As the final Halloween movie, Halloween ends, coming to both movie theaters and Peacock (again!), it was vital to rewatch the previous movies. I don’t know what it was, but last year I was just disappointed by Halloween Kills. Watching it again, the movie felt much better to me, as there were also many details I missed. By the way, even though H20 (Halloween: 20 years later) isn’t canon anymore, I would recommend watching it, as it has a similar dynamic with Laurie Strode’s trauma and fear of Michael, as well as her having a family. Also remember Jamie Lee Curtis vowed she would never to another Halloween movie… Yet here we are. Spoilers below, of course.
I don’t know how much of a difference it made, but I went with the extended cut for Halloween Kills. I really never noticed just how much people Michael Myers kills in this movie, racking up a body count like John Wick. Quite different from most slasher films, including Halloween, is Michael’s attention to detail in how he kills people, as well as after the fact, as he reposition their bodies, as if he’s an artistic serial killer. For example, pay attention to the bodies of Little John and Big John before being discovered by Allyson and Cameron. The way they are laying on each other is a reversed reconstruction of the picture that’s above them! Seems like Michael’s got some art lessons in prison.
One of the most important chapters in Halloween Kills is its 1978 flashback, the same year the original Halloween movie takes place. None of it is original footage, but by golly, it sure looks like it’s unused footage. The movie crew reconstructed the entire set to be as original as possible, including Michael’s mask. The flashback reveals how Sheriff Hawkins ‘saved’ Michael, preventing Dr. Loomis from shooting Michael (honestly, would Michael have died?). The past also reveals how despite Michael is driven to kill, he’s also driven to stand by the window in the Myers house, as if looking out (Hawkins notes that Michael is possibly looking into his own reflection in the window). Freaky.
I didn’t care for it much then, but after realizing how much of a crap year 2021 was, and the chaos that booted off 2022 (The Capitol Riots), Halloween Kills put quite an emphasis on mob mentality. The traumatized town that is Haddonfield sees that its own residents become monsters in the ill advised hunt against Michael. Mobs are grossly irrational and very prone to violence. I mean, they caused the suicide of a random man they believed to be Michael Myers… without his mask. Because Michael goes around without his mask (he doesn’t), and even if he did, no one has ever seen his face, so they can’t possibly recognize him.
Somehow, I completely missed out on the fact that Laurie Strode’s daughter, Karen, got slashed to death by Michael just right before the movie ends. The extended cut has a slightly different ending, with Laurie Strode attempting to call her daughter, only to be greeted by Michael’s killer breathing. Building up right to the next and final movie, Laurie says she’s coming for Michael.