by Andrew Crotts

Created on: May 04, 2008

The original Halloween, which was released in 1978, remains my favorite movie of all time to this day. When I heard about the remake for the movie, I was very skeptical as to it's likely success, but, after viewing it, the remake indeed has its merits and its own unique qualities. John Carpenter's Halloween and Rob Zombie's Halloween have very little in common other than the names and some actions of the characters. Both movies start with a child Michael Myers leading up to his vicious first act of murder. But, the origin of the character varies greatly. Carpenter's Michael is an average, middle class child living in a nice home with a good family who for no apparent reason became this evil, unstoppable force with the mechanism behind it being left unexplained as a more supernatural element. Zombie's Halloween on the other hand, takes a more human look at the origin of Michael. In his version, Michael is the unfortunate child of a poor, abusive situation with his exotic dancer mother, her drunk and abusive boyfriend, and promiscuous sister that treats him horribly. Michael in this version is reduced to a mere psychopath created by environmental factors. The Michael of Carpenter's Halloween is a much more enigmatic figure as he does not speak and barely moves around at all. Zombie's Michael has quite a few lines in the movie and is fully capable of speedy action, further displaying the more human and natural element. Both of these versions of the character are drastically different yet both hold attention. I think that they both show us a character that represents fear of both the known and the unknown. We don't know the cause of the original Michael's madness, but we know exactly what brought out the remade Michael's rage and both of these are equally terrifying. Rob Zombie definitely brought the franchise back to a dark place where viewers could find a reason to see Michael Myers as evil incarnate. Another example of the vast, yet intriguing difference is the character, Dr. Sam Loomis. The original Loomis was fully determined to watch over Michael and ensure that he would never be free to attack others to the point Michael became his sole life's obsession. The remake's Loomis tries to reach Michael, but when it becomes a failure, gives up and leaves Michael to his own devices. Both Loomis characters are quick to respond to Michael's escape showing that Loomis will always be the major obstacle to Michael's rampage. The other main difference of the movie is Michael's relationship with Laurie Strode. In the original, he was simply trying to slay her and her friends on Halloween night with no mercy. The sequel to the original revealed that Laurie was his little sister and that was his motivation for wanting her dead, though the exact force driving Michael remained unclear. In the remake, we are shown right away that Laurie is his sister, but rather than simply trying to kill her, Michael appears to be trying to establish a connection when he meets her again as an adult, as though trying to take back the only family he had left. The attempt ultimately fails, however, and Michael's only recourse is to kill her. I think the remake, while not on the same level as the original, acts as a great contribution to the series through its own unique style. Both have viewers on the edge of their seats.

Learn more about this author, Andrew Crotts.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.