And thinking back to July 2002 -- yes -- there was a time when I was super-anxious for RESURRECTION.
In fact, I remember when the script for HALL8WEEN: THE HOMECOMING (a title I much prefer) leaked online. I jumped all over that shit. Loved every word on every page. Keep in my mind, I was fifteen and honestly believed there was a way to re-attach Michael's head after the end of H20.
I had followed the production as close as I could by visiting online message boards such as the OHMB and sites like HalloweenMovies.com and HalloweenFlash (now defunct). And I remember that photo above being the coolest thing I had ever seen...ever.
In fact, I can remember sitting in the theater on the night of April 26, 2002 to catch the opening night of JASON X -- and the trailers started. And sure as shit, here came one for HALLOWEEN 8. I was shocked to learn that the subtitle had been changed to RESURRECTION (I'm sure it was public knowledge, but I had no idea) when the title card flashed.
By the way, here's the exact trailer I saw...
...and I thought it looked fucking incredible! True story: I was raving to my buddy as we were leaving JASON X and telling him how the trailer for HALLOWEEN: RESURRECTION was better than the whole JASON X movie. Yeah, I said that. Obviously hindsight is 20/20.
But these sentiments didn't just resonate from me. I heard these same rants all over the internet. "Michael Myers is back in Haddonfield! Rick Rosenthal is directing! Back at the old Myers place! This is going to fucking rock!"
And then came July 12, 2002 -- RESURRECTION opened nationwide.
The reviews were god-awful. But, alas, I still thoroughly enjoyed it. A lot, actually.
I hadn't yet realized how horrible Busta Rhymes' character Freddie was (or Tyra Bank's throwaway character). He actually kung-fu'd Michael out of a fucking window. He ran a company called Dangertainment! How did this not register as bad with me?! Well, it does now. In fact, RESURRECTION is hands-down my least favorite of the franchise.
None of the characters are even slightly developed sans for the stereotypical stereotypes. Even Bianca Kaijlich as the leading lady is poorly written. Luckily she was stellar on the hit TV show RULES OF ENGAGEMENT.
At the end of the day, RESURRECTION doesn't just fail as a HALLOWEEN sequel, but really as a movie, period.
In the years following H8's release, questions on how HALLOWEEN 9 would save the franchise arose. And an answer never came. Not until 2007 when it was announced that Rob Zombie would be rebooting the series. Back to square one. It pissed a lot of die-hard Halloweenies off. Still does. And in 2009, we saw H2, Zombie's sequel to his remake that took a total departure from anything we've ever know regarding the HALLOWEEN series. Which, I dug, by the way.
So here we are in 2015. Word has been released that HALLOWEEN RETURNS is in production. Going to back to the original canon but being a direct sequel to 1981's HALLOWEEN II.
I'm cool with it. I dig it. But I've learned a lesson. And that lesson is to not get overly hyped for anything. No matter how promising the promo images are (RESURRECTION's promos were fantastic).
Ah, fuck it. Here we go again.
"Michael's back in the REAL Haddonfield! It's a sequel to the REAL HALLOWEEN II! This is going to fucking rock!"
How'd you feel about HALLOWEEN: RESURRECTION, pre and post production?