Starring: Daeg Faerch, Danielle Harris, Malcolm McDowell, Danny Trejo, Sheri Moon

Directed by: Rob Zombie

Dimension Films

The Official Site of Halloween

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At some point before I was born or when I was too young to really be exposed to it, slasher movies took over the world. A new batch of grand movie villains and iconic monsters terrorized and entertained moviegoers for years in the late 70’s and early 80’s. A couple of decades after an endless parade of “less than� sequels forced audiences to stop paying attention, those youngest of moviegoers that deified the man in the hockey mask and the burn victim with the claws, have comeback to introduce them to a new generation of kids. To a new generation of moviegoers that have rejected the slasher genre and instead are being treated to something entirely unique. “The classic slasher remake�.

Because if Hollywood can’t make new monsters for the world to embrace they’ll just throw some polish on one of the old ones, lower the neckline of his victims, and set them loose to bring back some money.

It started a few years ago with The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Kind of a big beast to tackle right out the gate as the fans of the southland slaughter, and its star Leatherface, can be pretty intense. But the crowds bit and before you knew it people were talking prequel.

A year later when they were talking about resurrecting Michael Myers, the stoic boogieman from John Carpenter’s Halloween under the direction of singer, and true horror fan, Rob Zombie I’ve got to admit I was kind of excited. Myers was always imposing and genuinely scary, but the rumored retelling promised a closer look at the characters history from a fan that would never do another horror fan wrong. The future of a holiday was in good hands.

As time went by I became less sure that the film would be a home run. An odd release date and rumored changes after the first round of test screenings were setting off familiar and unsettling red flags. But I’m glad those flags were raised because my lowered expectations couldn’t have prepared me for the surprise in hand.

Zombie’s Halloween (which in itself would be a great title for a movie) takes the “monster comes home� story and gives you everything you didn’t know you wanted form the franchise. A more in depth look at what drove Myers over the edge, as well as his time in the mental institution and relationship with Dr. Loomis are all covered like The Academy announced there would be a new “Best Horror Movie� category this year. But it pays off. Within 20 minutes there’s an uncanny attachment to these characters that I never would have expected from anything with the “slasher� tag on it.

As a 10-year-old Michael digs a knife longer than his forearm into his sister’s back you wonder where they went wrong. As his mother (marvelously played by Sheri Moon Zombie) contemplates suicide you feel the weight of that gun in her hand and pray that something will stop her from giving up on life.

I was amazed at how invested I was so quickly, but I think the thing that surprised me the most about this movie was the performance of Daeg Faerch who plays Michael at age 10. A fair bit of time is spent detailing Michael's life at this age and as I was watching it I didn't think anything of it, just that they were telling the whole story and that it was being done really well. Oh and also that I haven't been this scared of a 10-year-old since I was 14.

Faerch's performance really shows its value though in the second half of the film where a 25-year-old, monstrously huge Michael breaks free and returns to Haddonfield to find his baby sister. Before when I had ever seen Michael I always just viewed him as this emotionless brute, but it's amazing. As the character walks, turns, and looking at his unsuspecting prey, you can see him thinking behind the still, whitewashed mask. It's almost as if you can see that little boy hiding behind there waiting to be unleashed. It was an incredible bit of transference where we understand so much more about the character’s behavior from a performance that's been over for 20 minutes.

Credit too has to go to Tyler Mane who plays Michael at 25 and clearly put some time into mimicking the thought process of the younger slasher. Still, I was dumbfounded how often this ogre would appear on screen and I would only see that confused and angry little kid.

Zombie has really come into his own as a storyteller. His earlier work, House of a 1000 Corpses and The Devil’s Rejects, were just test-drives for this winning race. Zombie is smart enough to play up to his target audience and try to attach a little story to the mayhem at the same time. One half of the movie is a carefully crafted and believable journey of a boy going mad. At the same time Zombie ruthlessly unleashes violence in surprising and inventive bursts. The knives are huge, Myers is unstoppable, and half the female characters die with their shirts off. Just as the horror Gods intended. Halloween is a brilliantly told tale, but definitely not for the feint of heart.

As explosively raw and entertaining Halloween is as a movie experience, it is not without fault. A couple of plot holes that didn’t bother me at the time haunt me a few days later. How does Michael find his sister? He seems to hone in on her immediately despite the fact that not even she knows that she’s related to the tons mythical boogieman. Michael kills at random on his way to find her but it’s never really explained how he knows it’s her. Also, because he can’t talk, his true motivation is in question. Zombie gives us enough information to take a stab at it (Ah-HA!) but the scene where he comes to rest felt confusing and undefined.

If it were just another slasher movie I wouldn’t bother asking those questions, because it wouldn’t matter. People died in exploding bursts of blood. I got what I paid for. But when a movie presents such a compelling introduction I can’t help but want that follow through. Halloween is a victim of its own excellence.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10 This retake on Halloween was hugly entertaining. I understand why remakes in general get a lot of slack, but if we can find talented people like Zombie that are passionate about the characters, I say given them a shot at all the greats. Retell Jason. Retell Jaws, Hell, retell Freddy! You think Robert England won't come back if you through a high 6 figures at him? Besides they can actually do it better now. If you think Freddy looked scary in the early 80's just think about what they can do if his burns actually look like burns and not Play Doh.

So many kids have missed out on these characters or only been exposed to watered down versions of them. I mean if you were born after 1990 chances are you're proper introduction to the horror greats has been Jason in space and Myers fighting Busta Rymes. (I will admit though that Freddy vs. Jason was a lot of fun, but more fun than terrifying, that's for sure.)

Regular readers know that I really don’t go for Horror on DVD, even when it comes to that rare film that is put together so well that it transcends the splattered blood that decorates its set. Halloween is no exception unfortunately, though the average horror nut, person that actually decorates their home with spattered blood and even diehard fans of the original should buy and cherish this classic reinterpretation. Money well spent.

Black Christmas - There was so much about this movie that reminded me of the infinitely worse Black Christmas from this past winter. Sure, that movie had the good decency to be released on the right day in the right season, it even had the common sense to tell a good story, stay continuously scary and be R-rated, but it will forever be the forgotten little brother to Halloween. It’s like comparing oranges and pumpkins. One of them you pack in a child’s sack lunch, the other you decorate with a weapon.

I liked Black Christmas enough, but it truly doesn’t compare. I think the reason it will never be another Halloween is because its villain is severely less memorable. Perhaps if the incestuous, cannibalistic killer from the film had worn a festive mask he might be immortalized for the ages. It’s hard to take a killer seriously when he’s sucking on a candy cane.

The release date bugs me to no end if you couldn't guess from today’s comic. I just can't understand how - if your movie's title is a date or a holiday - can the movie NOT come out on that day. It's chaos I tell you and we can't let them get away with it. Christmas movies in July, Memorial day movies on Labor Dat!? Where will it end?

But I think the ultimate "Fuck You", other than the 32 million dollars Halloween piled up this weekend, to anyone that complains about the date is how good the movie actually is. It stands on its own two feet in October, August, or any month that it wants to come out. Because, we can complain about when we're watching it until we're blue in the face, but if it's as good as this movie is, we should all just be thankful we got to see it 60 days early. Plus, if the best things we can find to complain about are the release date and the fact that it’s a remake then that bodes pretty well for the quality of the film.

The Mist - Another Stephen King adaptation is set to hit theaters with The Mist. Not to be confused with The Fog, but it’ll be interesting which “driving hazard movie will win out the day. Basically all The Mist has to do is not hold its casting call in the CW parking lot and it should be fine.

Actually, it’s better than fine with actors like Thomas Jane, Marcia Gay Harden and the always enjoyable Andre Braugher leading the charge in a story about the monsters outside and the monsters within us all. A group of fine performers locked in a grocery store with an invisible threat banging on the walls promises for a fun night at the movies.

The trailer itself is very heavy handed in its message of paranoia and fear leading to the worst in mankind. So much so that I franticly scribbled into my notebook the final line of the trailer uttered by the young boy who is wanted as a sacrificial lamb by one half of the survivors. “Please don’t let the monsters get me.� Its dual meaning is not lost on me, or the dimmest of wits in the theater, but how overpowering will this theme be in the actual film? I’m hoping for a fine-tuned subtle delivery but hedging my bets by expecting nothing beyond some nice performances and some big scares.

We’ve got a nice little thread for The Mist cooking over on the boards. Feel free to pop in and say hello.

How’s everyone’s holiday weekend going? Good? Awesome. Hey, if you’re not busy next weekend, I’ll be in Baltimore for the Baltimore Comic Con. This is an annual show for us because it’s close and it gives us a chance to hang out with Clay (from Rob and Elliot) and Brandon (who has a big project coming up. Keep and eye on his web site for details). And the fans are always good to us there. If you’re up to it, stop on by. Say the secret password (“Steve and Dan�) and I’ll give you a free sketch. I’ll give you a free sketch either way but passwords are fun!

If you’d like to talk to me a little sooner please do stop by tonight’s Triple Feature where Gordon, Tom, Brian and I will be discussing this weekends big releases as well as questions sent in by you guys! Until then, enjoy the bbq and let me know if that Kyle XY marathon is worth checking out.