The spooky season is upon us. All October long staff members at Nerds and Beyond have been sharing with you their favorite movie recommendations to get you into the spirit of the season. Today we are returning to Haddonfield with Halloween (2018).
In 1978, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) survived a vicious attack from killer Michael Myers on Halloween night. It’s been 40 years and Myers (Nick Castle and James Jude Courtney) has been locked way in an institution since that night. However, during a bus transfer Myers manages to escape. Laurie now finds herself in a showdown with the masked murderer once again when he returns home to Haddonfield. But this time, Laurie is ready.
I was 10-years old the first time I watched the original Halloween from 1978. It was being played on TV on Halloween day. Even though I probably shouldn’t have I watched the film through its entirety. This would be my crash course in horror. Ultimately Halloween became my favorite horror movie franchise. Still to this day, I watch the Halloween marathon held on AMC every year. What I like most about the original Halloween is the simplicity of the story. The idea of a man escaping a mental hospital, stalking, and killing random victims is what I find scary. That is something that is closer to real life then some of the other horror movies that have been put out there. The film being a massive hit created a string of sequels to follow. Some better than others, but in my own opinion the integrity of that original story got lost along the way.
Naturally I was skeptical when I heard they were redoing Halloween. I expected to see a recreation of that original movie, but I was pleasantly surprised. It’s called a remake but it should actually be called a sequel. Halloween (2018) takes place 40 years after the events in the original Halloween and gives us a look at what life was like for Laurie ever since. The writers of this film brought the franchise back to its original roots and cleaned up the timeline. The audience was given the continuation to the Michael Myers and Laurie Strode storyline that the franchise deserved.
The attention to detail in this film can not be ignored, the use of callback references from the 1978 Halloween, Easter eggs throughout the movie, the use of the original score, and not only did they get Jamie Lee Curtis back in the role of Laurie Strode, they brought back Nick Castle, the original Michael Myers, to reprise his role as the masked murderer. Halloween (2018) is masterfully written and plays like a love letter to John Carpenter and Moustapha Akkad.
Halloween (2018) is not a family friendly film. The film is rated R and uses strong language, contains extreme blood and violence, and there is a lot of disturbing imagery throughout the movie. It is not recommended to watch with young childern.
The best part of the film is how easy it is to follow. If you are watching Halloween (2018) for the first time but have never seen Halloween or any of the movies that followed, you will be fine. The movie does an excellent job explaining the events that happened in the original leading up to this film.
I hope you enjoyed this recommendation! You can watch the official movie trailer for Halloween (2018) below.
