HALLOWEEN: H20

• Starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Adam Arkin, Josh Hartnett and LL Cool J
• Directed by Steve Miner
• Rated R, with strong violence and profanity; running time 83 minutes
• With 10 as a must-see, Jack gives this film a 7

By Jack Garner
Democrat and Chronicle

(Aug. 5, 1998) -- Michael Myers is back.

No, I'm not talking about the sequel to Austin Powers, though that's coming up. I'm talking about Hollywood's other Michael Myers, the soulless psycho with a mask and a butcher knife who's such a cut-up in the Halloween movies.

Myers was thrust upon moviegoers in 1978 in John Carpenter's original Halloween, a clever, frightening horror romp that was far better than 99 percent of the slasher films that followed it.

The film's other claim to fame was young newcomer Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode, the main target of the killer. We eventually learned that Laurie was Michael's sister, the only family member to survive after young Michael went berserk and killed the others.

After a brief reign as Hollywood's "scream queen," Curtis moved on to more conventional movie stardom. However, in honor of Halloween's 20th anniversary, she's returned to the role that made her famous.

The new edition is Halloween H20 (read that H-twenty), directed by Steve Miner in the style and mood of Carpenter's trend-setting original.

Once again, Curtis plays Laurie. Now 37, she's changed her name to Keri Tate in a feeble attempt to escape her past. She's headmistress of a posh California boarding school, and one of her students is her 17-year-old son John (Josh Hartnett).

Each year as Halloween approaches, Laurie grows more nervous; in fact, she's developed a drinking problem.

Sure, everyone believes Michael is dead. However (in the grand Hollywood monster tradition), he's proved remarkably resilient.

And Laurie is particularly upset when she remembers that she was 17 when Michael sought her out; her own son is now 17.

As luck would have it, Halloween falls on a weekend when most of the school's students and teachers are away on a camping trip.

Left alone on the gated campus are Laurie; her boyfriend, Will (Adam Arkin), the school guidance counselor; a friendly security guard (LL Cool J); and four students, including her son.

Smart, huh? And we all know who's headed her way ...

To Miner's credit, the new Halloween -- like the original -- is simple, lean and quick, with only enough gore to do the job.

The frights follow the formula: long, nervous walks down corridors, bad things (and red herrings) behind doors or in shadows, the relentless pursuit of a maniacal killer -- but most of them work. Fans of the first film won't be disappointed.

There's another bonus for veteran filmgoers. The school secretary is played, in a cameo, by Curtis' mother, Janet Leigh. She took the most infamous shower in movie history in Psycho, the granddaddy of all slasher movies.

Still, it's Curtis who justifies, and elevates, this latest Halloween sequel. Having matured into a distinctive actress, she's a more interesting, appealing adversary for Michael. She's older, wiser and tougher than the high-school baby sitter who ran for her life two decades ago.

She's not running now.