PIC of the Week – Halloween (2018)
Article series by Ray Schillaci
Damn me if you will, but I actually was very surprised as to how effective the newest incarnation of the Halloween franchise is. Universal Pictures Home Entertainment carves us up a slice of a decent 4K/Blu with writer/director David Gordon Green’s reimagining of a “direct” sequel to the classic Carpenter film, replete with a new mask, Jamie Lee Curtis as a bad-ass Laurie Strode, and an evil soundtrack that sometimes resembles Goblin’s music to Suspiria.
Director Green definitely hits the creepy mark and even managed to send chills through me in a couple scenes, but it is the off-beat humor and the intentional way he and his writers Jeff Fradley and Danny McBride discount all the other sequels to make theirs a true original sequel to the Carpenter classic. Does it always work? For the most part yes, but the sophomoric humor may be off-putting to some. If you’re familiar with Green, Fradley, and McBride you already know they are less known for any dramatic turns and more popular for their ribald humor from the popular HBO series Vice-Principals.
What the new Halloween does have in its favor is a traumatized older woman who is far from being a victim. Jamie Lee Curtis’ turn as Strode is possibly the best tough-as-nails woman since Linda Hamilton in T2 and Sigourney Weaver in Alien. And, she’s not just hardcore, the woman has issues, and is sympathetic at the same time. No wonder Curtis signed on for the role. One cannot help but yearn for more screen time for her rather than some of the teenage antics that are obviously set up for slaughter.
It’s the day before Halloween, and a couple of podcasters are looking to grab something of a story for the killer that was Haddonfield’s nightmare forty years ago. Michael Myers has been institutionalized since being captured after the massacre that one fateful night. A new doctor has been obsessed with his patient ever since Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasance) passed away. Now, the government has decided to move Michael and several other inmates to a long-rumored awful facility. Guess what, he never makes it there.
Enter Laurie Strode who’s been ostracized by her own daughter for being a armageddon nut; preparing for the end, stockpiling food, guns and ammo while building herself a private anti-MM compound. The only person Laurie has in her life is her teenage granddaughter, Allyson, and she has to sneak in their visits.
The moment Laurie hears of Michael’s escape, she jumps into action to protect her family. But, her family insists she’s overreacting. Meanwhile, it’s Halloween night and Michael is having a field day. At the same time, the sheriff that originally shot Michael in the first movie is after him again, but this time he wants to shoot first and ask questions later, much to the dismay of the physician handling Michael’s case.
Being a big fan of the original, I look back at the past sequels and the only one that came close to delivering the goods was Halloween H2O. But, I have give this one its props for the easy way it dismissed the other films and attempted a true sequel that was far better than the disappointing Halloween II. There’s even a slight jab given to all the talk about Laurie Strode and Michael Myers being related.
The 4K presentation is solid, but not outstanding. It’s more detail-oriented in so many of the dark sequences. When it comes to comparing it to the Blu-ray, it is not a huge leap. Shadows are darker, scenery is sharper along with those weapons of choice. The new Halloween is not a must-have on 4K, but for those that yearn for the attention to detail, you may want to take a stab at owning this one.
The DTS:X soundtrack is primary to the film’s score. That’s where this Halloween really throws in the scares. The music is haunting and exhilarating. That’s not to say the rest is a throwaway. Dialogue is well served, but sound effects are not as punctuated as one would expect – gunshots not as loud and those stabbings are nowhere near as cringing.
As far as bonuses, fans will scream in anger with no commentary track. What gives? Commentaries have become standard these days. What we do get is less than a half hour of supplemental material. Below are the gruesome goodies…
• Back in Haddonfield – making of, production/cast and crew interviews
• The Legacy of Halloween – brief talk with Jamie Lee Curtis, John Carpenter, David Gordon Green, and Blumhouse’s Jason Blum
• The Sound of Fear – discussion on the musical score
• The Original Scream Queen – cast and crew talk about Jamie Lee Curtis and her character
• Journey of the Mask – the reasons behind updating the mask
• Deleted and extended scenes
For most fans, this is one to own. for the rest of you out there, you’re not invited to this horror island.
Best Price – $24.99 – Amazon, Best Buy, Target
