Halloween Premieres to Rave Reviews

October can’t come soon enough for horror fans as Halloween earns unanimous praise from its first screening. The slasher reboot premiered last weekend at the Toronto International Film Festival to rave reviews, earning a standing ovation and making its Rotten Tomatoes debut with an unprecedented 100% approval rating. While the film’s score is almost certain to lower by the time of its general release on October 19, its debut is nevertheless an indication that Blumhouse Productions, the studio behind the film, has a genuine hit on its hands in time for the fall holidays. Halloween’s Rotten Tomatoes score comes as no surprise for people following the film’s premiere. Before official critical reviews were even posted, audience members took to social media, praising the film. By far the most frequent area of praise was the return of legendary scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis to her iconic role as Laurie Strode. In addition to liking her portrayal of Strode as a tough as nails survivor, reviewers also praised Curtis for her role as a mother in the film. Reviewers also noted the movie’s humor and frequent callbacks to the original film, saying that it was a labor of love by people who genuinely enjoyed the franchise.

Even though Halloween’s Rotten Tomatoes score is sure to lower in the weeks prior to its general release, it is already shaping-up to be one of the best reviewed films in the franchise. Although the original Halloween film from 1978 holds a 93% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, other entries in the series have not found much critical praise. The last film in the series, the Rob Zombie directed Halloween II from 2009, only holds a 19% approval rating on the site. Additionally, 1995’s Halloween – The Return of Michael Myers, holds the lowest score of any film in the franchise, only achieving a 6% approval rating. Of the ten sequels to the original film, 1998’s Halloween H2O has thus far garnered the most critical praise, settling at a 52% approval rating.

This year’s Halloween ignores most previous films in the franchise, being a direct sequel to the 1978 original. In addition to Curtis, Nick Castle returns to the series as the knife-wielding killer Michael Myers. Original director John Carpenter also returns to the series as an executive producer for the film.