David Gordon Green’s ‘Halloween’ brings dignity to an increasingly disappointing franchise.

Coming in 40 years later, Green’s new Halloween movie ignores every single sequel that came after John Carpenter’s 1978 cult classic. This game-changing move serves as a course correction to deliver a well-made and thrilling sequel that brings some form of closure to the franchise.

The film talks about the trauma of Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) who this time around is the last line of defense against the masked serial killer Michael Myers (Nick Castle). Laurie’s experience on the first Halloween film has fully consumed her for the past four decades, making her obsessively security conscious and beyond paranoid that profoundly affects her relationships with both her daughter Karen (Judy Greer) and granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak). When Michael escaped after imprisoned for 40 years he headed home to Haddonfield on the night before Halloween. On his way to Haddonfield he managed to scare and kill victims that stand in his way – this includes Allyson Strode and some of her teenage friends, some cops, and a few other locals. Michael didn’t know that Laurie turns out to be prepared for the worst. Until he get to face Laurie and her family in a cabin were a huge satisfying and incredible tense showdown happen.

The film honors the classic forebear while developing an identity of its own. This new Halloween movie was clearly made not just by the people who adore the original film but also the modern type of horror films, with enough loving wit and self-awareness to acknowledge the film’s genre. The visuals and sound maintain the exact blend of bluntness that makes this film terrifying. The sound design is heavy, chunky, and harsh, complemented by a musical score that absolutely shreds, combining the classic Halloween theme with newer, darker material

Green creates a fresh take on the iconic slasher film, nodding to the original but used an entire modern horror toolbox. Green makes a number of explicit references to Carpenter’s film with dialogue and even shots but relies heavily on subverting expectations and the long-awaited showdown between Michael and Laurie, from which the film became more interesting. Green cleverly finds a way to relate it to the original only with the roles reversed where Laurie is no longer the prey – forming in some sort of closure to Michael. The Laurie and Michael segments are worth celebrating in the film. It succeeds at giving Laurie her due while making Michael scary again.

To cut to the chase, the film is particularly made to revive its silent killer and its closure to Laurie Strode. Audiences who longs for the same taste for the original film would actually be disappointed but there’s a lot to see in the film which has more to offer for after those disappointing sequels. Because after all, it would be a blast seeing Michael Myers back.

3.5 out of 5 stars

Directed by David Gordon Green. Starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, Nick Castle, Virginia Gardner, and Will Patton. 109 minutes