Halloween 2 (2009) Review

"I know he's not gonna come back just because of some stupid holiday."



Cast:
Scout Taylor-Compton as Laurie Strode
Tyler Mane as Michael Myers
Brad Dourif as Sheriff Brackett
Danielle Harris as Annie Brackett

Directed by Rob Zombie

Review:
Ok, I've spent the last few years trying to defend Rob Zombie's filmmaking style. Many critics, casual or horror critics, constantly bash him for his 'unique' vision. I for one thought House of 1,000 Corpses, although far from perfect, was a watchable movie. Whereas I highly enjoyed it's far superior sequel, The Devil's Rejects, I was highly excited when I first heard Mr. Zombie would be remaking one of my favorite horror movies. After seeing his version, I accepted the fact that it was his own version and was very different from John Carpenter's original. I found myself liking it more and more I saw it. I thought it was an adequate remake. But, for it's sequel it's a whole other story.

The film starts where the first left off. Laurie (Scout Compton) is in a form of shock, still clutching the gun she shot Michael with, she slowly strolls through Haddonfield untill Sherif Brackett finds her and rushes her to a hospital. From here we're shown an excellent sequence where Michael stalks Laurie around said hospital, killing every nurse and orderly in sight. The scenes that follow are remarkable, Laurie limps down stairs and through a downpour to escape her psychotic brother. To me, these were the best moments of the film, but unfortunately it all turns out to be an elaborate dream sequence. It surely sets the tone of the film, but unfortunately it all goes downhill from here on out.


Back to reality. Laurie is a complete mess, now living with Annie (Danniel Harris) and her father. As Michael Myers' body vanished from custody, speculation is high that the big guy is preparing to stage a comeback. But Loomis is having none of that talk. As opposed to Donald Pleasence's version of Loomis, who never tired of the hunt, McDowell's Loomis has no thoughts of staying vigilant against a possible return of Michael Myers. He insists that Michael is dead ("D-E-A-D!") at any given opportunity. While McDowell's Loomis had been allowed a modicum of compassion and professional acumen in the first film, in this second appearance he's become a full-fledged asshole ? a vain jerk with no higher aspirations other than turning a quick buck. While it's certainly Zombie's right to take this character in this direction, I question the value of making Loomis so unlikable.


"Nightmares are chewing at my head again... they just seem to be getting worse."

What viewers may find most distracting are the hallucinations that both Laurie and Michael share throughout the film. Disturbing images of rotted pumpkin creatures and the re-appearing ghostly visions of Mrs. Myers (Sheri Moon), her white horse, and young Michael, who's now played by an annoying little skater looking kid because apparently Daeg Fearch had a growth spurt and seemed to tall to reprise his role. These hallucinations are pretty much pointless and just complicate the seemingly simple plot. At first, you understand Michael is psychotic, and Laurie is turning right down the same road, but constantly having them appear after every kill, and showing them in a Mrs. Voorhees fashion urging Michael to "Have some fun" gets tiring.

The only good thing H2 had going for it were Michael's brutal kills. They were of the most intense and goriest in Michael's long carer. He smashes faces in, stomps in heads, slashes limbs apart and decapitates everybody that gets in his way, who 90% of the movie where just randomly placed people who have nothing to do with the central characters, or the entire story for the matter. These brutal slayings are one of the only things you'd need to see this film for. Some would regard it as your average exploitation flick, but I find it to be just another violent slasher. And honestly, what else would you expect from it?