Halloween (2007)

"These eyes will deceive you, they will destroy you. They will take from you, your innocence, your pride, and eventually your soul. These eyes do not see what you and I see. Behind these eyes one finds only blackness, the absence of light, these are of a psychopath."

- Doctor Sam Loomis

Halloween is an American slasher film directed by Rob Zombie and released theatrically in the United States on August 31st, 2007. It is a remake of the 1978 film Halloween by John Carpenter. Zombie's Halloween differs from the original in several ways. The film provides greater depth as to the persona and history of the Michael Myers character and seeks to develop him into a more sympathetic character. It showcases his troubled childhood growing up in a dysfunctional family as well as scenes involving his incarceration at the Smith's Grove Sanitarium. The second half of the film, which begins with Michael assuming the traditional rubber mask that fans are accustomed to seeing, follows the same thematic pattern as the original film, with Michael stalking through the streets of Haddonfield, culminating in a confrontation between his sister Laurie Strode and psychiatrist Doctor Sam Loomis.

Early Warning Signs
The Myers house is hardly the image of an idyllic family. It is early morning, and ten-year-old Michael Myers is upstairs playing with his pet mouse, Elvis. He is wearing a Halloween clown mask. Downstairs, his mother Deborah prepares breakfast while her crippled boyfriend Ronnie White hassles her. Ronnie is loud, ill-tempered and rude. He makes lewd comments about Deborah's daughter Judith and complains about the infant, "Boo", who begins crying at the sound of Ronnie's voice. Deborah sends Judith upstairs to collect Michael. Michael is in the bathroom, washing blood off of his pocket knife. He has just killed his pet mouse. He goes downstairs and tells his mother that Elvis died. Deborah consoles him and promises that she will buy Michael a new mouse after school. Ronnie tells Michael to remove his clown mask. When Michael refuses, Ronnie yanks it off his face. He threatens to hit Michael with his arm cast.

Michael goes off to school and has an unpleasant with a bully named Wesley Rhoades. Wesley makes fun of Michael's sister and accuses her of being a prostitute. He then teases Michael about his mother who works as an exotic dancer at the Rabbit in Red Lounge. The boys begin scrapping until Principal Jim Chambers enters the room. He gives them all detention. The principal telephones Mrs. Myers at her place of employment and has her come down for a parent/teacher conference. He is very concerned about Michael's behavior and has even called in a child psychologist named Doctor Sam Loomis for a special consultation. Chambers shows Deborah a bag with a dead cat that was found in Michael's school bag. Also in the bag was a stack of photographs of animals in various states of mutilation. Doctor Loomis mentions that only a deranged mind could take pleasure in such grotesque displays of violence.

After school, Michael follows Wesley Rhoades through the woods. He lies in wait and ambushes him, knocking him down with a heavy tree branch. Michael releases all of his pent up rage and rains blow upon blow down onto the older boy. Wesley is bleeding, crying and terrified. He begs Michael not to hurt him anymore. Michael raises his mask, stares at Wesley, then lowers it again and finishes him off.

That evening, Michael sits at home waiting for Judith to take him out trick 'r treating. His mother doesn't know about the business with Wesley Rhoades. Ronnie admonishes Michael for killing all of those animals and says "That is some deep-ass serious faggoty-ass shit". Deborah calls down for Judith to attend to Michael before she leaves again for work. Judith however has no intention of taking Michael out. Just as her mom leaves, Judith's boyfriend Steve Haley comes over. Judith then tells Michael that he'll have to take himself out trick 'r treating.

Michael goes out on his own, but comes back a short time later. He finds Ronnie White passed out on a chair in the living room. Michael secures him to the chair with duct tape then takes a butcher knife and uses it to slit Ronnie's throat. He then finds Steve Haley in the kitchen eating a sandwich. He takes an aluminum baseball bat and cracks him across the back of the head. Steve falls to the floor and Michael keeps on hitting him until he is dead.

He then walks upstairs where he finds his sister Judith resting in her room. He removes the clown mask and picks up a white, pasty Halloween mask that Steve had brought over. He runs his fingers across Judith's leg until she turns around. Judith demands to know what Michael is doing and begins slapping upside his head. Michael then stabs Judith in the stomach with the knife. Judith stumbles down the hall, but Michael follows her. He stabs her several more times in the back until she is dead.

Deborah eventually comes home from work and finds Michael sitting on the front sidewalk holding his baby sister "Boo" in his arms. Noticing the blood on his hands, Deborah begins to panic and asks him what has happened. Michael says nothing. The sound of police sirens can be heard coming closer.

The Eyes of a Psychopath
"Michael was created by a perfect alignment of interior and exterior factors gone violently wrong. A perfect storm if you will."

- Doctor Sam Loomis

Michael Myers is admitted to Smith's Grove Sanitarium under the care of Doctor Sam Loomis. Loomis asks him what he remembers of "that night", but Michael doesn't seem to recall anything relating to the murders. When Deborah comes to visit him, Michael asks if everyone at home is okay. She is unsure how to react to him, but says that everyone is fine.

Michael has another session with Loomis. He makes a new mask for himself and shows it to him. Deborah comes to visit him every week, but Michael appears to be getting worse. He has the occasional emotional break and Doctor Loomis consoles him. Michael wants to go home, but Loomis tells him that he can't. He continues to make masks for himself and wears them with increasing regularity. He say that he wears the masks to hide his ugliness. Deborah tries to get him to take the masks off once in a while, but Michael refuses.

At some point the following year, Deborah visits him one last time. He is more withdrawn than ever and refuses to speak. Hoping to cheer him up, she gives Michael an old photograph of himself and his baby sister "Boo", suggesting that Michael should display it in his room. Michael says nothing. After the visit, Doctor Loomis walks Deborah out to her car, leaving Michael in the care of Nurse Wynn. Only seconds later, Michael suffers a complete breakdown and viciously stabs Nurse Wynn to death with a fork. Orderlies come rushing into the room. Loomis and Deborah trail in behind them and Deborah finally sees her son for the monster that he truly is. The orderlies restrain him, but the pressure proves too much for Mrs. Myers. Back home, she tearfully watches old films of her family before taking her own life with a handgun.

Fifteen years later, Michael Myers is still locked up at Smith's Grove. He is a huge man whose room is decorated wall to wall with the macabre masks he has crafted over the years. A guard named Ismael Cruz escorts a younger guard, Noel Kluggs, to Michael's cell. Ismael has been taking care of Michael for almost twenty years and has formed something of a bond with him. Noel however, thinks that Myers is a freak and doesn't understand why Ismael panders to him. They bring Michael down to the visitor center where he is to have his final meeting with Doctor Loomis before his competency hearing. Loomis doesn't know what to say to Michael other than that he is sorry for failing to help him over all these years. Loomis muses that in a weird way, Michael has practically become his best friend.

A short time later, the security detail at Smith's Grove are tasked with transferring Michael Myers. They march him down the corridor but as they get closer to the main gate, Michael breaks free of his chains. He punches guard Zach Garrett in the face, killing him instantly. He then attacks another guard, Larry Redgrave, bashing his head repeatedly against the wall. Guard Patty Frost tries to withdraw her sidearm, but Michael tears out her esophagus and leaves her bleeding on the floor.

Ismael Cruz comes down the cell block and finds the bloodied bodies strewn all over the floor. He finds Michael and instantly knows what has happened. He tries to usher Mike back into his cell, but Michael grabs Ismael and shoves his face into a sink full of water. He dunks him several more times then throws him upon the floor whereupon he crushes his head with a large wall-mounted television set. With no one left to bar his path, Michael leaves the asylum.

When the staff learns about Michael's escape, they immediately telephone Doctor Loomis. Loomis says that he will be there as quickly as he can.

Meanwhile, Michael makes his way to a truck stop. He accosts a truck driver named Big Joe Grizzly inside the restroom. Barging into the stall, he bashes Grizzly several times against the wall before finally stabbing him to death. He takes his clothes and discards his hospital robes.

Return to Haddonfield
The following morning in the town of Haddonfield, seventeen-year-old Laurie Strode is spending some time with her parents. Her father, Mason Strode, reads the newspaper and learns that they are closing down Nichol's Hardware Store. Laurie makes a teasing gesture about how Mister Nichol likes to touch her, which greatly embarrasses her mother, Cynthia. Mason then asks Laurie to drop off some papers to the old Myers house on her way to school.

Meanwhile, Michael Myers has returned home. He goes to his old house and digs through the floorboards until he recovers a knife and the mask he was wearing the night he killed his sister, Judith.

Laurie walks to the house and is greeted by young Tommy Doyle. Laurie is Tommy's babysitter and has agreed to watch over him on Halloween night. Tommy asks Laurie a barrage of questions about various bits of folklore including the Boogey Man and the Mexican Wolf Man. Laurie drops off some papers on behalf of her father to the old Myers house. From inside, Michael watches Laurie and Tommy through the window.

Laurie goes to school and meets with her friends Annie Brackett and Lynda Van Der Klok. During study hall, Annie tells Laurie that she has to babysit a girl named Lindsey Wallace. Annie wants to ditch Lindsey so she can go out with her boyfriend Paul and asks Laurie if she can pull double-duty watching both Tommy and Lindsey. Laurie is an agreeable person and tells her that she will.

Back at Smith's Grove, Doctor Loomis arrives and speaks with Doctor Koplenson and Morgan Walker. He is furious over the news of Michael's escape and holds the senior staff accountable. He informs them in no uncertain words of who Michael Myers is and exactly where he is going.

Back in Haddonfield, school lets out and Laurie, Annie and Lynda walk home. Lynda tells Laurie about her recent altercation with her cheerleading coach, which resulted in Lynda making several lewd remarks. Annie jokingly tells Lynda that she's a slut. As they walk, they notice an ominous "shape" standing across the street. Laurie is bothered by the image, but Lynda and Annie make some bold remarks before it disappears back into the shadows. Annie's father, Sheriff Lee Brackett pulls up and offers Annie a ride home.

Sam Loomis eventually arrives in Haddonfield. He goes to the cemetery and speaks with a caretaker named Chester Chesterfield. They speak about the late Deborah Myers and Chesterfield recalls the entire event. As they walk, Chesterfield discovers that the headstone for Judith Myers' plot has been stolen. In its place is the crucified remains of an animal. Loomis solemnly remarks, "I think I know who's grave this is."

The Slaughter Resumes
"Be careful tonight. A lot of nutcases come out on Halloween."

- Mason Strode

That evening, Lynda Van Der Klok and her boyfriend Bob Simms drive out to the dilapidated Myers house. They have already consumed several cans of beer and plan on spending the evening making love in the upstairs bedroom. From the upstairs balcony, Michael Myers watches on. The two make love, but Bob gets a leg cramp just before he is about to climax and has to stop. Afterward, Lynda sends him back down to the van to get another beer. Bob rifles through a cooler of empties searching for an unopened can. Meanwhile, Lynda calls Laurie on the telephone. She is upset over what Annie said earlier when she called her a slut. Lynda puts it out of her mind though and the two conclude their conversation. Bob comes back into the house. He is wearing a bed sheet over his head with his eyeglasses on the outside. He plans on playing a Halloween prank on Lynda. Unfortunately for Bob, Michael Myers emerges and stabs him through the stomach with a knife, pinning him to the wall. He takes up Bob's rudimentary costume and goes upstairs. Lynda, mistaking Michael for Bob, makes some rude comments and demands her beer. Michael waits several seconds then tosses it to her. She gets up and turns around and Michael removes the bed sheet from his head. He grabs Lynda with one hand and strangles her to death.

Across town, Doctor Loomis stops at a gun store looking to buy a weapon. The proprietor, Derek Allen, shows him a wide selection of firearms, but Loomis settles on the .357 magnum.

At the Strode residence, Cynthia and Mason Strode pass candy out to trick 'r treaters. Laurie leaves the house when Annie comes to pick her up. Mason tells her to be careful, reminding her that a lot of "nutcases" come out on Halloween. After Laurie leaves, Michael Myers appears. He kills Mason Strode on the front porch with a quick slash across the throat. He drags the body inside and accosts Cynthia. He batters her across the room and then shows her a photograph of Laurie, indicating that he wants to know where Laurie is. Cynthia refuses to say anything, and Michael breaks her neck.

Meanwhile at the Doyle residence, Laurie entertains Tommy Doyle. Tommy asks Laurie about the Boogey Man, but Laurie tells him that there is no such thing. Annie calls and tells Laurie that she is bringing Lindsey Wallace over. Tommy is not thrilled to hear this news. Across the street, Annie breaks the news to Lindsey. Lindsey is not thrilled either and acts like a brat. Annie drops Lindsey off with Laurie and then goes off to meet her boyfriend.

Doctor Loomis meanwhile finds Sheriff Lee Brackett. He tells him about the threat of Michael Myers and details the incident at the cemetery. Brackett is not impressed with stories of missing headstones and tells Loomis to come back to see him the following day. Loomis says that by then it will be too late. They go back to the police station where Brackett reveals that he is familiar with Loomis' work as well as his book. He suspects that Loomis is trying to drum up the old Michael Myers stories so as to increase his book sales. Loomis reiterates how the threat is real and that Michael has returned to Haddonfield to find his little sister. What his intentions towards his sister might be even Loomis cannot determine. Brackett already knows who Michael's sister really is and places a call to the Strode house. Nobody answers the phone and the sheriff grows concerned.

Elsewhere, Annie and her boyfriend Paul are making out on the couch. They are completely lost in the moment and do not hear Michael Myers approaching from behind. Michael pulls Paul aside and stabs him in the chest. Annie screams and tries to run out of the house, but Michael drags her back inside. Annie grabs a knife and tries to defend herself only to be backhanded across the floor.

Meanwhile, Loomis and Brackett are in a sqaud car driving towards the Strode residence. Lee tells Doctor Loomis what he knows of Laurie Strode. He mentions how seventeen years ago he responded to a 911 call, which ended up relating to Deborah Myers' suicide. He found her infant daughter alone in the room. He didn't want the child growing up with the stigma of the Myers' legacy around her neck, so he omitted finding her in his report and drove her to another town where he dropped her off at the emergency room. Three months later he discovered that his friend Mason Strode adopted the baby.

Notes & Trivia

 * Alternatively known as Rob Zombie's Halloween.


 * Ninth film in the Halloween series, although it is the first in the reimagined series. Eighth film to feature Michael Myers.


 * In this film, Sheriff Brackett's first name is spelled "Lee". In the original series, it was spelled "Leigh".


 * Released to DVD on December 18th, 2007. Released on Blu-ray on October 30th, 2008.


 * Rob Zombie likes to re-use actors from his previous films. Fans of House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects will see some familiar casting choices including, Sheri Moon Zombie, Sid Haig, Bill Moseley, Tyler Mane, Leslie Easterbrook, Tom Towles, William Forsythe, Danny Trejo, Daniel Roebuck, Lew Temple and Ken Foree.


 * Film includes scenes from the 1951 sci-fi movie The Thing from Another World, which was also featured in the original Halloween.


 * The film that Ronnie White falls asleep to is White Zombie starring Bela Lugosi. White Zombie was also the name of director Rob Zombie's old heavy metal band.

"The darkest souls are not those which choose to exist within the hell of the abyss, but those which choose to break free from the abyss and move silently among us."
 * The film opens with a quote from Doctor Loomis' book, The Devil's Eyes:

Characters
In alphabetical order


 * Annie Brackett: Annie Brackett was one of Laurie Strode's best friends. She ditched babysitting young Lindsey Wallace so she could be with her boyfriend Paul. She was attacked and brutally stabbed by Michael Myers.


 * Big Joe Grizzly: Big Joe Grizzly was a truck driver whom Michael Myers killed at a truck stop. Myers stole Grizzly’s clothes to replace his hospital robes.


 * Bob Simms: Bob Simms was the boyfriend of Lynda Van Der Klok. He was killed by Michael Myers who stabbed him with a butcher knife, pinning him to the wall.


 * Chester Chesterfield: Chester Chesterfield was the caretaker of the Haddonfield Cemetery. He discovered a mutilated animal in the spot where Deborah Myers' headstone should have been.


 * Cynthia Strode: Cynthia Strode was the adoptive mother of Laurie Strode. She was murdered on Halloween Night by Michael Myers who stabbed and brutalized her.


 * Deborah Myers: Deborah Myers was the mother of Michael Myers. She worked as an exotic dancer at the Rabbit in Red Lounge. After Michael’s initial killing spree, Deborah visited him once at week at Smith’s Grove Sanitarium before ultimately taking her own life.


 * Deputy Charles: Deputy Charles worked alongside Sheriff Lee Brackett in Haddonfield.


 * Derek Allen: Derek Allen was a gun shop owner who sold Sam Loomis a .357 Magnum revolver.


 * Doctor Koplenson: Doctor Koplenson was one of the senior staff members at Smith's Grove Sanitarium. He informed Doctor Loomis about Michael Myers' escape from the hospital.


 * Gloria: Gloria was a receptionist at Smith's Grove and one of several people killed by Michael Myers during his break-out.


 * Ismael Cruz: Ismael Cruz was a floor warden at Smith's Grove who befriended Michael Myers when he was still a child. As an adult, Myers escaped and murdered Cruz by drowning him then crushing his head with a television set.


 * Jim Chambers: Jim Chambers was the principal of Haddonfield Elementary School. He broke up a fight between Michael Myers and Wesley Rhoades then called Michael’s mother in for a consultation.


 * Judith Myers: Judith Myers was Michael Myers’ older sister. Michael stabbed her to death on Halloween night for failing to take him out trick 'r treating.


 * Larry Redgrave: Larry Redgrave was one of the security guards charged with transporting Michael Myers. Myers killed Redgrave by repeatedly slamming his head against a wall.


 * Laurie Strode: Laurie Strode was a teenage girl who didn't yet realize that she was the sister of Michael Myers. Michael attacked Laurie while she was babysitting two children one night and tried to kill her. Laurie survived and managed to stop Michael by shooting him at point-blank range.


 * Lee Brackett: Lee Brackett was the sheriff of Haddonfield. He collaborated with Sam Loomis in their efforts to track down Michael Myers.


 * Lindsey Wallace: Lindsey Wallace was a young girl who was being babysat by Annie Brackett. Annie brought Lindsey over to Tommy Doyle’s house so Laurie Strode could babysit her, allowing Annie the chance to spend time with her boyfriend, Paul.


 * Lou Martini: Lou Martini was the owner of the Rabbit in Red Lounge where Deborah Myers worked as an exotic dancer.


 * Lynda Van Der Klok: Lynda Van Der Klok was one of Laurie Strode's best friends. She was murdered by Michael Myers in the old Myers house along with her boyfriend Bob Simms.


 * Mason Strode: Mason Strode was the adoptive father of Laurie Strode. He was murdered by Michael Myers on the front porch of his home on Halloween night.


 * Michael Myers: Michael Myers murdered three people in his home when he was only ten-years-old. He spent the next fifteen years locked up in Smith's Grove Sanitarium. He broke out one evening, killing several more guards as well as a truck driver before returning to his home town of Haddonfield. He killed several more people in an effort to murder his sister, Laurie Strode, but Laurie succeeded in stopping him.


 * Morgan Walker: Morgan Walker was one of the hospital administrators at Smith's Grove Sanitarium.


 * Noel Kluggs: Noel Kluggs was a guard at Smith's Grove. He was scheduled to replace Ismael Cruz at Michael Myers' caretaker when Cruz retired.


 * Nurse Wynn: Nurse Wynn worked at Smith’s Grove Sanitarium. She was killed by eleven-year-old Michael Myers who stabbed her repeatedly with a fork.


 * Officer Lowery: Lowery was an officer for the Haddonfield Sheriff's Department.


 * Patty Frost: Patty Frost was one of the security guards charged with transporting Michael Myers. Myers killed Frost by crushing her throat.


 * Paul: Paul was the boyfriend of Annie Brackett. He was killed by Michael Myers.


 * Princess: Princess refers to two young girls who went out on Halloween night dressed up as princesses. They stopped at the Strode residence for candy.


 * Ronnie White: Ronnie White was the abusive live-in boyfriend of Deborah Myers. Young Michael Myers killed him on Halloween night by strapping him down to a chair and cutting his throat.


 * Sam Loomis: Sam Loomis was a child psychologist who spent fifteen years treating Michael Myers. He wrought a book about his experiences entitled The Devil's Eyes.


 * Stan Payne: Stan Payne was one of the security guards charged with transporting Michael Myers. Myers killed Payne while trying to escape.


 * Steve Haley: Steve Haley was the boyfriend of Judith Myers. He was killed by young Michael Myers who clubbed him to death with a baseball bat.


 * Taylor Madison: Taylor Madison was a field journalist who first broke the news about the multiple murders at the Myers residence.


 * Tommy Doyle: Tommy Doyle was a young boy whom Laurie Strode babysat on Halloween night.


 * Wesley Rhoades: Wesley Rhoades was a teenage boy who bullied Michael Myers at school. Myers got revenge against Rhoades after class by clubbing him to death with a tree branch.


 * Zach "Z-Man" Garrett: Zach Garrett was one of the security guards charged with transporting Michael Myers. Myers killed Garrett by punching him across the face.