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Trick ‘r Treat (2008)
Rated R| Review date: 18-Oct-2009
Fans are calling Michael Dougherty’s “Trick ‘r Treat” the best horror movie to come out in recent years, if not of all time. So does it live up to the high praise? Yes and no. I say yes only because the bar has not been set very high recently. There’s been only a few rare gems, so when we do get a decent film it’s easy to place it in the top list. The reasoning for my saying no is that I was expecting more as a result of the accolades fans have been throwing it. It really is a very good horror film but my judgment is slightly altered when I already have slightly higher expectations in my head.
The film follows 5 apparent unrelated stories that are soon interwoven as each consecutive segment plays out. It takes place in a town that takes Halloween very seriously. From extravagant parades, parties, and jack-o-lanterns to werewolves and legends of Halloween massacres, anything is game on Halloween in this town. The story is executed in a comic style, much similar to Sin City, with comic font captions and graphic illustrations thrown in between scenes. In this sense it manages to be fresh and visually appealing.
“Trick ‘r Treat” stars Dylan Baker as a maniacal principle slash serial killer named Steven, who uses Halloween as a great opportunity for his dark and twisted pleasures. He is my second favorite character in the film, as he brings the most dark humor and disturbing scenes that really make for a great horror movie. The other characters include a group of ladies, which includes Anna Paquin (True Blood), with a dark secret, and an old miserable hermit played by the great Brian Cox. The other main characters include a group of children out for a night of Halloween tricks, with the standout being the character of a nerdy misfit named Rhonda, played by Samm Todd (she being my first favorite character, I really hope to see more of this girl).
The rest of the cast is made of up of mostly spirits and ghouls. The scenes including these characters are some of the best of the film. While their not very scary (nor is the film in general), they have great costumes and an undeniable eerie presence. The character of the Sack Boy is the standout amongst the ghouls. This is where the film had most of it’s mystery and chill factor, and although I feel this character had the potential to provide more scares and thrills he ended up providing a lot of the film’s humor.
“Trick ‘r Treat” really does have a lot of great concepts going on. The film’s direction creates the perfect mood and mysterious atmosphere that sets the film apart from others. The main issue I had with it though, was not the story or directing. I felt it could have been a bit longer at times. To me it felt kind of rushed, with little time for us to get to know the characters. The town is obviously highly supernatural but we never really get any insight on why. and why on this particular night everything went awry. The segment of the Halloween massacre is told the most in depth, however I found it puzzling as to why this curse played out at this particular moment.
Perhaps I’m just thinking into it too much. After all, it’s a horror movie. I think it’s just that I felt the story was so strong and suspenseful, it almost could have been a more serious and developed one. Overall it really did deliver, and any fan of the Halloween festivities will definitely enjoy this work. It doesn’t really scare or go into great detail about the back-stories, but it does combine a bunch of chilling tales and great set design/costumes with inspired film making. To me, “Trick ‘r Treat” didn’t quite live up to its potential, but it still does stand out as one of the best horror movies to come out recently (definitely the top Halloween-themed) and has given a breath of fresh air to a genre seemingly on life support.
Rating: 5.5 out of 7
