Trick 'r Treat (2008)
Starring Anna Paquin, Brian Cox & Quinn Lord
Directed by Michael Dougherty
Written by Michael Dougherty

 

Trick R Treat and Paranormal Activity. Both of them made a little over 2 years ago, both shafted by their studios, both finally released this year. Of course, Paranormal Activity got a small theatrical release and Trick R Treat went straight to DVD, but both still got released to great accolades from horror fans. Another difference between them: Paranormal Activity will scare the crap out of you, Trick R Treat... not so much.

Now, lots of reasons float around for why Trick R Treat got treated so badly. Some blame the film's connection to the failed Superman Returns, some say they were afraid of looking bad competing against Saw at Halloween time, others still say that Warner Brothers just had no idea how to properly market the thing and just gave up. An important observation, though, is that no one can say this was hidden for lack of quality.

Trick R Treat is basically an anthology film telling 5 different stories that weave throughout each other in a little town on Halloween night. The one common element through the stories is a little trick-or-treater named Sam who pops up mysteriously to view all of the mayhem, and maybe commit a murder or two. Mostly though, he just wanders around looking simultaneously cute and grotesque with his huge bulbous head, shoving interesting things like poisoned candy and dead animals into his goody bag. The stories follow quite a menagerie of characters, from Sam himself, to a Halloween hating lady, a group of 'fairy princesses' hoping to get their sister laid, a serial killer, an old curmudgeon, and a group of teenage pranksters.

Among this group are a few welcome and familiar faces. Dylan Baker moves from child molester in Happiness to child killer here, Anna Paquin from True Blood meets another vampire of sorts, and Britt McKillip of Dead Like Me has another ghostly encounter. The casting is familiar and ironic, but appropriate, generally. Dylan Baker was probably the highlight of the film for me, both funny and the one truly genuinely creepy character in the movie. Anna Paquin is beautiful, and a delight to watch, but having her play a virgin who can't find a boy to take to a party to save her life is just ridiculous. She's hot beyond belief in her Little Red Riding Hood costume. If you want us to believe she can't get boys, put her in some head-gear, mess up her hair, something.

As with any movie of this sort, a series of shorts, the problem with it really just comes down to consistency. Some of the sequences are just better thought out than others. The couple from the film's intro continue to pop up in other stories, but really serve no purpose beyond their initial victimization. Anna Paquin's story is short, and really uninvolved, and serves almost as much to wrap up Baker's killer arc more than anything else... but again, damn Paquin is sexy. You've also got a lot of back and forth between which sequences are trying to be creepy, and which are trying to be funny. And sometimes, its trying to be one when it really ends up being the other.

Best example of this is probably Sam's sequence, the climax of the film. Sam is a pretty fun, cool looking little monster, and you really want to see him go crazy on somebody by the film's end. Of course, he's pretty much the ghost of Halloween-present, so who does he pick other than some crazy, old, Halloween-hating bastard scaring kids off his lawn with a dog and a gun. We hate this old guy. So, why the scary music? Why the tension? We're rooting for Sam here, not the old man. Are we supposed to be afraid that Sam's going to get hurt, and that's why that music is there? Because Sam can vanish, make flame jets, and looks kind of like the bastard love-child of Skeletor and Pumpkin Head; I don't think he's in danger.

So, there are no real scares to be had in Trick R Treat, but there is plenty of fun. There's lots of goopy guts and vomit, a little Marilyn Manson in the soundtrack, some boobs just to appease Ben Bussey, and lots of monster related gags. Trick R Treat strives very hard to capture the feel of Halloween, and does so admirably... or at least, Halloween now. It used to be a very scary holiday as a kid, still fun, but with just the right amount of menace behind it to keep it thrilling. As an adult, its a little more glossy, and a little more about the party than the scares, and I think this movie knows that. There's a lot about the candy, a lot about the parties, and just a little about the traditions Halloween came from. Those who don't remember to keep their pumpkins lit, or bribe the ghosts with sweet treats are bound to meet a grisly fate.

I'll happily throw this movie into my pantheon of Halloween watching. Is it quite what I had hoped for after two years of hype? Not really. But hype will do that. However, it now joins The Great Pumpkin, Garfield Halloween, Halloween Tree, the original Halloween and (perhaps breaking theme) Texas Chainsaw Massacre on my list of holiday viewing.

Happy Halloween!... but then for myself and Samhein of Real Ghostbusters, everyday is Halloween.