The long awaited sequel to the 2018 reboot has arrived; we are back in Haddonfield, and so is Michael Myers. With Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) stuck in hospital from injuries caused during the movies predecessor, the other survivors of Myers band together to form a mob and hunt down Michael in attempt to end his reign of terror. Shockingly bloody and violent from the get go, Halloween Kills is a fast paced, gory bloodbath that has its repetitive moments yet hits high on the entertainment scale.
Written by Becca Johnson
The movie picks up directly where Halloween (2018) left off, with Strode being rushed to hospital with life threatening injuries. Unfortunately, this means her character is forced to take a back-burner as she is stuck in hospital for the majority of the runtime. However, this lets other characters from Carpenter's original come into focus, including Tommy Doyle, Lonnie Elam and Lindsey Wallace. The performances across the board were pretty believable, and it was fun to see the large cast come together and try to fight off evil. Judy Greer and Allyson Nelson return as Strode's daughter and granddaughter, once again adding heart to the movie and depth to Laurie's character.
Halloween Kills most notable quality is easily, the kills – as the title suggests. The kill count is extremely high, with Michael Myers murderous rampage lasting for the movies entire runtime. The kills themselves were unique and utterly gory, adding a fun yet gruesome layer to the movie. It is likely the most grotesque of the whole franchise, and will easily please those watching this movie for an atmospheric, murderous time. We get to see Michael Myers at his most supernatural, and though this will leave many wondering how he can survive the injuries he obtains, it successfully hints at Michael being the embodiment of evil; he is unstoppable, not entirely human.
The elements that made Carpenter's original so well loved and memorable are definitely present during Halloween Kills. Easily one of the most notable in the horror genre, the incredible score is prominent throughout the movie, with some additional tunes that amplify it all the more. Furthermore, there is some beautiful cinematography filtered throughout that bring Halloween Kills up a notch. The movie looks great and sounds great, and fans of Carpenter's original will likely appreciate that.
The storyline is both a success and leaves a little to be desired. The script does a really good job in exploring mob mentality, showing its audience why it can be dangerous and cause more harm than good even if you're fighting for a good cause. It's rare to see this idea explored in the horror genre, and it worked a treat in showing how evil can create evil. However, the narrative became repetitive after a while, following the same few beats over and over. The use of flashbacks to 1978 was fun at first but became gimmicky and boring after a while, particularly as the same flashbacks were rehashed more than once. Halloween Kills doesn't really add anything to the franchise as a whole, making it easy to criticise as being pointless.
Halloween Kills is a gore infused wild ride with admirable cinematography, a well utilised original score and a terrifically terrifying villain. The cast and crew come together to create an anger fuelled action flick with the most amount of gruesome kills that the franchise has dabbled with thus far. However, its lacklustre storyline will leave fans divided, as it fails to create the amount of tension that makes the original so well loved. Those who are here for a fun time will without a doubt achieve that, whilst those looking for something a little deeper likely to come away feeling dissatisfied.
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