By Tim Petrone

Director: Rob Zombie

Cast: Malcolm McDowell, Brad Dourif, Tyler Mane, Daeg Faerch, Sheri Moon and Sid Haig.

Original Release Date: 2007

Scores: Technical: 70, Story: 80, Acting: 70, Overall Score: 73

When I first saw a trailer for the new Halloween, I was pretty excited…to say the least! Halloween is one of the greatest horror film franchises ever, and Rob Zombie has an amazing imagination and an unparallelled passion for the genre, so I was expecting to see something magnificent! The film begins with a look at the Myers family in the days leading up to the brutal murder of Michael’s sister, her boyfriend and Michael’s step-father. The day of the actual attack was focused on greatly, as was Michael’s life after the murders. This took up approximately the first 45 minutes of the movie, then the rest was almost a carbon copy of the original Halloween starring Jamie Lee Curtis. I was a bit disappointed. I had expected to see a prequel, or at least a very creative remake…what I got was an updated version of a film I’ve seen a thousand times. The actress who plays the role of Laurie Strode, Michael’s youngest sister, is fairly unknown and not nearly as “gifted” as Jamie Lee Curtis. Overall, the film’s opening was good…not great…but good. The rest of the film was good as well, with modern-day special effects and gore worthy of a Rob Zombie film, but it could’ve been better in my opinion. On a 4-star scale, I’d have to give it 3 stars. Hardcore Halloween fans may not love it…those not familiar with the original will most-likely find it entertaining and pretty enjoyable to watch.