After watching the complete theatrical version of Rob Zombie’s
Halloween and the Kentucky Theater, I would like to do a comparison between
characters in this version and John Carpenter’s original version. Let me start
by saying, I though Rob Zombie’s new version had a decent start, but I soon
changed my mind while sitting in the theater. The first aspect of the film to
really bother was when Zombie was illustrating how the young Michael Meyers was
twisted at young age due to an abusive family and bullies at school. I did not
like this because it took the supernatural mystery out of the character; it
made him very human, and easy to sympathize with. That is part of what made
John Carpenter’s very original, because you knew nothing about Michael Meyers
other than the way he killed his sister as a kid, and has been in a mental institution
ever since.
Another way that Rob Zombie’s remake fails
is his adaption of the Laurie Strode character. In the original Laurie was a
leader, she way easy to identify with, and easy to care for. In the new version
I could not identify with the portrayal of Laurie. She was just an annoying
school girl. Sure, she wasn’t sexually active and didn’t drink like the
original Laurie Strode, but that wasn’t enough to feel for her character. She
was very obnoxious and immature, even for a high school girl. Carpenter’s
Laurie was very mature and calm, and easy to believe in. Sadly, Rob Zombie
ruined the ending of this film by making a terrible mistake in the horror
drama. He lost my interest in the main character. By the end of the movie I
could care less whether Laurie lived or died, preferably the latter if it got
her of screen quicker. This is a classic mistake in the slasher film genre. It
is sad that Rob Zombie did not approach these characters in a different way,
the film might have been more enjoyable, even with a standard horror movie
plot.
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