As much as I'd like to just forget it, I can't. It has some things that would factor into the next film. But it was because of the disappointment with 5 that led to the franchise being stuck in limbo six years. Akkad wanted 6 to have a good story behind it. One that would be respectful of the franchise and not like 5. Unfortunately the film would then be made by Miramax and Dimension. And that meant the Weinsteins had a hand in things.
Now, Halloween 6 is a very interesting film. The film was made and then the studio got to see an early cut of it. They hated it. It didn't fit what they were expecting from a Halloween movie. There was also some test screenings that didn't have much good things to say about that flick. So instead of going with their gut, the studio - well The Weinsteins wanted to double down on their investment with this franchise. Thus, reshots were completed and a different flavor was added to make the theatrical cut of Halloween 6. Got it?
Okay, so here's a note I'd like to make. Here on out when I'm referring to the theatrical cut, it'll be called The Weinstein Cut. I also had a couple moments where I was trying to figure out if I should appeal to one cut or the other. Should I review both of them? Well, ultimately I decided that I would be covering The Producers Cut. I have seen The Weinstein Cut. But it just doesn't sit right with me. The Weinstein Cut also doubles down on the slasher formula.
The interesting thing about either Halloween 6 is that neither cut gets picked up again in the franchise. After Halloween 6, they chose to make Halloween H20 which ignored the continuity of The Thorn Trilogy. So either ending could be considered an ending for this trilogy. It just depends on the viewer. Personally, I will take the Producers Cut ending over The Weinstein Cut anyday.
The story of The Curse of Myers goes like this:
Six years ago, Michael Myers terrorized the town of Haddonfield, Illinois. He and his niece, Jamie Lloyd, have disappeared. Jamie was kidnapped by a bunch of evil druids who protect Michael Myers. And now, six years later, Jamie has escaped after giving birth to a child. She runs to Haddonfield to get Dr. Loomis to help her again. Meanwhile, the family that adopted Laurie Strode is living in the Myers house and are being stalked by Myers. It's the curse of thorn that Michael is possessed by that makes him kill his family. And it's up to Tommy Doyle and Dr. Loomis, to stop them all.
How does the film hold up?
Honestly, I enjoy this film a lot. It's a lot better than Halloween 5 for sure. It does ask us to take some liberties with the lore. Actually, Halloween 6 asks a lot to be done with the lore. Now it may seem like it comes out of nowhere. It actually doesn't come out of nowhere. The whole mythology with the evil of Michael being tied into Samhain. That actually is something that is touched on the original Halloween novelization. In fact, the original Halloween novelization gives us more insight with young Michael and him hearing voices. It ties into there being a history of males in Michael's family having outbursts or fits of violence. That's something that ties in 100 percent to The Producer's Cut. Knowing those things from the original, it helps elevate the material.
Now, I understand the whole Cult of Thorn is a big hot topic. But come on, we had to explain who the Man in Black is. It makes sense that this whole occultism was a natural evolution of that lingering storyline.
The Producer's Cut and The Weinstein Cut definitely differ in their handling of the material. The Producer's Cut is a bit more closer to the tone of the original. It feels very much a better continuation than The Weinstein Cut. It's a bit more cerebral. It's a bit more old school horror in a sense. There's a lot of tension as well. There's also a bit of a touch of Rosemary's Baby in it. Whereas The Weinstein Cut is very much doubling down on the 90s horror athestic. The precedent being that less focus on the cult and more on the blood, gore and kills. However, the film kind of loses itself if it's just trying to focus more on the kills. Lots of flash with its style.
The Producer's Cut also had more of Loomis. It was the version that was shot first. And as we all know, Donald Pleasance passed away before there was reshoots. So, they were a bit limited with the footage available. It honestly was a bit of a shame that Pleasance passed. Because I can guarantee that he would have fought tooth and nail with them against the reshoots. He loved his character and embodied it so much. This was his farewell and The Weinstein Cut definitely fumbles it so much. The ending in the Producer's Cut is both a very fitting yet tragic way of having the character go out: becoming Michael's keeper.
We have The Strodes returning in this film. Well, Laurie's adopted cousins. It's a nice touch that definitely expands the world established in these films. It's interesting seeing that The Strode Realty business was still around. Kara is definitely a very Laurie-like character. Young Danny is also very much familiar as he feels like a young Michael. Honestly the icing on the cake is that they live in the old Myers House. It makes sense that Laurie's adopted father would never be able to sell the house after the events of the original film.
The Producer's Cut just oozes the feeling of the original film. It's colors are a bit muted and cold. The Weinstein Cut made sure to make things feel warmer. Which that definitely is the anti-Halloween feeling. Just another example of the studio not understanding the franchise.
The handling of Jamie is something that is much better in The Producer's Cut. In The Weinstein Cut, they were quick to establish Jamie then two seconds later kill her off. It's a big disservice to fans of the franchise to just fridge a beloved character so quickly. I mean she doesn't necessarily survive in The Producer's Cut. But she makes it to the halfway mark before The Man in Black kills her off. It's a bit more tragic.
Jamie's baby. That's something that could become a large hot topic. In the Weinstein Cut, it's not really established who the father is. She just has a baby because The Thorn Cult was messing with science and such. It's really messy. In the Producer's Cut, there's a flashback to the event where Jamie is impregnated and Michael happens to be there during the ceremony. It's very much a Rosemary's Baby scene. So more of less, it could be suggested that it's Michael's baby. Or it could be one of the random cultists. So again, it's something that could be a massive hot take.
Honestly, the whole Cult of Thorn is something that is much more fleshed out in The Producer's Cut. It actually has a purpose. It's there to pass the evil of Michael to a new generation. Nothing with science and experimenting crap. Just simple occultism.
The Man In Black. It was a bit of a throwaway character in Halloween 5. It was there to just be a reason for Michael to escape in the end. This film takes that and establishes so much. It calls back to the original film with its reveal of it being Doctor Wynn. With this revelation, it establishes that the Man In Black is Michael's keeper. It ultimately makes Doctor Wynn the Anti-Loomis. That's something that would be used in Halloween 2018 with the character of Doctor Sartain.
I know this whole thing may sound a bit all over the place. Halloween 6 is just a film that has a lot going on. It goes even further with there being two versions of it. Personally, I love The Producer's Cut more than the Weinstein Cut. It just hits the right notes more with feeling part of the franchise's established world and lore. Is it the best in the franchise? No. Is it better than 5? Considering that with 5, they wrote themselves into a corner. The Producer's Cut is honestly probably the best way that they could have ended this trilogy of films. Yeah, it was hoping to be able to go on with it's ending. But after this, we got Halloween H20.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5. (Better than 5, unfortunately best could be done with the circumstances given. Producer's Cut over the Weinstein Cut.)
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