Halloween (2007 film)
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This article or section contains information about one or more scheduled or expected films. The content may change as the film's release approaches and more information becomes available. |  |
| Halloween | |
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| Directed by | Rob Zombie |
| Produced by | Malek Akkad Andy Gould Andrew G. La Marca Rob Zombie |
| Written by | Screenplay: Rob Zombie Characters: John Carpenter & Debra Hill |
| Starring | Malcolm McDowell Daeg Faerch Tyler Mane Scout Taylor-Compton |
| Music by | Tyler Bates |
| Cinematography | Phil Parmet |
| Editing by | Glenn W. Garland |
| Distributed by | Dimension Films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Release date(s) |  31 August 2007 17 October 2007 (not yet official) 19 October 2007 |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Halloween is a remake of the 1978 film of the same name. The film was written, produced and directed by Rob Zombie, and is expected to be released in the U.S. on August 31, 2007. Reports indicate that the film will not be a straight remake of the 1978 original, but rather an updated "re-imagining", similar to that of New Line Cinema's 2003 version of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Universal's 2004 version of Dawn of the Dead.[1]
On June 5, 2006, after several days of speculation, the official website of the Halloween film franchise announced that Rob Zombie, director of House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects, would be writing, directing and producing the next Halloween film while also serving as music supervisor. In a recent interview, Rob Zombie announced that, despite reports of the contrary, his film would not be Halloween 9 because that series had finished. Instead, his plans call for a whole new beginning to the franchise with no connections to the previous films. While the intent is to make a new version of the film, Rob Zombie has made it clear that the Michael Myers mask and theme music will remain.[2] Recently Zombie has seen the mask and claims that "It looks perfect. exactly like the original. Not since 1978 has The Shape looked so good".[3] Apparently, John Carpenter has given his blessing to Rob Zombie.[4] Malek Akkad will assist in producing, replacing Moustapha Akkad, his deceased father.
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[edit] Synopsis
"After being committed for 17 years, Michael Myers, now a grown man and still very dangerous, is mistakenly released from the mental institution (where he was committed as a 10 year old) and he immediately returns to Haddonfield, where he wants to find his baby sister, Laurie. Anyone who crosses his path is in mortal danger."[5]
[edit] Cast
- Malcolm McDowell - Dr. Sam Loomis
- Daeg Faerch - Young Michael Myers
- Tyler Mane - Adult Michael Myers
- Scout Taylor-Compton - Laurie Strode
- Danielle Harris - Annie Brackett
- Brad Dourif - Sheriff Brackett
- Kristina Klebe - Lynda
- Sheri Moon Zombie - Deborah Myers
- Hanna R. Hall - Judith Myers
- Udo Kier - Morgan Walker
- Dee Wallace-Stone - Cynthia Strode
- Pat Skipper - Mason Strode
- William Forsythe - Ronnie White
- Skyler Gisondo - Tommy Doyle
- Jenny Gregg Stewart - Lindsey Wallace
- Ken Foree - Big Joe Grizzly
- Lew Temple - Nole Kluggs
- Danny Trejo - Ismael Cruz
- Richard Lynch - Principal Chambers
- Adrienne Barbeau - Barbara Florentine
- Tom Towles - Councilman Edwards
- Richmond Arquette - Deputy Charles
- Richard Fancy - Dean Carpenter
- Sybil Danning - Nurse Wynn
- Daniel Roebuck - Lou Martini
- Micky Dolenz - Derek Allan
- Ezra Buzzington - Grant Clark
- Max Van Ville - Paul
- Adam Weisman - Steve
- Nikki Taylor Melton - Princess 1
- Calico Cooper
- Courtney Gains
- Clint Howard
- Daryl Sabara
[edit] Production
The project was first announced, along with the director behind it, on the official Halloween website[6] in June of 2006. Despite early rumors that the next Halloween film would be a sequel or even a prequel, it was quickly confirmed by Rob Zombie that the film would in fact be "starting totally from scratch. This the new HALLOWEEN. Call it a remake, an update, a reimagining or whatever, but one thing that is for sure is this is a whole new start... a new beginning with no connection to the other series.", further stating "I am not making Halloween 9. That series is done, complete, over."[7] Rob Zombie will write, direct, produce, and act as music supervisor on the film.
In various interviews, Rob Zombie has been asked if Michael's appearance, style of killing, and movements will be the same as in the 1978 original Halloween film. Zombie said that some original elements are likely to return, but fresh ones will also appear. It has been stated that it would be pointless in bringing some character elements as seen in the other eight installments. The basic storyline will be very similar to the original while some elements will be expanded upon or quite different from the original film. According to a post made by Rob Zombie on the film's official MySpace, dated January 03, 2007, the mask for the film has been completed by Wayne Toth, and looks "perfect. exactly like the original."[8]
Some more information on the movie was revealed in an interview with MTV.[9]. In the interview Zombie says that "horror movie remakes for the most part don't work." He says "The remake thing is done all the time, but it's not done well", and that "Truthfully, if I couldn't see any way to do this, I wouldn't do it because it's a challenging project." Zombie again established that the movie will be a "remake with more backstory built in." He went on to say that the big change comes with Myers character. Myers will be the lead character of the remake, and the teenagers and everyone else will take a backseat to Myers. He wants the film to be more about Myers' motives, and less about teenagers in peril. He says that explaining the motives, and diving further into what makes Myers tick is the way to go for the remake, because "The deeper you can get into a character's head, the further you will get under an audience's skin and the more it will unnerve them." He also says that Loomis and Sheriff Brackett will have significantly bigger roles than in the original film. On the subject of Dr. Loomis role in the remake Zombie said "I felt the character of Dr. Loomis just popped in and out when they needed somebody to say something dramatic," going onto say "I wanted his story to feel more intertwined with Michael in a way that means something, which they did in the original, but sometimes it feels like he disappears for a long period and then just pops up to go, 'He's evil!,' and then he disappears again for a while." He also says that although the famous main theme will remain mostly the same, some minor changes will be made to it. The article further states that the shooting script has been completed, and filming is scheduled to begin in January 2007.
On November 22nd, 2006, bloody-disgusting.com posted a casting breakdown for the film, revealing several changes to the original film's story, as well as confirming the film's start date as January 29th, 2007.[5] While later confirmed as authentic, Rob Zombie commented that certain details contained in the casting breakdown shouldn't be over-analyzed by fans, stating that extreme elements were inserted in order to "weed out a certain type of actors," and may not be in the final film.[10]
In January 2007, two websites published spoiler-filled reviews of the film's script. The first, written by Ain't It Cool News staff-member "Quint", held a rather negative opinion of the material, with Quint describing his reaction as "absolutely befuddled," and finally calling the script "...a real disappointment."[11] The second review, penned by Ryan Rotten for Fangoria, was more optimistic, stating "To me, a 180-degree turn from Carpenter’s film is all we can ask for—and it’s what we’ve got here. That, and a script that’s a palpable springboard for some truly vicious stuff..."[12] According to Rotten, the script reviewed by both himself and Quint is an early draft, and not the final shooting script,—"a blueprint of what’s to come; a narrative that will be combined with meticulous camera compositions, astute pacing, sound design and music (we can hope)." Rob Zombie later confirmed that the leaked draft is not the version being filmed, saying "Whatever version of the script that anyone ever read was so old and outdated that anything anyone ever commented on was so long gone or changed it wasn’t even worth commenting on." [13]
In a November update to fans, Rob Zombie stated: "Location scouting is done. We found some killer places to shoot."[14] However, no mention was made of where location scouting had taken place. Rumors and reports suggested filming may take place in South Pasadena, California, same as the original 1978 film. According to updates by Fangoria, production began on January 25, 2007 in the Los Angeles area, with disgruntled fans of the original film protesting on Sunset Blvd.[15] Later reports in fact confirmed earlier rumors that filming would take place very near the locations used for the original film.
According to bloody-disgusting.com, the release date has been moved from October 19th, 2007 to August 31st, 2007. On February 24th, 2007, Rob Zombie released the first photograph of Michael Myers from the new film on the film's official MySpace. Also posted was the first photograph of Daeg Faerch as the young Michael. On March 3rd, 2007, Rob Zombie released the first official photographs of the new Annie, Laurie, Lynda, and Dr. Sam Loomis.
According to HalloweenFlash.com, Tyler Bates has confirmed to the webmaster that he will compose the music for the film. When a version of the John Carpenter Halloween theme appeared on his website, rumors began circulating that it was the final version intended for the new film. This was later rejected by Bates and Zombie, stating that it was merely a temporary version created as an example for the producers. In March of 2007, MTV posted an article reporting that Rob Zombie had in fact decided not to use the original John Carpenter theme[16], but this was soon dismissed by Zombie as a misunderstanding, saying "We always wanted to use pieces of the original score, kind of redone to fit our picture...more than likely we’re going to use pieces of the classic themes."[17]
Filming wrapped on March 22, 2007. The film is currently in the process of being edited.
Rob Zombie regularly updates the film's official MySpace page, sharing new information on production and casting. Rob Zombie has also communicated to fans more directly through the Official Halloween Message Board.
[edit] Additional information
- Production on the film had previously been hampered by the legal separation of Dimension Films from Miramax Films,and The Walt Disney Company as well as the death of the franchise's long-running executive producer, Moustapha Akkad, in the 2005 Amman bombings. One of his sons, Malek Akkad [18], will take over the role of executive producer on all future Halloween films. Malek Akkad first started working on the franchise as a production assistant on the fourth film and began working on the Halloween franchise as a producer beginning with the sixth film.
- The first official teaser trailer for the film debuted in theaters on April 6th, 2007, playing in front of Grindhouse. Director Rob Zombie has also directed Werewolf Women of the SS, a short "faux trailer" segment for Grindhouse, which will play between the two main features.
- This is the first Halloween film to be distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, a big hollywood studio. This is the first time a hollywood studio made a Halloween film since Universal released the original two sequels (one related (the Myers-related Halloween II (1981)), one unrelated (Halloween III: Season Of The Witch (1982)) back in the early eighties.
[edit] References
- ^ Zombie plots new mayhem for Halloween. Retrieved on December 19, 2006.
- ^ Rob Zombie's Halloweeen. Retrieved on December 19, 2006.
- ^ The Big Question Answered Halloween. Retrieved on January 4, 2007.
- ^ Rob Zombie to Re-Make Halloween. Retrieved on December 19, 2006.
- ^ a b Official Halloween Casting Breakdown, Synopsis. Retrieved on December 19, 2006.
- ^ HalloweenMovies.com.
- ^ Rob Zombie's MySpace.
- ^ The Official Rob Zombie Halloween Page.
- ^ Halloween: Zombie's Cut. Retrieved on December 19, 2006.
- ^ http://www.ohmb.net/showpost.php?p=438400&postcount=611
- ^ Ain't It Cool News: Halloween Script Review.
- ^ Fango's Take on Zombie's Halloween Script.
- ^ Halloween: On Set With Director Rob Zombie!.
- ^ The Official Rob Zombie Halloween Page.
- ^ Rob Zombie's Halloween Protested.
- ^ Zombie Kills 'Halloween' Theme Song, Revokes Myers' Drivers's License.
- ^ Halloween: On Set With Director Rob Zombie!.
- ^ Malek Akkad at the Internet Movie Database
[edit] External links
- Halloween at the Internet Movie Database
- CountingDown.com
- Official Halloween site
- Official MySpace blog
- [2]
- Official trailer
John Carpenter/Debra Hill-conceived: Halloween • Halloween II
Sequel not featuring Michael Myers: Halloween III: Season of the Witch
First continuity: Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers • Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers • Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
Second continuity: Halloween H20: 20 Years Later • Halloween: Resurrection
Remake: Halloween
Comic book continuity: Halloween (comics)
Main characters: Michael Myers • Samuel J. Loomis • Laurie Strode • Jamie Lloyd
