Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998)

Brotherly love just went down another notch. It's 20 years since Michael Myers Haddonfield, and in particular Laurie Srode, his sister. Laurie faked her death and is now a divorced mom with a teenage son. Michael is on his way to finish the job he couldn't finish two decades ago. A true and honest Halloween/Michael Myers film this one, there's the distinct feeling that the people behind the series wanted to show that they remember what made the series popular in the first place. It's still the stalk and slash formula of course, but Jamie Lee Curtis returns and her character is nicely written. She's obviously still haunted by events passed and needs a stiff few drinks from time to time to keep the edge off. Yet she's in charge of a private school and is a stern but adoring mother to her son (Josh Hartnett). And she has a boyfriend (Adam Arkin) who cares for her. The first half of film sets up Laurie's new world, while we jump back and forth observing Michael on his journey to final destination. Once the second half revs up, it's the scare time as Laurie's son and his friends come under great peril, which we know will lead to a final confrontation with Laurie. The kills strike hard, the suspense is ramped up, and then it's a frenetic action based finale capped off by a coup de grace of some distinction. All in all it's just a very good and proper Halloween/Myers movie. It didn't reinvent anything, it just turned the wheel full circle and arrived at a fitting closure. 7/10