Halloween

The umpteenth DVD reissue of John Carpenter’s timeless Halloween, this one comes with a giant question mark attached to it. As in: why choose the most basic version to coincide with (aka cash in on) the Rob Zombie remake hitting theatres this summer when there are so many better versions (like the two-disc edition from 2003)? There are no new extras and the biggest hint that this is a cash grab is that the date on the inner sleeve actually reads 2000. Interesting. Regardless, it’s never disappointing to watch this innovative horror flick introduce the slasher genre to then unprepared audiences. For the one or two unfamiliar people, Halloween tells the story of the night deranged killer Michael Myers came home to relive the act of murdering his sister. In her first role, Jamie Lee Curtis plays Laurie Strode, the object of Michael’s ire, who learns the hard way that her long lost brother has come home. But on Michael’s tail is the equally unstoppable Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasance), who over four sequels tries to take the William Shatner-masked killer down. The intensity of Halloween’s night of terror is unmatched in the history of cinema. Others have tried but the film’s original threat of an "uber-killer on a mission” still holds up brilliantly against today’s aimless torture and brutality. According to featurette "Halloween Unmasked 2000,” the plan for the film was simple: set it in one night with the bogeyman terrorising a babysitter and make it Halloween, the creepiest night of the year. Done. From there they filled in the holes and did everything with only 300k. It’s still an inspiration and in this day and age of filmmaking trends, it’s no surprise that Zombie wanted to remake it. Plus: stills, trailer, TV spots.