Six years after the fifth episode in the Halloween series, Michael Myers is at it again. Only this time he's not quite what you thought he was. The filmmakers should make this failed effort a lesson: don't fix what isn't broken. As a horror film menace, Myers was effective because although you had a vague idea what motivated him, he was largely an unknown. He never spoke. He never moved faster than a walk. And he never died. Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers unwisely attempts to throw some background on the character. It might have worked out had the background not been so ridiculous. Worse, the explanations given are more confusing than the character ever was before. I certainly can't make heads or tails of what this movie presents -- which includes, among other things, modern day Druids -- and try not to laugh too hard when you find out who their leader is.

Random things happen all throughout this movie. Michael Myers mows down people indiscriminately, which wouldn't normally be confusing except for new information about what drives him -- this movie's not only ludicrously overblown, it fails to operate by its own silly rules. The movie looks more like a filmed brainstorming session. The screenwriters had some ideas, they filmed some scenes to see how they looked, and they mashed it all into a movie.

The worst part is the dedication at the end -- to Donald Pleasence, the actor who played Dr. Loomis in episodes 1, 2, 4, 5, and this 6th episode of the Halloween series. He was a fine actor, appeared in nearly 200 films in his long career, and almost always brought a delightful color to his roles. It's a shame his swan song was such a pathetic piece of junk.