Trick 'r Treat (2007)
Trick 'r Treat
- 4/5 Cameras 🎥🎥🎥🎥
- Directed by: Michael Dougherty
- Starring: Anna Paquin, Dylan Baker, Brian Cox, et al
- Where to find it: Rent on Amazon Prime Video
No Copyright Infringement Intended Halloween is often seen as a significant time of year for horror fans, the spookiest time of year being a good excuse to release and watch horror movies. The classic Halloween-themed horror is of course John Carpenter’s seminal work, Halloween (1978), but a cult film from 2007 might just be the best.Trick ‘r Treat follows a series of connected stories taking place around the town of Warren Valley on Halloween night. These include a school headteacher with a dark side, a group of children getting a little too into the Halloween spirit, 22-year-old Laurie who arrives in town for a party with her sister and friends looking to lose her virginity, and a Halloween hating local with a surprise visitor. The stories are told in a non-linear sequence and all of them link in with each other at various points, most notably through the appearance of Sam, seemingly a young boy out trick or treating with a burlap sack mask.
The film essentially plays out as a series of shorts, each shown one after the other. This mixed with its rather lean run time of just 82 minutes does mean that naturally characters aren’t allowed much in the way of development, with most appearing to be fairly basic horror movie archetypes. But Trick ‘r Treat isn’t trying to be a deep character study, and where the film really excels is in its feel. In the same way that films like Elf or Miracle on 34th Street feel like Christmas, Trick ‘r Treat feels like Halloween thanks to some neat set design (so many perfectly carved pumpkins), a spooky score that nicely homages classic horror music, and a reverence for many of the main Halloween traditions from past to present.
The cast is solid, Anna Paquin feeling believable as innocent and vulnerable Laurie, Brian Cox being delightfully over the top as miserable old man Mr. Kreeg, and Dylan Baker is suitably creepy as headteacher Steven Wilkins. Elsewhere the names are less well known, but even amongst these smaller parts, no one stands out as a problem. The character of Sam (short for Samhain, the name for the Celtic festival Halloween would seem to have its origins in) is also very nicely designed, and I don’t think anyone has ever made a lollipop seem so scary.
Violence in horror is a big thing, and Trick ‘r Treat is no exception, though notably, it does not rely heavily upon it. Yes, there are splashes of blood at times and the odd slash is shown, but a lot of the more extreme violence is merely implied, ensuring that the film never wanders into gratuity. This, mixed with its comedic elements, fast-moving plots, and fun Halloween night setting result in the movie having a vibe that’s a lot more spooky than outright scary. And with Halloween being far more about fun than fear these days, this further confirms Trick ‘r Treat’s status as the ultimate choice for a Halloween movie night.
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