throatsprockets's review
1.0
I came to this book hoping it would add something to the movie. Maybe some depth of characterisation, interesting extra detail, hints of things that were in the script but missing from the finished film. All I got was the movie retold with an abundance of unnecessary over-description and repetition. I lost count of the amount of times a scene from a couple of pages earlier would be repeated from a different character’s point of view with nothing new added. (The handful of scenes that aren't in the finished film are the same ones found in the Deleted Scenes on the blu ray - at least one of which creates a continuity error with Halloween Kills.)
Back in the older times, thirty or forty years ago, movie novelisations served a purpose. If you loved the movie it was a way to revisit it cheaply, or maybe you a kid who wasn’t allowed to see a popular movie and this was a way to catch up during the long wait for video or tv release.
Some of the better novelisations added to the experience, eg Gremlins/ by George Gipe created background on where the Mogwai came from, which director Joe Dante has said he would have added to the movie if he’d known about it in time. The Goonies by James Khan is told in first person from two characters’ point of view, so we get their often amusing insights as well as a few scenes that were in the script but deleted from the finished film. Lethal Weapon by Joel Norst is based on Shane Black’s original script, before it was rewritten to lighten the tone and completely change the ending, so it gives the readers whole new experience from watching the movie.
In these times when a movie starts streaming online barely after theatrical release and where access to movies in general is high, a novelisation really needs to add some of these details to avoid being redundant. But in this case, we just get a description of the movie with lots of unnecessary verbiage to extend the thing to book length. I could almost see the writer looking at the word count and going back through the manuscript to see where he could pad things out some more.
This might not be entirely the writer’s fault. Even some of the better novelisation writers, like Alan Dean Foster and Max Alan Collins, have talked about how in some cases they were contractually obliged to not add any story elements. Given how thin the movie’s script already was, that would have made for an impossible task; without the charisma of the actors even a writer as evocative as Dennis Etchison (who wrote two of the better earlier Halloween novelisations under the pseudonym Jack Martin) would have trouble making anything much out of Halloween 2018.
Back in the older times, thirty or forty years ago, movie novelisations served a purpose. If you loved the movie it was a way to revisit it cheaply, or maybe you a kid who wasn’t allowed to see a popular movie and this was a way to catch up during the long wait for video or tv release.
Some of the better novelisations added to the experience, eg Gremlins/ by George Gipe created background on where the Mogwai came from, which director Joe Dante has said he would have added to the movie if he’d known about it in time. The Goonies by James Khan is told in first person from two characters’ point of view, so we get their often amusing insights as well as a few scenes that were in the script but deleted from the finished film. Lethal Weapon by Joel Norst is based on Shane Black’s original script, before it was rewritten to lighten the tone and completely change the ending, so it gives the readers whole new experience from watching the movie.
In these times when a movie starts streaming online barely after theatrical release and where access to movies in general is high, a novelisation really needs to add some of these details to avoid being redundant. But in this case, we just get a description of the movie with lots of unnecessary verbiage to extend the thing to book length. I could almost see the writer looking at the word count and going back through the manuscript to see where he could pad things out some more.
This might not be entirely the writer’s fault. Even some of the better novelisation writers, like Alan Dean Foster and Max Alan Collins, have talked about how in some cases they were contractually obliged to not add any story elements. Given how thin the movie’s script already was, that would have made for an impossible task; without the charisma of the actors even a writer as evocative as Dennis Etchison (who wrote two of the better earlier Halloween novelisations under the pseudonym Jack Martin) would have trouble making anything much out of Halloween 2018.
welshrebel1776's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
andreavisbal240's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
browneyesblue84's review
5.0
“It’s not a cage, baby. It’s a trap.”
Laurie waited 40 years for the moment to come face to face with The Shape aka Michael Audrey Myers again and this time she’s ready for him. Only this time she has a daughter and granddaughter to protect.
The Official Halloween Novelization written by author John Passarella is even better than the movie in my opinion. Mind you I really like the movie, saw it twice in theaters and am looking forward to the sequel. I’ll read that novelization as well when it’s published. There were a few loose ends that it cleared up for me such as what happened after Julian left, who those random women were that Michael killed and Michael’s fate at the end of the movie. This was an easy read for me and the first paperback book that I read so far this year. I was happy when the idea for a new Halloween movie emerged. One that ignored every movie after the first. Mind you I like those movies ( even Rob Zombie’s take on the series).
Previously, I wasn’t familiar with the author’s other novelizations. However, I truly hope that he gets a chance to write the upcoming novelization as well as the final one in the trilogy. I’m rating Halloween five out of five stars.
Laurie waited 40 years for the moment to come face to face with The Shape aka Michael Audrey Myers again and this time she’s ready for him. Only this time she has a daughter and granddaughter to protect.
The Official Halloween Novelization written by author John Passarella is even better than the movie in my opinion. Mind you I really like the movie, saw it twice in theaters and am looking forward to the sequel. I’ll read that novelization as well when it’s published. There were a few loose ends that it cleared up for me such as what happened after Julian left, who those random women were that Michael killed and Michael’s fate at the end of the movie. This was an easy read for me and the first paperback book that I read so far this year. I was happy when the idea for a new Halloween movie emerged. One that ignored every movie after the first. Mind you I like those movies ( even Rob Zombie’s take on the series).
Previously, I wasn’t familiar with the author’s other novelizations. However, I truly hope that he gets a chance to write the upcoming novelization as well as the final one in the trilogy. I’m rating Halloween five out of five stars.
leesapollo's review
5.0
Read it within 24h, despite already seeing the movie I couldn’t put it down. I love the extras you get from reading a book like the thoughts of the characters written down on the page as opposed to the actors trying to convey that thought and ultimately leaving it up for the audience to translate the end result.
I was happy the internal monologue of Myers was conveyed to that level of insight. My skin literally crawled when we were taken on a hunt with Michael stalking through the streets of Haddonfield.
I took way more from this novel than from the movie. A massive Halloween fan. A very happy chippy. Thanks to the author!
I was happy the internal monologue of Myers was conveyed to that level of insight. My skin literally crawled when we were taken on a hunt with Michael stalking through the streets of Haddonfield.
I took way more from this novel than from the movie. A massive Halloween fan. A very happy chippy. Thanks to the author!
michaelrcalkins's review against another edition
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Sexual content
geofroggatt's review
3.0
This movie novelization did what most movie novelizations do and told the exact same story as the movie while providing insights and extra context for the characters and situations from the movie. While this novelization did a great job adapting the script to book form, I wish there were more additional content that wasn’t in the movie. There were actually a few moments that weren’t in the novel, including one of my favorite moments with Karen in the basement. While I loved the movie that this novelization is based off of, I found Michael Myers to be less interesting in book format.
itcamefromthepage's review
4.0
Fleshes out the film in a great way and is my preferred way of experiencing this story.