Is Rob Zombie’s Halloween Remake Better Than You Remember?
John Carpenters’ Halloween is a horror classic revered by the masses: it’s a coherent narrative with solid acting and no superfluous scares or gore. When Rob Zombie announced that he was remaking the horror masterpiece, fans reacted quickly: some loved the idea; others are completely against it. The film was released in the summer of 2007, and while it received a largely negative reaction, it also delivered a completely different take on Carpenter’s original concept. So, is Rob Zombie’s Halloween remake better than you remember? Yes it was.
The mask
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One of the complaints Halloween fans have about the franchise is its lack of attention to Michael’s iconic mask in later sequels. In Halloween 4, Halloween 5, Halloween H20, and Halloween Resurrection, masks continued to be reduced to the cartoon side. This product is not acceptable for Halloween fans; there is a reason why Michael Myers is often called ‘The Shape’, because most of the horror for the killer is not knowing what he looks like behind the mask, and the mask itself has to maintain its strange nature. The Halloween remake does what all previous sequels failed to do; he redesigns the Michael Myers mask in a truly terrifying way. Disheveled, blank-eyed and expressionless, he complements Tyler Mane’s 6’9 stature to truly create a menace for Michael Myers.
Sentimentality
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One of the more controversial aspects of Rob Zombie’s Halloween is the emotional depth given to Michael Myers: he has a full range of emotions instead of a hollow killing machine. From anger, from love to madness, this Michael Myers is driven by emotions to the point that it sustains his transition from troubled child to killer. When Michael escapes from Smith’s Grove Sanitarium, his only goal is to find his younger sister, Angel (better known as Laurie Strode). But Michael doesn’t want to find her to end her life or carry out a curse on the family; Michael just wants to find Laurie because he loves her. Unfortunately for the citizens of Haddonfield, this means that Michael will stop at anything to get to Laurie, including killing anyone in his path.
The most brutal Michael Myers
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Rob Zombie movies are known for their vomit; this has led to the success of filmmakers, and Halloween is no exception. This incarnation of Michael Myers is the deadliest: he attacks with absolute brutality. From the bully at school, his father and his own sister, Judith, Michael breaks down in the bloodiest way. Perhaps the worst attack is on Laurie’s adoptive parents and her best friends, Lynda and Annie. Laurie walking up to a bloodied Annie begging Laurie to save herself was truly heartbreaking to watch.
Malcolm McDowell’s performance
Dimensional movies
Horror movies are often criticized for their actors being a bit over-the-top or wooden, but Rob Zombie’s Halloween boasts a superb cast of actors. Scout Taylor-Compton as Laurie Strode is wonderful, Brad Dourif adds emotional depth to Sheriff Brackett creating a compelling character set against a one-dimensional, clichéd cop; and Danielle Harris agreed to watch Annie Brackett, due to her previous performance as Jamie Lloyd. Then there is the powerhouse known as Malcolm McDowell. Known for such classics as A Clockwork Orange, O Lucky Man!, The Artist and the controversial Caligula, the veteran comedian has created a layered version of Doctor Sam Loomis that reimagines the original character. This Sam Loomis actually sees Michael as a person and tries to reason with him relentlessly. Malcolm McDowell sells his performance not only as a doctor trying to save a small town from impending doom, but as a man who puts his life on the line to save a man he has devoted a good portion of his life to. life.
The relationship between Michael and Loomis
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
As mentioned above, the relationship between Michael Myers and Sam Loomis is completely different in the Zombie Halloween remake. Malcolm McDowell’s Sam Loomis has a strong relationship with Michael and spends years of his life caring for him despite Michael’s insanities and later catatonia. This weighs heavily on Loomis, who interrupts his life to take care of Michael’s case. In retrospect, Michael has never had a working relationship with a man, making Loomis the closest thing to a fatherly relationship. It highlights one of Zombie’s main themes in the film: family. Michael’s actions are motivated by his protection of the family; he killed his mother’s boyfriend in revenge for abusing her; he kills anyone in his way to get to Laurie and ultimately doesn’t kill Loomis because of the role he plays in Michael’s life. Rob Zombie’s Halloween is a social commentary on the effect dysfunctional families have on their most innocent members, and how these individuals live their lives looking to fill roles that are not in any way possible.
