Halloween H20 was released twenty years after the original movie and saw the first of what has become multiple returns to the franchise for Jamie Lee Curtis reprising her role as Laurie Strode. It is revealed that she faked her death (really the only tie-in to Halloween 4-6, otherwise it ignored the prior sequels aside from Halloween II) and is now working as the headmistress at an elite private school. She has a son played by Josh Hartnett who chafes under her strict rules meant to keep him safe from the ever-present threat of Michael Myers finding them and finishing what he started. Of course, Michael manages to track her down and the usual terror ensues.
The movie is good overall but does have some silly points (pretty much everything with LL Cool J). I like that they changed the character of Laurie from being the scared weakling to being willing to stand up to Michael. This time, when she drops a weapon she picks up another one and does not assume he is dead. It sports a very recognizable cast (especially back in 1998) including Adam Arkin, Michelle Williams, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe, and Joseph Gordon Levitt. It also had a pretty nice nod to the late Donald Pleasance and had a cameo by Nancy Stephens reprising her role as Marion Chambers, the nurse from the first two movies. There was also a fun cameo by Janet Leigh, who was of course Jamie Lee Curtis' mother and the original scream queen from the movie Psycho.
For those who get the original DVD version, the extras a pretty minimal. There is a short behind-the-scenes feature, a music video, and a trivia game. The extras released with the complete Blu-Ray set are much better and more extensive.
Of course, there have been other sequels after this one, including basically resetting the franchise with Curtis returning as a slightly different version of Laurie. Had this actually been the end of the Halloween franchise, as I think a lot of people would have liked, it would have been the perfect conclusion to the story. But, now, you really just have to look at it as one of the sequels and enjoy it (or not) for the story it tells. I think the original movie is one of the best, if not the best, horror movies ever, and while this is not as good as that, it is still very good and one of the best sequels that have been made. Definitely worth watching.
The movie is good overall but does have some silly points (pretty much everything with LL Cool J). I like that they changed the character of Laurie from being the scared weakling to being willing to stand up to Michael. This time, when she drops a weapon she picks up another one and does not assume he is dead. It sports a very recognizable cast (especially back in 1998) including Adam Arkin, Michelle Williams, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe, and Joseph Gordon Levitt. It also had a pretty nice nod to the late Donald Pleasance and had a cameo by Nancy Stephens reprising her role as Marion Chambers, the nurse from the first two movies. There was also a fun cameo by Janet Leigh, who was of course Jamie Lee Curtis' mother and the original scream queen from the movie Psycho.
For those who get the original DVD version, the extras a pretty minimal. There is a short behind-the-scenes feature, a music video, and a trivia game. The extras released with the complete Blu-Ray set are much better and more extensive.
Of course, there have been other sequels after this one, including basically resetting the franchise with Curtis returning as a slightly different version of Laurie. Had this actually been the end of the Halloween franchise, as I think a lot of people would have liked, it would have been the perfect conclusion to the story. But, now, you really just have to look at it as one of the sequels and enjoy it (or not) for the story it tells. I think the original movie is one of the best, if not the best, horror movies ever, and while this is not as good as that, it is still very good and one of the best sequels that have been made. Definitely worth watching.
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