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Feature article
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'Halloween II' a Zombie massacre
By Lane Blevins
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“Halloween II”
1½ stars (out of 4)
STARRING: Sheri Moon Zombie, Scout Taylor-Compton and Malcom McDowell
DIRECTED BY: Rob Zombie
RATED: R for strong brutal bloody violence throughout, terror, disturbing graphic images, language and some crude sexual content and nudity
RUNNING TIME: 1 hour, 41 minutes |
In the past, Rob Zombie has been somewhat of a guilty pleasure of mine. I grew up playing an almost continuous game of “cat and mouse” with my parents — sneaking around their backs to watch horror films I had no business seeing.
So, I found Rob Zombie’s “House of 1,000 Corpses” to be a fun reminiscing of various ’80s B-movie fare, complete with old-fashioned practical makeup effects, infamous grind house superstar Sid Haig, and a devilish sense humor.
“The Devil’s Rejects” exhibited terrifying new lows in the “depraved family” theme originally explored in films like “Last House on the Left” and the “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” series.
However, Zombie’s reinvention of John Carpenter’s original “Halloween” was a hard pill to swallow. I didn’t hate it for its cardinal sin of giving a back story to the infamous villain Michael Myers, as most people did. But rather, I couldn’t wrap my head around the film’s extreme brutality and seemingly over-zealous attempt to push the envelope.
Little did I know that Zombie’s sequel, “Halloween II,” would come one day and not only push the envelope, but also rip it up and toss it in the fire.
This film is too much.
It’s too much of everything. It’s too much violence. And perhaps most importantly, it has too many mistakes.
“Halloween II” is an unfocused, disorienting 100 minute-long chase scene. Its weak performances and even weaker writing are encapsulated by a poorly edited jumble of tired old horror techniques.
I don’t mind directors riffing on old films and techniques, as long as it is deliberate and accurate. Zombie’s tendency in this film is to meander between the stylistic horror of Dario Argento and the sickout techniques of Tobe Hooper (as well as everything else in between).
For most of the film, however, Zombie crutches his film on unprecedented ultra-violence, the likes of which make “A Clockwork Orange” look like “The Little Mermaid.” This is funny considering Malcom McDowell is in both “Clockwork” and “Halloween II.”
Every frame is grimy. Most of my screening of the film was spent squirming in my chair while having an internal argument about whether anyone should ever watch such depravity.
Having said all of these wonderful things, there are times throughout the film where Zombie hits a decent stride. It is at these times when we see that he has an eye for horror and can shoot a chase sequence with finesse.
My final word is this — Zombie ultimately fails in his noble attempt to make a successful, new and unique product out of an old franchise.
I will leave you with some food for thought. “Halloween II” is so brutal I don’t think I could stomach it again. Zombie’s twisted id drags you into an incredibly lucid nightmare.
So, if the ultimate goal of a horror film is to terrify you, would that not make Zombie’s “Halloween II” a smash hit? My answer? Eh … maybe. But if I passed a friend on the street who wanted to know the skinny on “Halloween II,” I wouldn’t be comfortable giving the film any more than 1½ stars out of 4.
--------GoTriCities--------
Lane Blevins is an aspiring filmmaker. E-mail him at the-hour@hotmail.com.
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