Today, I feel like discussing a slightly controversial topic within the Halloween community:
The recent entry into the Halloween franchise, Halloween Kills.
I have been a fan of the Halloween franchise since before I ever saw the movies, if that makes sense. We had a neighbor when I was very small who would play the soundtracks every year on Halloween night, from the time the kids started getting off the school bus until who knows when, after we’d all gone in for the night. It was almost surreal; for that one night, the entire neighborhood could hear the eerie music, if we were outside. I felt lucky in a way, and was, of course, intrigued to see the movies that it originated from.
I wasn’t allowed to until I was much older, obviously, but I would occasionally sneak peeks, as most of them were regularly broadcast on the cable channels in my childhood. The most common one I remember seeing was actually Halloween 4: The Return Of Michael Myers, so much of the imagery that comes to mind when I think nostalgically about these movies, comes from that one. I also remember the hype around Halloween: H20 when it was going to be released, around the time I was turning eleven.
It’s probably no surprise that the Halloween franchise became a favorite of mine once I was old enough and had enough of an interest in horror to watch and appreciate them all. While I think Freddy Krueger just might win for overall favorite slasher due to his personality and also the fact that I think he was truly the first one I was ever exposed to (and also led to me having an irrational fear of animated people who looked like pencil drawings for many years, but that’s a whole other story for another day) I am always more likely to come back to the Halloween movies for a rewatch, because of the atmosphere and the connection to the most important day of my year. I was very, very excited when the 2018 movie was going to be released, spawning a new trilogy that, as many horror reboots/reimaginings/etc. don’t tend to do, would include direct connections to the original story.
I understand that the convoluted timeline can be a pain to follow, and it is a little sad to think some of my favorite entries into the franchise, technically didn’t happen if you choose to follow this new timeline exclusively. But, if I really wanted to be bitter about that, I could have already complained that Halloween 4 and H20 actually cancel each other out, so there’s that. I think with some of these things, you just have to accept multiple canons. (This is something that I’ve gotten used to as an AHS fan, to say the absolute least!)
With that said, I really enjoyed the 2018 Halloween entry, though I found it to be a bit of a slow burn. To this day, if I rewatch it, I’m likely to get a little distracted until the action really starts, but I think it was done very well and this is one of my favorite interpretations of Laurie Strode that we’ve seen in these films, though I personally feel like the character would be more likely to end up like her H20 self, and end up moving away and creating a new identity, especially after having kids. But regardless, seeing this new, rough-around-the-edges Laurie Strode, so deeply affected by what happened to her forty years ago, but still so unwilling to back down, is pretty amazing. It’s almost as if she’s joint telepathically with Michael somehow, just knowing that he will never truly rest and will eventually come back, even after forty years.
Halloween Kills picks up right where 2018’s story ends. Laurie and her daughter and granddaughter are rushed to the hospital while first responders attempt to put out the fire at Laurie’s home, which is, of course, a bad idea. Michael is set loose and while he’s his usual self, and does what’s to be expected, there’s also an element added by this being the first time we really see Michael as the hunted, vs. simply the hunter. This Michael is honestly a lot more brutal than anything we’ve seen outside of the Rob Zombie remakes 
The difference between Halloween Kills and the 2018 installment is, Kills is an incredibly action-packed film. From Michael’s many kills, to the mob determined to stop him, led by none other than Tommy Doyle himself, it’s pretty much nonstop, and you never know what’s going to happen next. When will the hunter become the hunted, on either side of the equation? This movie really did keep me on the edge of my seat, probably more than any of the other films of the franchise have, solely because I wasn’t expecting such intensity. I think there comes a time when most slasher franchises, even if we love them, become some form of predictable camp, and while there’s definitely some camp to be seen here, Halloween Kills truly did things I wasn’t expecting. Aside from giving us a more brutal Michael Myers, it also gave us some very emotional moments, those involving Laurie’s family and friends, and the truly depressing side arc of Tovoli, the other escaped mental patient who is mistaken for Michael. As someone who struggles with mental health, that bit was truly hard for me to watch.
The ending bits of this film, though, truly gave me goosebumps. Just when you think Michael is down for the count, and all of the people that he has affected over forty years are finally free, Laurie gives a chilling monologue from her hospital room about what Michael truly is, and how powerful fear ultimately is (which is a recurring theme here for sure). As she gives her ominous explanation, her warning, almost, Michael springs to life once again and manages to wipe out everyone who’s been working so hard to end his stranglehold on the town of Haddonfield. It’s truly a moment, and I wanted to weep for Tommy Doyle, who tried so hard that he nearly drove himself insane. Love or hate these characters (I know this Tommy was disliked by many.), it’s still painful to see them meet their end after surviving so much.
The final blow of the movie, when Michael takes down Laurie’s daughter Karen, was also greatly unexpected, and leads me to wonder if granddaughter Allyson is being set up to take over as final girl, just in case this franchise somehow continues many years into the future, after Halloween Ends. My personal theory is that Michael will die in the next movie, but I think if he’s going down, he’s going to take Laurie with him.
All in all, I truly don’t understand the hate for this movie. I’ve seen far worse from horror reboots, reimaginings, whatever you wish to call them, and this one definitely does justice to the original source material, including almost all of the original characters and giving us a solid, fun-to-watch new story on top of it, that kind of picks up right where the original left off. People will always criticize, but I personally don’t see, regardless of how you feel about the story, how anyone could possibly call this movie boring.
I mean, they even did an homage to the controversial Halloween III: Season Of The Witch!
Visually speaking, this was one of my favorite moments in the entire film. I just love, love, love those masks!
I guess the short version of what I’m trying to say here is simply, I loved the movie and don’t understand the hate. The wonky timeline is kind of an annoyance if you choose to let it be, but it’s still not worth condemning some solid new entries into the franchise. Personally, I see Halloween Kills becoming one of my main go-tos when I really need that Halloween feeling. It has everything I look for in these types of movies.
Stay spooky, my friends. And don’t let the Boogeyman bite!
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