Halloween, generally a favorite holiday amongst children as they dress up in costume and trick or treat, is also known for ghosts, goblins, and witches. In the entertainment industry, it means it's time for lots of scary movies with blood, gore, jump scares, etc. For Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis; Haunted Mansion) it is a reminder of the past and of her brother Michael, who murdered their older sister when Laurie was only two years old and then tried killing her fifteen years later. As the Halloween franchise turns 45 years old and the seventh film in the series, Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later celebrates its twenty-fifth anniversary, Paramount Pictures has issued a 4K Steel book for purchase.
It's been twenty years since Michael Myers tried to kill Laurie. Since then she has been living under an assumed name and working as the headmistress at a private school in California with her seventeen-year-old son John (Josh Hartnett; Oppenheimer). Always fearful of Michael's return, Laurie is an overprotective mother who causes friction between her and her son. On Halloween night, as the high school campus is practically empty, Laurie's fears become reality as Michael is not only still alive, but he has found her and resumes his attempt to end her life.
Curtis, who assumed this would be the final Halloween film, returned as Laurie after having starred in numerous movies including Trading Places and True Lies. Her experience made her a more well-respected actress who had obviously matured into this character. Thankfully, director Steve Miner (Friday the 13th Part 2) decided to have Curtis return to reprise her role as Laurie as the film wouldn't have been the same without her. Supporting cast members including Hartnett, Michelle Williams (The Greatest Showman), Adam Arkin (Sons of Anarchy) and Curtis' real-life mother, Janet Leigh (Psycho) are good and don't detract from Curtis' performance.
The 2160p video quality is terrific compared to the previously released Blu-ray and worth the money if you are a fan of the franchise. The Dolby Vision offers clean lines, less graininess, and highlighted details while still maintaining a more muted color palette. A combination of Michael's mask with his dark and cold eyes behind it and plenty of blood throughout the film showcases the production values as well as a very successful transfer.
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 also benefits from an upgrade. The dialogue and sound effects make use of the full surround system with various sounds coming at the viewer from various speakers. The iconic soundtrack music comes through as layers upon layers of instruments play the familiar theme.
The extras, unfortunately, only offer previously released material including Audio Commentary featuring Steve Miner, and Jamie Lee Curtis, moderated by Sean Clark, Blood is Thicker than Water: The Making of Halloween: H20, Scenes with John Ottman's Original Score, Vintage Interviews and Behind-the-Scenes Footage, Still Gallery, TV Spot, and Theatrical Trailer. While the extras are worth watching, it is sad they didn't offer anything new besides a beautiful steel book.
One of the nice things about the Halloween movie franchise is that, unlike so many other horror films, this one actually has a backstory and a plot. It wants to tell a narrative instead of simply watching blood gushing from bodies, screaming characters running for their lives and evil creatures popping on screen causing the audience to scream and jump out of their seats.
Sadly, even though Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later was meant to be the final film, a "reboot" was done negating practically everything that happened in H20 and bringing Michael back to life for another round of movies.
Even though the movie wasn't "the end", fans and collectors will want to grab this 4K steel book to add to their home entertainment collection.
Grade: B
