Stuck in a Moment: Halloween (2018)

“Halloween” (2018)
Starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Andi Matichak, James Jude Courtney
Directed by David Gordon Green
Written by Jeff Fradley, Danny McBride and David Gordon Green
Rated R for horror violence and bloody images, language, brief drug use and nudity

The, ah, intimate scene in“Eternals” wasn't the first time I'd focused too much on one particular scene or aspect of a movie, out of proportion to its importance in the film. And, knowing myself, it won't be the last.

But another one happened shortly before I watched “Eternals,” which gave me the idea to make this a series.

After finally watching the original “Halloween” last month, I had two different people tell me to skip the first batch of sequels, for now at least, and jump straight to the 2018 film that brought back Curtis as Laurie Strode (and briefly Nick Castle as the Shape, aka Michael Myers, though Courtney does most of the work).

This film discards the notion that Laurie is Michael's sister, which never appeared in the original film, despite me having heard of that plot twist at some point and expecting it. It also cuts out all the other sequels and versions. That kind of thing bothered me when “Superman Returns” allegedly ignored parts 3 and 4 (my favorites) of the Christopher Reeve series, but I had no emotional attachment to these.

The most troubling aspect to me was that it was a continuation but had the same title as the original (did they not consider “Halloween: Answer the Call?”). Then there were the podcasters who called themselves “journalists” but clearly came from the William Atherton in Die Hard School of Journalism.

Pictured: Not journalism.

But I was largely on board until Sheriff Barker (Omar Dorsey) learns Michael Myers has escaped, is near and likely on his way back to Haddonfield, Illinois, on Halloween, when he's killed multiple people before... and goes, “Hey, what are we going to do? Cancel Halloween?”

Yes. Yes, that's exactly what you should do.

I know bad decision-making is the hallmark of horror movies. But this is not a heat-of-the-moment choice, nor is it one involving a lot of ambiguity. Sure, the mayor in “Jaws” messed up, but he at least thought the shark was taken care of and he had the entire town's economy to consider. He still ignored the advice of a knowledgeable authority and made the wrong decision, but there was at least an argument or two to be made in his favor.

The sheriff in new “Halloween” stands by his decision after the bodies of four people who have obviously been brutally killed are found at a gas station.

In the first “Halloween,” the sheriff knows something may be going on and Dr. Loomis is sure of it, but at that point, all they knew was that Michael killed his sister 15 years earlier.

Sorry, ma'am. But what were we supposed to do? Call off trick or treat?

In the 2018 version, multiple people die because the sheriff did nothing but have Will Patton keep an eye out. Among them was Vicky (Virginia Gardner), Laurie's daughter's friend and a babysitter who – although she smoked pot and fooled around with her boyfriend on the job and allowed her young charge to swear like a sailor – still showed genuine affection for and laid down her life to protect the boy. She was a better character than what I often associate with the promiscuous teens who tend to die in slasher movies. And she deserved better than what she got.

Vicky's portrayal is also one of the things that made me like this movie better than other horror movies. But I couldn't help getting hung up on that one detail.