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Halloween (2007)
Misses the point of the original
It seems that nowadays, every other movie released is a remake of an older film. The most recent addition to this list of movies is Halloween. Although, ''remake'' may be the wrong word to describe this film, as Rob Zombie added and elaborated on the original with his own imagination. Unfortunately, Rob Zombie has a horrid imagination.
The reason the original Halloween was so effective, was John Carpenter's ability to create suspense. The majority of his movie was anticipation. Anticipating the first murder. Anticipating the meeting between Michael and Laurie. Anticipating Dr. Loomis coming to save the day...sort of. Rob Zombie completely missed the point, replacing suspense with senseless killings of almost every character in the movie.
Another important aspect of directing that Rob Zombie doesn't seem to grasp is character development. In the original, we had more than an hour of getting to know each character, so that we actually knew who they were. Mr. Zombie decided that watching a half hour of sexual referencing and actual sex was just enough to make us care. It wasn't.
The main problem I had with this film, was Michael Myers. As a 10 year old, he wasn't exactly the tallest one in his class. Yet 15 years later, not only is he the tallest person in the film, he's also got the strength to rip a house apart. How does one come across such strength after 15 years of making masks out of paper machè? Second problem. Like I said, he was 10 years old when he entered the hospital. So, how is he able to drive a frickin oil tanker? He shouldn't even know how to drive a damn golf cart! Last problem. How does one survive stab wounds, numerous gun shots, and a fall off a balcony? Trick question, because you can't! Yet Michael survived all of these things and didn't even skip a beat. Now, I know that this is exactly the way he was in the original. But you know what? This happened to be the only problem that I did have with original, and it still doesn't make sense almost 30 years later.
In short, skip this film.
Death Sentence (2007)
Disappointing, but not terrible
Kevin Bacon shows off his darker side in Death Sentence. Directed by James Wan, the story centers on Nick Hume, an ordinary man whose life is turned inside out after a visit to what is apparently the worst gas station in town. Nick witnesses the murder of his son, but makes a bad decision when he refuses to testify. After the murderer goes free, Nick makes another bad decision when he decides to handle things his own way. After incurring the wrath of angry gang members, Nick's family is put in danger, and he will do anything to protect them.
Kevin Bacon gives a sometimes laughable performance in this overly depressing bloodfest. Maybe this is my fault though, because every time I saw Bacon, i thought, "ha, the guy from footloose is killing people". Aisha Tyler also gives a stiff performance as the worst police officer ever. Actually, all the police in this movie were portrayed as useless and quite unnecessary. Death Sentence often rides on the wheels of implausibility, as Nick turns into a near superhero in his quest for revenge. As I sat in the theater with my friend, we couldn't help but laugh as Hume drives a car straight through a van, and comes out unscathed.
This movie wasn't all that bad though, as James Wan's directorial style kept me at the edge of my seat with suspense. Through the entirety of a well shot chase scene, my heart was racing as though I was the one being chased. John Goodman gives a demented and somewhat comical performance that oddly reminded me of his role in the Big Lebowski. Unfortunately, Goodman's little screen time couldn't make up for the often boring dialogue and melodramatic acting from the rest of the cast. All in all, Death Sentence is not a terrible movie and is by no means unwatchable. But given the choice, I would wait for this one to hit the shelves at Blockbuster. Still, Kevin Bacon looks badass with a shaved head.