By Cynthia Bujnicki

“Laurie Strode confronts her long-time foe Michael Myers, the masked figure who has haunted her since she narrowly escaped his killing spree on Halloween night four decades ago.” —IMDB

This film is the film that all Halloween fans have been waiting for.

Jamie Lee Curtis returns to her titular role of Laurie, the babysitter who faced off against Michael Meyers years ago. Serving as a direct sequel from the 1978 film of the same name, this film pretty much undoes the entire franchise, but it does throw in some callbacks to some notable moments throughout the franchise, leaving the door open if they wanted to bring in some elements from those films into this new split in the franchise. Fans can appreciate that while the franchise has pretty much been undone and rebooted, moments from the original franchise are not lost.

What this film really does well is recreate the atmosphere of the original movie. Michael is just a mindless drone, all he does is walk around killing whoever crosses his path. There is no rhyme or reason behind Michael, he’s just a mindless killer, the embodiment of evil as Loomis stated right in the beginning of the original film. But that’s what makes this film so good. Michael, well, he doesn’t really think about Laurie until faced with her again, but then again, the audience has to ask the question of whether or not he’s going after her because she’s the one that got away or if he’s only after her because he was put into her vicinity. There’s a lot of room for interpretation regarding this, and everyone can have their own opinion of why Michael and Laurie are so intertwined with one another. that energy between them, the rising tension that continues to rise, it works so well for building up this climax of the film, and that’s what’s so great about this.

I think what I personally loved about this newest installment is the fact that the film has three generation of women going after Michael. You have Laurie, her daughter and then her granddaughter, all in his crosshairs and all with different strengths to face Michael and bring him down. That was amazing on the part of the writer and directors to make this a family affair and to bring an “end” to Michael. The pace, the tension, the rise and fall of the action sequences, the movie and editing, they all work together in such a way to build such fantastic tension for the audience to enjoy the film thoroughly.

This film ultimately is the sequel all fans have been waiting for. It pays homage to all the movies that came before it while also staying true to its own original ideal, its own way to bring life into this franchise and start fresh in a way. Michael is a monster, he’s a villain who kills without cause and without prejudice. That is who Michael is, no explanation necessary and the fact that the writers saw fit to see that is wonderful.

Plus, Jamie Lee Curtis is as fierce as she has ever been. Who doesn’t love the original Scream Queen? (★★★★ | A)

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—Film Credits—

Directed by David Gordon Green

Written by Jeff Fradley, Danny McBride & David Gordon Green

Based on Characters by John Carpenter & Debra Hill

Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, Will Patton & Virginia Gardner

Rating | Length | Genre: R | 1h 46min | Horror, Thriller

Distributed by Universal Pictures