, Charles Cyphers, Pamela Susan Shoop, Dick Warlock

Even though it was released three years after the first film, the story picks up toward the ending of the first film when Laurie Strode tells Lindsay and Tommy to go get help at the McKenzie’s house. Despite being shot numerous times by Dr. Sam Loomis (Pleasance), Michael Myers (Warlock) has survived and is “on the loose”. The infamous John Carpenter score takes over as the opening credits roll. Laurie has survived the horror after being stabbed in the chest by Michael and is being taken to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital. Try not to roll your eyes too much at the very obvious wig Jamie Lee Curtis is now wearing.

News breaks that numerous teens have been murdered in Haddonfield, and the town goes on high alert. Dr. Loomis and Sheriff Brackett (Cyphers) take to the streets to continue their search for Michael. Blame is quickly put on Dr. Loomis as Michael was his patient and is now missing. No one knows what Michael looks like and with his mask on, he blends in with every other person walking the streets. You would think his creepy head tilts and slow walk would scare some people. Michael heads toward the hospital to continue his attack on Laurie.

These first two Halloween films are not just about Laurie Strode as a victim, but also focuses on Dr. Loomis and his relationship with Michael. Both the first film and now the sequel pay close attention to the relationship Michael has with both of these people. If you have never seen the first one, it accomplishes the obligatory recapping of the events and details of who Michael Myers is and what happened when he was a little boy. Horror sequels sometimes become origin stories and sometimes hidden truths about a killer get revealed. Halloween II takes a deeper look into history of Michael Myers and answers the question of why he is after Laurie Strode. I am obviously not going to reveal that here!

Director Rick Rosenthal, with help of Hill and Carpenter, tries to make the sequel have the style and feel of the first Halloween. Some of that attempt works well while some of the other approaches to the sequel really miss the boat and ignore what made the first film so eerie and haunting. Some of the earlier scenes are shot through the eyes of Michael Myers, which is how the first film starts and gives us the unique “through the killers eyes” perspective. The deaths are far more gruesome as he uses more than just his butcher knife on his victims. Michael adds hospital tools to his repertoire of killing devices. I personally think he should just stick to his large kitchen knife. It’s his signature weapon!

The script just is not up to par with the original. Debra Hill wrote some fantastic dialogue in the first film for all of the supporting players making those characters memorable. Much of that is missing here and we are reduced down to numerous hospital workers as supporting players which makes each death less personal. Even Jamie Lee Curtis is left mostly mute and traumatized without much to do except hobble around the hospital. She does a fantastic job, don’t get me wrong.

I remember watching Halloween II first before seeing any of the other movies in the franchise. I think I was around twelve or thirteen years old at the time. My parents never let me watch rated-R movies, let alone horror movies, at that age. I was spending the weekend at my friends Brad and Brett’s house, and they were allowed to watch those types of movies. Needless to say, I took full advantage of the situation. Isn't that what you’re supposed to do at a slumber party? We went to a haunted mansion earlier in the evening and then rented Halloween II from the video store. I cannot remember the circumstances of why we got the second one over the first one. Maybe the first one was checked out at the time. This started my never-ending love of the Halloween series. A couple of years later, I rented the first one which then cemented my continual fascination of Michael Myers.

RATING: *** (3 out of 5 stars)