Halloween series

[LinkandSheik]

This past week I finally got around to watching the Halloween sequels. Until now I'd only seen the first one. This might be an unpopular opinion, but I actually think H20 might be the best. I mean, the ending with Lorie deciding to face of with Myers, and then steal his body to make sure he was dead, would have been an amazing way to finish off the series if Ressurection hadn't happened. Not that that one wasn't fun in it's own way.

[marsattacks666]

This past week I finally got around to watching the Halloween sequels. Until now I'd only seen the first one. This might be an unpopular opinion, but I actually think H20 might be the best. I mean, the ending with Lorie deciding to face of with Myers, and then steal his body to make sure he was dead, would have been an amazing way to finish off the series if Ressurection hadn't happened. Not that that one wasn't fun in it's own way.

H20 is not that bad of a film, considering the other crap that has been produced of the Halloween franchise.

[LinkandSheik]

H20 is not that bad of a film, considering the other crap that has been produced of the Halloween franchise.

Are you talking about the remakes? I haven't gotten to those.  Do you think they're any good?

[zombiehorror]

Are you talking about the remakes? I haven't gotten to those.  Do you think they're any good?

I prefer Michael as a "boogieman" so I think Rob Zombie's take is horrible; the first isn't completely wothout merit if you skip to Michael breaking out of the institution.  Zombie's "shape" is a force of nature, brutal stuff.

[horrorhunter]

I prefer Michael as a "boogieman" so I think Rob Zombie's take is horrible; the first isn't completely wothout merit if you skip to Michael breaking out of the institution.  Zombie's "shape" is a force of nature, brutal stuff.

I'm not a fan of the Rob Zombie remakes. He removes the supernatural aspects which make The Shape special, and he runs the audience over with more aggravating foul-mouthed hillbilly rubbish. Dysfunctional hillbillies like the "Sawyers" from TCM are big fun, but Zombie's dysfunctional hillbillies are the kind of people you try to avoid in real life...and avoiding movies about them is a good idea as well.

[tylerh]

I love H2O -

The original is the best - Part 2 I enjoy.. It's fun that it is a direct continuation.

Part 3 is campy fun but people oversell it as a good movie now after years of it being hated.  Its FAR from a good movie, but its a very fun movie.

Parts 4-6 AKA the Thorne trilogy is a total mess in my opinion, and the Part 6 directors cut is just a different take on a mess.

H2O was great and a ton of fun!!!  Obviously it has some 90s horror grease on it but who cares!!!

The next on with Busta Rhymes is unwatchable.

Not a fan of the Zombie version at all. 

Looking forward to the new one this month!!!!

[Big Bad Wolf]

I'm the weirdo who really likes the RZ ones, but they're definitely their own thing. If you do decide to watch them, keep your expectations in check and try not to gauge them based on how well they represent the original series because, well...that's not something they were trying to do anyway.

For what it's worth I'm glad the new one was made with the idea in mind of returning to classic Myers, and definitely prefer it over the planned RZ-less sequel to his films they were considering for a few years there.

[zombiehorror]

If you do decide to watch them, keep your expectations in check and try not to gauge them based on how well they represent the original series because, well...that's not something they were trying to do anyway.

Then why call it Halloween?  Why have Michael Myers in it?  Rob could have just made up another one of his "own" horror character and set the events on Halloween and filled it with nods to the original series like he did with his other horror homage movies.  You could easily do a different take on Halloween and still keep the supernatural/mystery element to it instead of simply turning the character into a paint-by-numbers serial killer; it totally defeats the "boogeyman" concept that made the Shape an icon.  Why did Mike start killing in the original?  We'll never know.  Even if you add in part II there is still the question of why he was so hellbent on killing his sister but it didn't need explanation.  Was he the boogeyman?  As a matter of fact, he was.  In Rob's version he is just some offshoot of the Firefly clan, apparently destined to be a serial killer.  I haven't revisited this one in awhile but have several times over the years after seeing it in the theater and I just don't get what he was going for; after House of 1000 Corpses and Devil's Rejects, RZ's Halloween just came off as a one note filmmaker, although Lords of Salem redeemed him but the fan backed 31 brought him right back to the same old, same old.

[Big Bad Wolf]

Then why call it Halloween?  Why have Michael Myers in it?  Rob could have just made up another one of his "own" horror character and set the events on Halloween and filled it with nods to the original series like he did with his other horror homage movies.  You could easily do a different take on Halloween and still keep the supernatural/mystery element to it instead of simply turning the character into a paint-by-numbers serial killer; it totally defeats the "boogeyman" concept that made the Shape an icon.  Why did Mike start killing in the original?  We'll never know.  Even if you add in part II there is still the question of why he was so hellbent on killing his sister but it didn't need explanation.  Was he the boogeyman?  As a matter of fact, he was.  In Rob's version he is just some offshoot of the Firefly clan, apparently destined to be a serial killer.  I haven't revisited this one in awhile but have several times over the years after seeing it in the theater and I just don't get what he was going for; after House of 1000 Corpses and Devil's Rejects, RZ's Halloween just came off as a one note filmmaker, although Lords of Salem redeemed him but the fan backed 31 brought him right back to the same old, same old.

Seemed obvious to me he was using the framework of a classic slasher franchise to have a dialogue about the way popular media exploits serial killers and the tragedies they leave in their wake for profit, deconstructing the "boogeyman" concept to criticize the way we mythologize really disturbed human beings. And to do so he had to give Michael an origin and a motive beyond "purely and simply evil", in this case inability to cope with the traumas of neglect and abandonment (and perhaps even that which he merely perceives as abandonment given his father's dead before the first film even begins) and an inability to control his temper.

Of course, the first film is largely about the latter (deconstructing the boogeyman) while the second is largely about the former (criticizing the way popular media exploits tragic events) but they fit together well enough.

But I do understand that these films aren't for everyone, and you don't have to agree with me at the end of the day. I just think it's only fair to keep in mind that the intent of his films isn't to clone the others.

If you're not going to do anything different, why remake it? Why not make another sequel? If the idea is "same as before, but more of it" then...sequel makes more sense, right? Which is what the new one is doing, and I'm glad for it. Especially since it's not JUST that. In fact it would seem to me that the new one may wind up being a far more effective vessel to depict some of the ideas Rob was going for, namely the traumatic effect such an event would have on a survivor and the way popular media often tries to turn tragedy into product. That the new film could be more successful at these things while being truer to Carpenter's original vision is an irony that's not lost on me, I can assure you of that.

[zombiehorror]

If you're not going to do anything different, why remake it? Why not make another sequel? If the idea is "same as before, but more of it" then...sequel makes more sense, right?

As I said before, you could easily keep the "boogeyman" concept without pulling a Psycho '98'.

[the_horror_man]

If I had to rank the Halloweens I would say..

Halloween - Can't beat the original

Part 2 - Great sequel

Part 6 - One of my favorites in the series. Partly because of the strong felling of Halloween (the holiday) throughout the film. Also, Donald Pleasence's last performance. I thought the mask was awesome as well. I think a lot of die hard Halloween fans also love part 6.

It is a tie between Part 4 and Rob Zombie's Halloween.
Part 4 - I will admit, it could have been better, but it was great to see Myers return. Also, the opening sequence was brilliantly shot and gave you the immediate feel of Halloween.

Rob Zombie's Halloween - I really liked this film. Particularly the first half. I thought the scenes showing the psychiatric sessions were brilliantly done. I think I like the film more each time I see it.

Part 5 - I liked the Halloween (the Holiday) feel of the film. Also, the cliff hanger ending and wondering who was the man in the black coat and hat.

H2O - Out of all the Halloweens that I watch repeatedly, H2O is probably my least favorite. To me, it did not feel like a Halloween film in either the Holiday or the series.


I left out part 3 because even though I like it, I think Halloween 3 was a stand alone film. A really good horror/Sci Fi flick.

I left out part 8 because with the exception of the first 10 minutes or so, it was horrible.

Lastly, I left out Rob Zombie's Halloween 2 because it was terrible. I was disappointed because I really enjoyed Zombie's Halloween.

thm

[Anton Phibes]

This past week I finally got around to watching the Halloween sequels. Until now I'd only seen the first one. This might be an unpopular opinion, but I actually think H20 might be the best. I mean, the ending with Lorie deciding to face of with Myers, and then steal his body to make sure he was dead, would have been an amazing way to finish off the series if Ressurection hadn't happened. Not that that one wasn't fun in it's own way.

You're not alone. H20 is a good sequel. It got a bad rap, and Resurrection shouldn't have happened. Neither should the infestation of Rob Zombe.

[Big Bad Wolf]

So has anyone else here seen the new one? I've already seen it twice and I might even wind up seeing it a third time. I absolutely love it.

[the_horror_man]

So has anyone else here seen the new one? I've already seen it twice and I might even wind up seeing it a third time. I absolutely love it.

I saw it and liked it. However, I thought it would be a little better. Sometimes the more I see a film, the more I like it. If I saw the new Hallowoeen another time or 2, I might love it.

It was definitely worth watching, especially if you are a Halloween franchise fan.

thm

[zombiehorror]

So has anyone else here seen the new one? I've already seen it twice and I might even wind up seeing it a third time. I absolutely love it.

I didn't find it to be any superior than Halloween 4-Resurrection; just another sequel with some decent moments.