Halloween H20: 20 Years Later Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
This summer, terror won't be taking a vacation.
Blood is thicker than Water.
20 years ago, HE changed the face of Halloween. Tonight, he's back!
Trick or Treat. Kill or Die. It's That Time of Year Again.
The face of pure evil is back for Laurie Strode. 20 years later.........
Laurie Strode (from Halloween I and II) is now the head mistress at a prestigious private school, which is attended by her 17 year-old son. On the 20th anniversary of the events that occurred in Halloween I, Laurie begins having nightmares, flashbacks, and visions of her evil brother, Michael Myers, coming to kill her. Myers shows up at the school on Halloween night, setting the stage for a "final" battle between Myers and Strode.
| Jamie Lee Curtis | Laurie Strode, Keri Tate |
| Josh Hartnett | John Tate |
| Adam Arkin | Will Brennan |
| Michelle Williams | Molly Cartwell |
| LL Cool J | Ronald 'Ronny' Jones |
| Jodi Lyn O'Keefe | Sarah Wainthrope |
| Adam Hann-Byrd | Charles 'Charlie' Deveraux |
| Janet Leigh | Norma Watson |
| Joseph Gordon-Levitt | Jimmy Howell |
| Nancy Stephens | Marion Chambers Whittington |
| Branden Williams | Tony Allegre |
| Beau Billingslea | Detective 'Fitz' Fitzsimmons |
| Matt Winston | Detective Matt Sampson |
| Larisa Miller | Claudia |
| Steve Miner |
5.30 out of 10 (19608 votes)
Visitor Reviews
How trippy!
posted on 15 Aug 2009Okay, I'm a bit confused. Supposedly this movie is 20 years after the original movie. Laurie Strode was 17 years old then, and now in H20 she has a son who is 17 years old. In Part 4 & 5; (10 years after the first movie), it was written in the script that Laurie & her husband had died in a car crash, leaving their 7 year old daughter alone.If that's true, then wouldn't the daughter, Jamie & the son, John be the same age in H20.... 20 years after the first movie.....17? Why did Laurie keep one child & not the other? Why didn't Jamie (in Part 4) mention a "brother" who also died in the car crash?Why was the daughter never brought up again in H20 or Resurrection? Part 4 & 5 were okay, but Part 6 really sucked. I didn't like how Jamie ended up pregnant, supposedly by her uncle Michael. That is just nasty. I didn't know that un-killable psychos still had active sperm. I thought his whole purpose was to kill his family members, not create more.If H20 was meant to ignore Parts 3 -6, then it wouldn't been a good transition, but keeping those parts in mind.... it just doesn't work.And what ever happened to Jamie's baby from part 6 (the curse of michael myers?). if the strode family in part 6 was laurie's adopted family, & not biological, then why was Michael Myers after them also? I thought he was only after his family.
More of the same...
posted on 06 Aug 2009This is just an average horror/slasher flick. All the usual stuff ... you know, running, hiding, screaming etc. The plot is so-so. However, it is great to see Jamie Lee Curtis as the heroine. The production values are slick. Much better than the horrible Friday the 13th sequels. Overall, pretty ordinary.
Long
posted on 16 Jul 2009Halloween H20 is not so good as the first Halloween-movie, but invites much scary and exciting scenes.Sometimes it is so exciting so you can sit on tenterhooks.A few times it is scary and not so brutally.Jamie Lee Curtis acts very well in her role.Steve Miner make a good directing in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later.I like Steve Miners movies, because he can make a very good movie with very clean and a classic style.The rest of the actors acts very well too.I can warning sensitive persons!
A really fun homage to the first movie
posted on 07 Jul 200920 years have passed since Michael Meyers went on his bloody killing spree in Haddonfield, Illinois. Laurie Strode, the only survivor of the massacre, has since faked her own death in an auto accident, changed her name to Keri Tate and has gone into hiding with her son, John. Now a headmistress at a prestigious private school, Laurie has become a paranoid and emotionally damaged woman with too many prescriptions and a liquor cabinet that never runs dry. She also cannot let John out of her sight, virtually imprisoning him within the locked gates of the school. But John has finally begun to rebel. Sick of his mother's neurosis, he skips the school trip and retreats with his girlfriend and two others to the storage rooms for an all night party. It is Halloween night, 1998, and Laurie realizes that John, who has just turned seventeen, is now the same age that she was when her brother came looking for her. Her sense of foreboding proves to be not without merit: Michael Meyers is alive, he has found his way to the school and he is looking for John, Laurie and anyone who gets in his way.This 7th installment in the Halloween series skips over parts 3, 4, 5 and 6 and serves as a direct sequel to part 2, making the series into a trilogy for those who might prefer it that way. It's also a really fun homage to the first two films and to the genre at large. Numerous references and in-jokes pop up constantly throughout the film, cleverly worked into the story instead of taking away from it. Jamie Lee Curtis makes her triumphant return as Laurie and brings her character full circle, from frightened screaming victim to ass-kicking woman who has finally Had Enough. The kids are surprisingly quite likable as well; they're not vacuous, empty-headed, one dimensional idiots served up like cattle for the slaughter, but rather well drawn characters that you are allowed to identify with and care about. Josh Hartnett and Michelle Williams, who later went on to bigger films and incredible fame, really shine here as the teenage leads. Adam Arkin as Laurie's boyfriend Will is such a sweet, genuinely nice character that you will be very sorry to see him go.Chris Durand as Michael Meyers is really great, perhaps the most threatening, PO'd boogeyman since Kane Hodder put on the hockey mask. He really gives Michael life in this movie, making him a violent, quite scary and very angry killer. The scene in which he is hunting Laurie in the dining room, throwing tables aside easily but with furious force, is really tense.This sequel should satisfy many fans of the original. But there are some who may be bored as well. The gore is minimal, there is no gratuitous sex and a lot of time is spent with character development and the building of suspense. I thought it was one of the more intelligent sequels to follow the original, and a lot of fun to boot. Die-hard fans of the first movie should not miss this one.
Hmmm...
posted on 25 Jun 2009There are a lot of good reasons to hate this film: 1. The script was written by Kevin Williamson and this guy is total hack! Back in the 1990s he started to polluted the cinemas with tame and political correct copies of horror classics like "Halloween" or the "Body Snatchers" and fooled millions of teenagers world wide with his awful films!2. The acting: LL Cool J is giving once more the stereotype cool Afro-American he also did in "Deep Blue Sea" and the performance of Adam Arkin is simply terrible! To guarantee a commercial success at the box-offices, teenagers swarms like the dumb Josh Harnett ("Pearl Harbour") and Michelle Williams ("Dawson´s Creek") were casted. Last mentioned is really sweet, but absolutely free of any talent..!3. The showdown comes too suddenly and is too fast-paced! Michael Myers, an undestructable super monster in six parts of the series, gets killed by a mid 40 year old woman too easily, so it´s quite questionable why Laurie Strode was 20 years on the run..?!However, the suspense and the dramatic are well done in this flick and in comparison to the awful parts three and five this is one of the better installments of the series! It contains enough excitement to keep you awake, even if you don´t like those teenagers-slashers! I´d give 6 out of 10...
Scary, underrated slasher fun
posted on 19 Jun 2009Wow. I was impressed by "Halloween: H2O", as was my cousin. The beginning of the film is suspenseful and sends chills down your spine. In this film, Michael Myers is very frightening and menacing. The plot is simple and not that original, but who cares. This movie delivers. Jamie Lee Curtis is back and the movie is kickin'. She has changed her name to Keri Tate and is the headmistress of an exclusive high school in Northern California. It is Halloween, 20 years after the original massacre in Haddonfield. Laurie is trying to put her demons behind her. We also learn that she is a heavy drinker. Well, wouldn't you know it? Michael is back and he is scarier than ever. He targets Laurie's son Jon, his girlfriend Molly, and their friends Charlie and Sarah. The sequences in the school are very scary, and the most graphic, gruesome murder happens to Jodi Lyn O' Keefe, who plays Sarah. Man, he really gives it to her! Ouch, that's gotta hurt. There are also some good chase sequences and a great ending, this is definitely worth the rent/buy.
the 3rd best
posted on 13 Jun 2009this movie was cool movie for the the series but i think if you are a fan then you should watch the movie so the movie does not have a hole lot of killing so what this is better then part 5 so the movie goes slow but it is fun and that is what i think or more it is better then Jason x or wes crvens new nightmare which both sucked bad peoples say this movie sucks but their is a lot more bad movie out there then this jaws 3 there is one half of the Jason series so this would have been good why to end the movies ad if like Jaimie lee's movies then you will love this one and the 8th if you like Jaimie charter she is not in this if you want know what happened to her see 6
THE FINAL OR WHAT?
posted on 26 May 2009It was a bit unexpected but a new chapter from John Carpenter came out in 1998 (and I saw there are already plans to make an other sequel) and of course sequels are sequels and they only equal the original motherbase on a rather rare base but the good thing is that Jamie Lee Curtis is back! It is indeed 20 years ago that Michael Myers slaughtered some people with a kitchen knife on Halloween's eve and Laurie Strode (played by Curtis and who is the sister of the psycho) is still scared and sees the image of the maniacal Myers everywhere she looks, and not mentioning the careness for her son who is so fed up by mom's frightenings that he decided to go to a party that was forbidden for him...you can guess the rest. Of course this movie isn't original at all, it's just your common horrorcinema (director Steven Miner did some Friday the 13th-sequels) but it's the good acting that makes this film quite enjoyable. We don't have to be convinced by Curtis' skills but even rapper LL Cool J was nice to see.... Yup you forget it the morning after it was good to be see though...
Great follow-up to H2
posted on 11 Apr 2009A lot of Halloween fans were p***ed off with this film, as they felt it was too influenced by 'Scream'- I feel, though, that that's not necessarily a bad thing. The 'Scream' series has forced modern horror writers to do a better job w/ their teen characters. (Look at Halloween 5 for some truly moronic teens, or some of the 80s Friday... sequels) While there's less violence in this compared the other sequels (especially 2 & 6), the characters are better developed.GOOD STUFF: 2 of the 4 teens are very good- John Strode/Tate (Josh Hartnett) and Molly (Michelle Williams). Sarah & Charlie were OK, but barely in it. I have to say I was disappointed when I heard neither Hartnett or Williams would be back for H8, as they're good additions to the series.JLC is great. The climax at the end is outstanding, lasting a good 10 mins or so. It seems almost cheapened, though, by what I've heard about the forthcoming sequel. Adam Arkin is OK, but his death scene is a bit stupid- if he's held up, suspended on a knife and the knife is removed quickly, shouldn't he fall FORWARD?? (It was good to see Marion from H1 & H2 back, too)Building the suspense slowly.It works well and isn't boring. Good interaction between characters.BAD STUFF: Myers and the mask- the eye holes on the mask are too big, and I prefer not seeing Myers' eyes (" the blackest eyes... the Devil's eyes...") Myers, himself, isn't menacing enough. He was like an animal in H6 (and genuinely chilling, esp. when Kara has to return to her/Myers home to get Danny- there's a real sense of dread, which is done well.) This Myers, though, wusses out on a couple of kills.This was a great entry to the series, which for the most part, is good itself- except. sort of, H2 (which is quite boring) and H5 (is a bit stupid 'cos of the characters.)Let's hope they do a good job on H8 ('Resurrection')
The best "Halloween" sequel
posted on 05 Apr 200920 years after "Halloween" scared the pants off of everybody who went to see it, "Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later" came out. After four sloppy, disappointing "Halloween" movies, here at long last came a "Halloween" movie that's entertaining and well made. And best of all, Jamie Lee Curtis returns! After taking a long hiatus from horror movies, Curtis returned to the series to reprise her starmaking role as Laurie Strode. It starts with a suspenseful 10 minute opening, with Michael Myers discovering where his other sister (Curtis, which we discovered was Michael Myers other sister in "Halloween II") is hiding out. This movie finally takes Michael Myers out of Haddonfield (where all the other movies took place with the exception of "Halloween III") and puts him in a small town in California, which is where Laurie Strode (now under the name Keri Tate) has made a new life for herself and her rebellious 17 year old son. I was getting sick and tired of Michael Myers prowling around Haddonfield in all those bad sequels. A new location was one thing that this series needed. Laurie/Keri is now the headmistress of a private school in the town of Summer Glen, California. But she still has nightmares about what almost happened to her 20 years ago, and those nightmares would become a reality if her brother finds out where she's hiding. There are plenty of scares in this one, and it's not as violent as the other sequels in the series. Director Steve Miner (who directed the second and third "Friday the 13th" movies) does a good job with this film, and it gets a big boost from a couple of good performances. Curtis is excellent as always, matched by Josh Hartnett as her son John; Michelle Williams of TV's "Dawson's Creek" as Hartnett's girlfriend; Adam Arkin of TV's "Chicago Hope" as the school dean and Curtis' boyfriend; Curtis' real-life mother and "Psycho" star Janet Leigh in a bit part as Curtis' secretary; and LL Cool J (providing most of the comedy) as the school's security guard. "Halloween H20" delievers scares and shocks, and the final result is a movie that's not as good as the first "Halloween", slightly better than "Halloween II", but much better than "Halloween III, IV, V, and VI". This is a very good horror film.*** (out of four)
What about H4 - 6?
posted on 02 Apr 2009I'd say Halloween: H2O is a 2 and a 1/2 star movie--pretty good for a slasher movie, especially a slasher movie sequel. It is pretty scary and the characters are well-developed. What bugs me so much about this movie is the total disregard for the past three sequels. There was a pretty good running storyline in Halloween 4 through Halloween 6, and H2O just pretends the events that took place in those episodes didn't happen. Aside from that, I'd say H2O is better than Part 5, but definitely not better than Parts 4 or 6.
Say What?
posted on 02 Apr 2009In reference to the other comment on this movie, I looked at the date in which you posted it, and it's strangely obvious that you did not see Halloween:Resurrection. Resurrection was THE worst in the Halloween series. The comment about the only things in common with the series is the name, belongs to Resurrection. I could not believe that they producers, directors and anyone else involved could not come up with a better premise than what the final product was. It's ludicrous!! At least Halloween:H20 had Jamie Lee Curtis in it for more than 10 minutes. It seemed to me that Resurrection was looking for any salvage point and the only way to have done that was to have a cameo with JLC. While I do NOT feel that H20 was among the top half of these films, it certainly deserves a better rating than Resurrection! H20 delivered on a couple of spine tingling moments, i.e when Laurie (Keri) meets eye to eye with Michael. Cheesiest moment: When Keri told her boyfriend all about her secret life, and his reaction to it! Overall this movie scores about 2 1/2 stars out of 5.
I must say: it's awsome
posted on 30 Mar 2009I think that Halloween: H20 is the best in the series (even better than the first Halloween).It was scary, gory and serious. It wasn't some silly teen slasher. I truly enjoyed watching the movie.I give Halloween: H20 two big thumps up.The movie is rated R for horror, violence and language.
What about Halloween 4,5 and 6
posted on 30 Mar 2009Although i have seen all the Halloween films many times including h20 several times i have only just recently noticed that in H20 numerous times people say that Michael Myers was killed 20 years ago and that his body was never found or that he burnt to death(end of Halloween 2). Well what about Halloween 4,5 and 6 where he was after Laurie strode's daughter and her grand son i mean the police knew about this and so did Dr Loomis. Also in Halloween 4 Michael Myers escapes once again from a hospital how did he get in the hospital if he burnt to death. Also Laurie strode never mentions that she has a daughter who was also called Jamie or that Michael Myers killed her.
Jamie Lee is Back For a Showdown with M. Myers!
posted on 27 Mar 2009Twenty Years Ago, the maniacal Michael Myers murdered many people and was burned up in the hospital and since then Laurie Strode has lived in fear that one day her brother would come for her.OCTOBER 29, 1998 in Langdon, Illinois, not Haddonfield this time. In Langdon, the chain smoking Mario Chambers-Wittington from H1 and 2,returns home to find it broken into. Not only that, but her office is a mess! Papers and files everywhere! She also has a run in with Michael Myers who then snatches a car and drives off. On the office wall were pictures and newspaper clippings of the events of thatdreadful Halloween night of 1978. Most of those records were from Dr. Loomis (the late Donald Pleasence) who spent his life tracking down the maniac. Now what makes me mad about this is: while the opening credits play, Dr. Loomis' words about Michael Myers are heard except another man is speaking them. Hello! Can't you just play back Donald Pleasence's voice? It's a great disrespect!! Just play back the recording of him, don't get some other meatball to do it! Sheesh! Also, three errors in dates: a newspaper clipping on the wall says the murders took place in 1968. WRONG! Michael killed them in 1978.In 1968, Michael was 11 years old and still in Smith's Grove. Two: It says Laurie was the class of 1978. She'd actually be the class of 1979! Third: Laurie says her sister Judith was killed at age 17, but hertombstone in Halloween 1 said she was born in November 1947, which means she was 15, not 17.
Back to H20, Laurie Strode has relocated to Northern California, probably near where Halloween III: Season of the Witch took place, where she changed her name to Keri Tate (Sounds too much like Larry Tate from "Bewitched", which I guess could work because Laurie usually seemsbewitched, as it were). Laurie has a son John (20-year-old JoshHartnett) who's tired of living under Laurie's paranoid rules. Laurie is the headmistress of a private school with LL Cool J as the gateguard. The school takes a field trip to Yosemite Valley, but John andthree of his friends stay behind for an orgy. Laurie lives in fear of brother Michael, who soon shows up in a car he snatched from two women at a rest stop by the highway. Michael offs two of John's friends and Laurie's beau, school counselor Will. Laurie soon realizes it's no good running, so the Scream Queen reclaims her throne, grabs an axeand goes looking for Michael. Soon she gives him a taste of his ownmedicine by stabbing him to "death". But even when the coroner arrivesto put Michael in a body bag, Laurie is still not convinced that he'sdead. So she steals the van and drives him out onto the highway,where she drives offroad and Michael is crushed by the van.Laurie still has the axe and finally gives Michael Myers what he's been needing for 20 years! The loss of his head!
And this apparently was the final chapter, and we all know when a horror movies reaches it's "Final Chapter" movie, they always make more. They made six more movies after Friday the 13th's final chapter!Also, horror movies keep making sequels to beat the records of other films. Friday the 13th still holds the record for most sequels: 10.Halloween is right up there with 8, Children of the Corn has 7, so until Halloween 8's release, it and Children of the Corn are dead even. Child's Play has 4, Leprechaun has 5, Texas Chainsaw has 4. Poltergeist and Scream have 3.
Like other Halloween fans, I await Halloween 8. Here's a way of knowing whether or not it will be the last in the series: if Michael finally removes his mask and we all can see his face. If not, then there will be a 9. Who knows where it will end, or if it will ever end. -------
This movie has it's pro's and cons
posted on 24 Mar 2009The Pro's: -Jamie Lee Curtis is back-Michael Myers is still as bad as ever-There is plenty of gore to go around-There are numerous cameos and references from the first film-It's a Halloween movieThe Cons:-Donald Pleasance has passed away-The same score-music used in the Scream movies is used on here-A Dawson's Creek castmember is in this movie-A Creed song is contained within-Josh Hartnett can't seem to find a comb-The plot completely ignores all previous sequels (except pt. 2)Well, I have been a huge Halloween fan ever since I saw the first flick. I was relatively young when I saw it and it just blew me away. After I saw that movie, I rented each sequel with my enjoyment ranging from extreme to moderate (I like them all, even 3). So naturally, the weekend this movie opened, I was there. I was psyched knowing that Jamie Lee Curtis was back. She is a great actress and although people feel Donald Pleasance's performance overshadows her, she is still a great asset to the series. I can't say that I hated this movie. I liked it, just like all the previous movies, but I found far too many flaws that really dampered my mood. Alright, first off, this movie COMPLETELY ignores the happenings in parts 3 through 6. Now come on, why on Earth did they do that? This is the 7th installment in the series. The only people watching it are people who are FANS of the series, why anger everyone by changing the story? I personally wanted a continuation or at least something explaining the previous sequels. It really angered me that this movie took a whole different direction. It screws up the continuity of the series, and I, as a huge fan, feel very betrayed by this. Also, this movie takes more of a "Scream" feel. I mentioned before how the score from the Scream movies was used in this movie, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many references to that movie that it's just disgusting. But there are some good parts. Jamie Lee Curtis is great as she reprises her role as Laurie Strode and there is plenty of suspense and some cool nostalgia about the first film. Unfortunately though, this film follow the trendy teen horror formula and does not come out as a proper ending (The producers obviously figured that out, seeing how another sequel opens next weekend.) Let's just hope Halloween Resurrection at least acknowledges the other movies and offers some real closure.
The worst in the series!
posted on 12 Mar 2009Anyone that has read any of my previous comments here on imdb.com knows that I hate sequels. Sequels are naturally bad. There is an unwritten rule somewhere that must say that if a movie is a sequel, it will suck so I was hesitant to see HALLOWEEN H20: 20 YEARS LATER. When I first saw the theatrical trailer to this movie, I said to myself, "this is going to be the worst movie ever." Well, it isn't exactly the worst movie ever, but it is certainly the worst installment of the seriesThe main reason that HALLOWEEN H20: 20 YEARS LATER is utterly terrible is that it completely ignores any of the events that took place in installments 4, 5, and 6. Jamie Lee Curtis is alive even though we learned in an earlier installment that her character died. There is no logical explanation given as to why Laurie is back to life. Was she resurrected? We never know. The movie doesn't even attempt to explain it to the audience. The filmakers thought that the audience would just accept the fact that Laurie is alive without being given an explanation. That is one of several bad moves the filmakers made with HALLOWEEN H20: TWENTY YEARS LATER. To go over all the bad decisions the filmakers made with this film would take hours and hours so I'll just save time (and space on this page) by giving anyone who has not seen this movie yet a fair warning: DO NOT SEE THIS MOVIE!
Treat!!
posted on 09 Mar 2009Halloween:H20 was much, much more of a treat than its previous sequels and certainly didn't trick us on the marketing front. This movie delivers and the screams from the audience definitely confirmed it. The original Halloween it ain't but it comes close in some aspects, is far better than Scream 2 and delivered genuine chills without relying on the all too familiar Gen X, smart alec comments for its comic relief moments. LL Cool J delivered a natural sense of comedy to the movie and Jamie Lee?! Well what can I say!! She's reclaimed her crown and it still fits perfectly!!!
Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later...Not Too Bad
posted on 21 Aug 2009Jamie Lee Curtis is still great after all these years. The movie lacked a
little of the suspense of the first, but was a definite improvement over
the subsequent others up until it's release. It went straight to the point
in the fact that Michael Myers opened up with his sharp cutting
personality. One of the most gripping attributes to the film was the music. If the rest
of the film had placed as much emphasis on dramatic interjection as the
music did, it would have been a 9.5 on a scale of 1 to 10. The music was
extremely eerie and very creepy.All and all as far as sequels go, there have been better. There have
definitely been worse. It is worth seeing as a movie and if you are like
me (mid-thirties) that the original Halloween scared you for the better
part of your adolescent summer of ‘78, definitely go see it.DHM