Halloween 月光光心慌慌 (2018) - USA
Reviewed by Andrew Chan (Film Critics Circle of Australia)
It’s been a tough ride for the fans of “Halloween” franchise as Michael Myers have become more of a cult than the film series have been churning out low quality films. The great news is that the 2018’s “Halloween” is undeniably fresh, brutally violent, adequately suspense and a return to form for the series, cast and all round Halloween experience. It is what these kind of slasher films are about, haunting and unpredictable villains in the form of the pure evil Michael Myers and a victim turned heroine in the form of original lead and now grandma in her career redefining performance by Jamie Lee Curtis. The fans get what we all wanted and a new generation gets the experience a true cult classic in Myers.
Jamie Lee Curtis involvement in the film, crucial as without her, there will not be an engaging story of revenge. It rhymes well with the #metoo movement as victims are now fighting back to face their demons, here in the form of Myers (nailed extremely well by Nick Castle). Curtis is joined by a family of grown up adults, grandchild and friends (played by Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, Virginia Gardner and Will Patton), rounding out a cast of people to look frightened and to be murdered by the menacing Mike Myers. It is the kind of film where the Halloween villain is the key and along with a wonderful performance from Myers’ long time doctor (played by Haluk Bilginer), the film goes deeper in search of human condition, reasons behind the masked villain actions and undoubtedly the wounds of Curtis and the effect and aftermath on her family.
All in all, “Halloween” succeeds in sticking to its origins and focusing on what really matters, the battle between the victim and the aggressor. The random and staged murders are brutal and make no mistakes, the killings of civilians, cops and random strollers will be met with screams and shock. It is a slasher film that we used to see in the 80s with a modern twist and the basement of Curtis’s house is intriguing. At the end, the audience is left satisfied and ready for Halloween and that’s a wonderful return to form for all.
I rated it 8/10