An anthology of five stories set in the same neighborhood on the same Halloween night. All of which are overlooked by Sam – a mysterious trick-or-treater, who’s there to see everyone’s honoring the Halloween traditions.
Opening
A prologue involving a married couple Emma (Leslie Bibb) and Henry (Tamoh Penikett) arriving home from Halloween festival. Emma hates Halloween and wants to take down the decorations early while Henry wants to keep celebrating. Someone is watching Emma take down the decorations and is clearly not happy.
The Principle
Principle Steven Wilkins (Dylan Baker) is secretly a serial killer, who takes advantage of the holiday to kill bad children with poison candy.
The School Bus Massacre Revisited
A group of children collects pumpkins as a memorial for a bus full of special needs children that crashed into a quarry. Inviting a special needs girl to the memorial, things don’t go according to plan.
Surprise Party
Virginal college girl Laurie (Anna Paquin) dressed as Little Red Riding Hood is on her way to a party. However, she’s having no luck trying to find a date, until she starts being stalked by a masked vampire.
Meet Sam
Mr. Kreeg (Brian Cox) is Scrooge-like Halloween hating old man, who scares off trick-or-treaters and steals their candy. Sam decides to pay Mr. Kreeg a little visit.
All five stories are fun and enjoyable with many twists and turns, making them unpredictable. It’s difficult to pick a favorite, as they are all well-written and excellently paced.
The first is the shortest and is just a prologue setting the tone for the rest of the stories. As they crossover, it never feels forced, and they fit together like a puzzle and actually enhance the enjoyment of each other.
This is a beautifully shot film, and with its fantastic orange lighting, there is no doubt that it is a Halloween-based film. With a multitude of costumes and jack o’ lanterns everywhere, mixed with creepy settings like the woods and the dark streets. Every frame of this film just screams “Halloween”.
There are some bloody scenes, but I wouldn’t call it a scary film. Apart from a few suspense moments, it’s more creepy than scary. The film doesn’t take itself too seriously, with its comedy and tongue-in-cheek humor.
But it’s most definitely not for children. In fact, there are some disturbing moments that involve children.
Sam is such an iconic horror character. He’s a child who’s wearing an orange onesie and a burlap sack with button-eyes, which is cute but also creepy. The name Sam is a reference to Samhain, a Gaelic festival that celebrated the thin veil between the living and the dead that was believed to have evolved to Halloween. He can blend into other trick-or-treaters so no one would suspect him. What he actually looks like under the sack is not revealed until the end. His design is so excellent and perfectly represents Halloween, like how Santa represents Christmas.
This is a must-see film for every horror fan and Halloween lover. It’s incredibly entertaining, with fun characters, a great cast, clever writing and just an overall love letter to Halloween.
Written by Jack Parish
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