Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998)
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Halloween H20: 20 Years Later Movie Review
Halloween H20: 20 Years Later is a 1998 slasher film directed by Steve Miner and starring Jamie Lee Curtis. It’s one of the finest sequels in this franchise.
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“Michael!“
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I have loved this flick as a child and I am happy to say that I still really like it as an adult. It was such an entertaining watch and it’s by far one of the most fun entries in the franchise and also one of the best. To me, only the original is better than this one, at least up until this point.
This is a very interesting movie that serves as a drama of sorts in its entire first and second act and I really dug that. It is too long of a build-up, but it works as it was so well done, despite those fake jump scares which really got on my nerves. But otherwise, the film is actually rather sophisticated and more dramatic than you would expect from this franchise.
It treats Laurie’s PTSD very seriously as she has Michael Myers flashbacks and constant visions and that led to her estranged relationship with her son who is quite well played by Josh Hartnett. The relationship between the two is the highlight of the picture as is Jamie Lee Curtis’ terrific performance, both in the emotional sense and in the action department.
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And she really is badass in this film, taking care of Michael in such a brutal, decisive fashion. I loved that about her, especially having in mind how passive she honestly was in the original film, but here she’s very proactive and such a terrific female hero. Their sibling relationship is also well accentuated here which I liked too.
The other characters are mostly disposable and they most ultimately died, but Ronny is such a fun guy and I wanted a bigger, more meaty role for him. But Michael Myers has rarely been as effective as he is here as he’s a killing machine who executes his kills in a brutally effective fashion.
All of the action scenes in this film worked, despite them seeming over-the-top and unrealistic, especially the ending. But in the entertainment factor, they succeeded tremendously as the entire third act is so much fun that I put aside its silliness and just enjoyed it on its own silly slasher terms. I loved the ending where she beheaded him and one of the highlights is also that scene on the tables which was so creepy. The chase with the young couple is also terrific.
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Halloween H20: 20 Years Later has a solid script and although the two parts to it seemed disparate as one is silly, though fun horror action and the other is a serious drama, I ultimately liked both of them myself and the film is enjoyable across the board with a few character and dialogue choices being weaker. The horror elements are sometimes scary, but mostly just fun. And although the movie isn’t as polished technically as the original, it’s entertaining and good enough that I still find it hugely underrated among critics.
Halloween H20: 20 Years Later is a highly underrated movie that is easily one of the best Halloween sequels thanks to its huge entertainment factor, a very fun third act and actually rather interesting first and second act which focused on a more serious drama about Laurie’s PTSD. The movie is silly at times, but a lot of fun, creepy often and mostly stupendously executed for a sequel, especially in the acting and script departments.
