I went ahead and saw this today.
Of all the slasher flicks I saw from 1979 (saw the first Halloween on HBO that year) through roughly 1983 or perhaps 1984, Halloween is the only one that I continue to regard highly. Perhaps because it was pretty much the first, or certainly the defining, film of that genre. After Nightmare on Elm Street (whatever year that came out, 83 or 84), I made a decision to quit seeing these kind of movies in theaters. Just was no longer an interesting genre. I did eventually see all of the Halloween sequels after III, and thought they were all hot garbage. Never saw the remakes that came out a few years ago.
I think that was made Michael Meyers so interesting for me was the thought that he was possessed, perhaps by the devil, and that made him indestructible. No one takes all those slugs and gets up to kill again, yet he did. That was reinforced in the original Halloween II, a movie that I largely enjoyed back in 1981 (but rewatched a couple nights ago and didn't feel the same about it). As that movie established, fire seems to be the only thing that can kill Michael Meyers.
I know this movie ignores everything after the first movie, and that is fine. So here, we have Michael Meyers getting out of the nuthouse after 40 years. The only real sense I got of that possession I mentioned earlier was in him picking right up where he left off, but he went about it in a way that made me think he just wanted to kill someone, anyone, didn't matter who it was. The reporters, I understand, because they had introduced themselves to him early in the movie; the mechanics, I understand because he needed transportation. The lady who fixed the sandwich and he clubbed at her dining room table, or the blonde gal, WTF? The porky dude, I suppose through his connection with the granddaughter, but why the blonde babysitter and her soy boy? Why not just go right after Laurie and her family? I'm sure I am overthinking this.
It was a good movie, not particularly scary, but also I thought it didn't have the same feel as the original Halloween.
Agree on when Michael pitched Laurie out the window, and then she was gone a minute later, was a nice call-back. So was the scene in the school when Allison was in a class where the teacher mentioned something about fate, and Allyson looked out the window to see Laurie standing across the street.
Overall, I'd give it a B.
Also, The Thing is Carpenter's best movie, and it really isn't close to his other movies such as Halloween, The Fog, Escape From New York, and Big Trouble in Little China.
