Movie Review-"Halloween II"
By Christian Toto at www.whatwouldtotowatch.com
Sequels give the sense of surprise the cold shoulder.
Even the best sequels can’t replicate the shock of the new, of seeing something we haven’t seen before.
It’s one reason “Halloween II” is light years better than Rob Zombie’s 2007 horror reboot.
That film telegraphed every punch, stab and disembowelment, all the while replicating some classic “Halloween” scares from the superior original.
Here, Zombie wisely hits the dimmer switch and doesn’t show us every move Michael Myers makes.
The sequel picks up more or less where Zombie’s reboot left off. Young Laurie Stroub (Scout Taylor-Compton) is being stitched up after her vicious battle with her oversized kin (Tyler Mane).
Cue the iconic “Halloween” music. Or … don’t.
This is Zombieland now, and the ties connecting the new Myers story to the John Carpenter original are all but severed.
The action moves ahead roughly one year - just a few days before Halloween. Laurie now lives with Sheriff Brackett (Brad Dourif) and his teen daughter (Danielle Harris). She’s safe, but the ghost of Michael Myers keeps haunting her. Little does she know Myers in the rotting flesh will soon be back to haunt her in person.
“Halloween II,” shot in grimy, grainy 16 MM, establishes its lurid tone from the opening moments. Sure, Zombie resurrects his hillbilly shock material, but the film feels much more like a Zombie original than his “Halloween” ever did.
Few recent horror films can match the unsettling soundtrack behind Myers’ slayings, or the awful noise coming from his newly dead victims. There’s less outright gore here than in your average slasher film, but Myers’ brutality - and willingness to bludgeon his victims beyond recognition - makes this sequel a thoroughly unpleasant experience for non-horror fans.
Zombie also sneaks in some snarky musical drops - like a video replay of The Moody Blues singing “Knights in White Satin” and a radio blasting “The Things We Do For Love.”
The film’s obvious monster remains the masked one, but Dr. Loomis (Malcolm McDowell) gives him a run for his money. The good doctor is out peddling a book based on the events from the first film, and he doesn’t mind trampling on the memories of the deceased if it means a few more copies fly off the shelves.
The weakest addition here comes in the form of the lovely Mrs. Zombie, once again playing Mama Myers. Sheri Moon Zombie appears before her son in ghostly visions, egging him on to kill a few more innocents and “reunite” their family.
For all of Zombie’s flourishes, “Halloween II” remains a slasher film, and that horror template means massive gaps in logic and few legit scares. The film ends without a lame sequel setup, so let’s hope the bloody tale of Michael Myers ends here, and that Zombie turns his twisted sight on fresh material.
Sequels give the sense of surprise the cold shoulder.
Even the best sequels can’t replicate the shock of the new, of seeing something we haven’t seen before.
It’s one reason “Halloween II” is light years better than Rob Zombie’s 2007 horror reboot.
That film telegraphed every punch, stab and disembowelment, all the while replicating some classic “Halloween” scares from the superior original.
Here, Zombie wisely hits the dimmer switch and doesn’t show us every move Michael Myers makes.
The sequel picks up more or less where Zombie’s reboot left off. Young Laurie Stroub (Scout Taylor-Compton) is being stitched up after her vicious battle with her oversized kin (Tyler Mane).
Cue the iconic “Halloween” music. Or … don’t.
This is Zombieland now, and the ties connecting the new Myers story to the John Carpenter original are all but severed.
The action moves ahead roughly one year - just a few days before Halloween. Laurie now lives with Sheriff Brackett (Brad Dourif) and his teen daughter (Danielle Harris). She’s safe, but the ghost of Michael Myers keeps haunting her. Little does she know Myers in the rotting flesh will soon be back to haunt her in person.
“Halloween II,” shot in grimy, grainy 16 MM, establishes its lurid tone from the opening moments. Sure, Zombie resurrects his hillbilly shock material, but the film feels much more like a Zombie original than his “Halloween” ever did.
Few recent horror films can match the unsettling soundtrack behind Myers’ slayings, or the awful noise coming from his newly dead victims. There’s less outright gore here than in your average slasher film, but Myers’ brutality - and willingness to bludgeon his victims beyond recognition - makes this sequel a thoroughly unpleasant experience for non-horror fans.
Zombie also sneaks in some snarky musical drops - like a video replay of The Moody Blues singing “Knights in White Satin” and a radio blasting “The Things We Do For Love.”
The film’s obvious monster remains the masked one, but Dr. Loomis (Malcolm McDowell) gives him a run for his money. The good doctor is out peddling a book based on the events from the first film, and he doesn’t mind trampling on the memories of the deceased if it means a few more copies fly off the shelves.
The weakest addition here comes in the form of the lovely Mrs. Zombie, once again playing Mama Myers. Sheri Moon Zombie appears before her son in ghostly visions, egging him on to kill a few more innocents and “reunite” their family.
For all of Zombie’s flourishes, “Halloween II” remains a slasher film, and that horror template means massive gaps in logic and few legit scares. The film ends without a lame sequel setup, so let’s hope the bloody tale of Michael Myers ends here, and that Zombie turns his twisted sight on fresh material.
Labels: Halloween II Rob Zombie Michael Myers Movie Review Christian Toto
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