Connect with us

News

TIFF Review: ‘Halloween’ is a Brutal, Beautiful 40th Anniversary Gift

Published

on

Halloween

There’s something magical about sitting in a packed theatre with hundreds of die-hard fans, about to watch the movie they’ve been waiting to see for over a year. As the lights dimmed on TIFF’s Midnight Madness premiere of Halloween, the crowd held an elated tension. Would this be worth the wait?

Hell yeah.

via TIFF

David Gordon Green and Danny McBride’s reimagining of the classic slasher does retcon every film after the 1978 original. What this creates is a Laurie Strode who is so traumatized by the events of that Halloween night 40 years ago that it has consumed her entire life.

Along with that trauma and paranoia is the doubt she faces because of her obsession. Laurie’s family members constantly plead for her to just “get over it” and “move on” with her life. But Laurie knows that she will never be truly safe until Michael is dead.

The legendary Jamie Lee Curtis plays this trauma beautifully – and it’s delicately balanced. Her extreme preparedness can feel intensely impressive in one scene and comically nutty the next. But under it all, you can see how Laurie has been – and is still – shaken to her core by Michael Myers.

via Universal Pictures

The reimagined timeline is such a perfect fit that you really don’t even miss the other films. But, rather than completely discard the whole franchise, Green and McBride show their respect with several little Easter eggs and hat-tips to the original Halloween and its other chapters.

They’re extraordinarily satisfying bits of fan service.

And speaking of extraordinarily satisfying, the film’s R-rating is used to its full advantage. Scenes of violence are viciously, deliciously gruesome, and sprinkles of comedic levity make the horror that much more effective – it’s a skilled dance of building and releasing tension.

Even after 40 years, Michael Myers is still a terrifying, brutal (and highly productive) killing machine. He has aged well.

via Universal Pictures

Admittedly, because this Halloween follows more characters on separate plotlines, the rhythm of the story is a bit spread out. The first two acts have some push and pull with the pacing and tend to favor jump scares. The third act, however, is a master class in tension. You’re right there with Laurie and – as Sarah Connor-level prepared as she is – you can feel her anxious terror.

Putting the focus on three generations of Strode women is a powerful way to both demonstrate how Michael has had a lasting effect on the family and explore the challenging mother-daughter dynamic that developed as a result.

Even if Laurie was not the warm, loving mother that Karen Strode (Judy Greer, Jurassic World) so desperately wanted, Laurie put Karen’s safety above everything. Her maternal instincts told her to protect and prepare instead.

Again, the film encompasses the post-traumatic stress that would surely follow after surviving such a brutal massacre. Even though Laurie has had time to bandage the wounds of that trauma, they’ve never really healed because of her conviction that Michael will one day return.

We can see an attempt at normalcy through Laurie’s relationship with her granddaughter, Allyson (Andi Matichak, Orange is the New Black). Laurie feels incredible guilt for how she raised her own daughter and frustration because of how her paranoia is outwardly perceived.

It’s a powerful reflection on the isolation of trauma.

via TIFF

Overall, when you get down to brass tacks, Halloween is a deeply satisfying return to Haddonfield. The return of John Carpenter to revitalize the iconic main theme speaks to how Green and McBride wanted to do Halloween right, and with Carpenter’s blessing (the theme will give you goosebumps, by the way).

Co-written by Danny McBride and director David Gordon Green, and produced by Jason Blum and Malek Akkad (son of Moustapha Akkad, executive producer of every other film in the Halloween franchise), Halloween was given the love and care of a team that has such respect for the original film and the horror genre as a whole.

For Halloween’s 40thanniversary, this was the best possible gift.

 

Halloween will hit theatres on October 19, 2018. Check out the trailer here!

via Blumhouse

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

1 Comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

News

Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

Published

on

Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading

Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

Published

on

The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading

Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

Published

on

Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading