Back in 2018, David Gordon Green and Blumhouse/Universal released Halloween. They hoped it would revitalize the Halloween franchise. Their plan was to jump start Michael Meyers by going back to the series roots: eliminating all Halloween sequels as canon, and making Halloween a straight sequel to the original set 40 years later. I re-watched it recently before my viewing of Halloween Kills, and it was likely the best made sequel at that point. It had some issues that bothered me at the time of its release and still bother me today, but overall I found it a mostly worthy successor.
In Halloween Kills, Michael (James Jude Courtney, still one of the best Michaels) has survived the events from the previous film and is now on an unhinged killing spree through Haddonfield. The town's citizens rally around Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, where Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis), Karen (Judy Greer), and Allyson (Andi Matichak) are recuperating. A vigilante mob forms, and a hunt for Michael ensues. "Evil ends tonight."
Back for this go-round are some characters from the original Halloween. We get the return of Tommy Doyle (Portrayed this time by Anthony Michael Hall), Lindsay Wallace (Played by original actress Kyle Richards), ex-Sheriff Leigh Brackett (Played by original actor Charles Cyphers), Marion Chambers (played by original actress Nancy Stephens), and Lonnie Elam (Played this time by Robert Longstreet). It's really cool to see all of these OG characters back again, and they spend a decent amount of time together. It's nice that Halloween kills includes scenes of them hanging out and being friends.
Tommy Doyle gets the most meat out of the above listed characters, and the film goes to some surprising places with him. Anthony Michael Hall does a physical, intimidating performance and he fits the role well. Kyle Richards returns as Lindsay Wallace, and is lovely. She gets to kick some ass (as does Marion Chambers/Nancy Stephens). It's fun to watch characters from the original take on Michael instead of running away.
Most of the cast from Halloween 2018 return as well. Jamie Leigh Curtis reprises her role of Laurie Strode and, although (much like Halloween 2) she spends 99% of her time in her hospital bed/hospital room, she is still Queen bad-ass and gets some great character moments. Judy Greer is back as Karen, Laurie's daughter. She joins with the mob to kick some Michael butt, hurt and angry over the death of her husband in the previous film. Andi Matichak returns as Allyson, daughter to Karen. She, too, joins with the mob to hunt down Michael. Matichek's performance was one of the strong points of Halloween 2018, and she continues to do a superb job here.
Dylan Arnold also returns as Cameron, boyfriend to Allyson and son to Lonnie. Last we saw, Allyson and him were on the fritz. We start the film with Cameron, and luckily he is a much more likable character this time. Will Patton also returns as Deputy Frank Hawkins, who is rushed to Haddonfield Memorial on account of his severe wounds from the previous film. He gets some stellar character development here.
A nice touch is that we get to see how Michael was captured after the ending of John Carpenter's Halloween. No de-aging is used, as we follow a young Deputy Hawkins (Thomas Mann) and his partner Pete (Jim Cummings) as they track down Michael (portrayed by Airon Armstrong for the 1978 portions, who does a great job. The mask used looks just like the one from the OG, although it's hard to tell if it's completely CGI or not). More time is spent here than expected (we get several scenes), but it's nice to return to the original and Halloween Kills captures the look, feel, atmosphere, and tone of John Carpenter's classic very well. It helps that everyone in this part feels and looks like they belong in that era too. Thomas Mann and Jim Cummings work well together, and their friendship is believable. Thomas Mann in particular really impresses as a young Hawkins, and the insights we get into Hawkins' character and backstory during the 1978 portions are satisfying and cool.
Loomis actually returns in this portion for brief moments. He's portrayed by Tom Jones Jr. (in mostly brief shots) and voiced by Colin Mahan. You know it's not Loomis when you see him and hear him in these portions, but the character still acts just like the Loomis we remember. It might have been a better choice to not include Loomis at all, but it makes sense to have him appear (after all, why WOULDN'T Loomis be there when Michael is apprehended).
Halloween Kills doesn't start the way you think it would (or even WHEN you really think it would), and it actually takes a bit of time before Halloween Kills gets to what happens directly after the events of the previous outing. This outing definitely suffers from some pacing issues. The film cuts away from the carnage at times to returning characters chilling at a bar, unaware that Michael is back. There's plenty of "meanwhile" scenes with Laurie, Karen, and Hawkins chatting in her hospital room. The character development we get in these scenes is great, but it's hard not to get a bit antsy waiting for the next kill (more on those later). There is also a sub-plot involving another escaped mental patient which only exists to eat time and drive home (bluntly) the film's message about the dangers of mob mentality and vigilante justice. Lastly, it's a bit disappointing that most of our supporting cast (ie: those going up against Michael) are just plain terrible at fighting and shooting. I know we need Mikey boy to return for the third film, but would it kill you to make these guys at least semi-competent.?
Luckily, we all came here for the kills and they DO NOT disappoint. There are many murders in Halloween Kills, and they are of a high quality. The kill scenes sampled here are brutal, savage, and satisfying. There is lots of blood, lots of gore, and a good deal of variety. Michael is not afraid to put down his knife and use other near by items to wreck a dude's day. Some of the kills/fights in Halloween Kills are the best in the entire franchise, so get hyped.
John Carpenter, Cody Carpenter (John's son), and Daniel Davies return to score Halloween Kills. The score for Halloween 2018 was an all-timer, the score for Halloween Kills is still pretty killer for the most part. David Gordon Green returns to the director's chair, and does a more than competent job once again. Green wrote the screenplay with Danny McBride (just like Halloween 2018), but this time Scott Teems teams up with them to assist. The script is mostly pretty good, although there are some humor moments that fall flat hard (I'm looking at you Silver Shamrock Trio in the park). Michael Simmonds returns as Cinematographer, and does a bang-up job again (the film is consistently pretty).
It should come as no surprise that Halloween Kills comes with an incomplete ending (Halloween Ends has already been confirmed for 2022 after all). Halloween Kills indeed serves much of the same role as Back To The Future 2 did in it's trilogy, acting as mostly a stepping stone for the final installment. What a stepping stone it is, though. It was hard to watch this sequel without feeling spoiled. The action/kills were superb, there was great character development, and it was faithful to the original source material and that film's mythology. It's still flawed, but I found the flaws here bothered me far less than the flaws in 2018's flick did (Plus, Halloween Kills actually resolves an issue regarding Michael's motivation that really bothered me in the 2018 outing). Halloween Kills is a brutal, aggressive, ultra-dark, bloody, fun throwback/update to classic slashers. In the end, it should leave audiences hyped for whatever comes next.
4 STARS
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