SHOCKtober! Halloween (2007)
Let me begin by saying that the original Halloween by John Carpenter is my all-time favorite slasher movie. Hell, it’s my all-time favorite horror movie, period. As such, based on the grumbling of critics and internet nerds worldwide, you’d think I hate this movie, right?
Au contraire!
I actually enjoyed Zombie’s take on the origin of Michael Myers. I dug the fact that he tried to explore the reasons behind Michael’s murderous ways, throwing in a backstory involving school bullying, abusive parents, and exposure to some pretty disturbing shit. He winds up committing his first murder, getting a taste for blood, and it all goes downhill from there. The events of the first scene of the original don’t happen until about 30-45 minutes into Zombie’s version. After that he’s quickly whisked off to the booby-hatch and shit slides even further downhill. Dr. Loomis is played by Malcom MacDowell and comes off more as an opportunist than a caring doctor. Years pass, Michael breaks out, and…well…you know the rest of the story.
Again, this movie got a lot of grief from die-hard fans of the original and the nerdarati, but I found it to be an interesting take; not that the series actually needed a “reboot”. I have yet to see the sequel, but if you’re not all emotionally invested in the original and don’t participate in internet petitions every time a beloved movie gets reimagined, you may enjoy Zombie’s version of Halloween.
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Tags: halloween, horror, Rob Zombie, shocktober, slasher
October 22nd, 2009 at 9:47 am
The end of the original Halloween = scary as shit!
The end of Zombie’s Halloween = Disturbing as hell!
October 22nd, 2009 at 11:00 pm
I wouldn’t call myself a horror film aficionado, but I did grow up as a fan of Michael, Jason, and Freddy. I hadn’t seen the original in a LONG time when I saw Zombie’s 2007 version in the theater, and I didn’t make myself rewatch the original before seeing it either. Because I’m not a member of the horror nerdarati, I had no plans of putting the remake under the microscope. Like you, I also enjoyed Zombie’s take on the classic. It was totally fucked up and disturbing, in a good way. I mean c’mon. It’s a horror movie. It’s supposed to be like that. I haven’t seen Zombie’s part 2 remake yet, but I plan to.