Michael returns and steals a file on Laurie from his old nurse. After he slits her throat, he drives to find Strode who is living under the alias of Keri Tate and the headmistress of a posh private school.

I remember going to see this in a huge cinema in Marble Arch as I was living in London. I was so glad that the Halloween series had escaped the ‘straight to video’ rut it had backed itself into. H2O was going to be a fresh start, with acting heavyweights either returning or making their debut in the franchise (Jamie Lee Curtis, her mother Janet Leigh and, erm, LL Cool J) with this film being released 20 years after the debut masterpiece. My expectations were high!

And my thoughts after seeing this? Meh. No, it’s not a disaster, but it’s certainly not a patch on the first three films either.

It was very wise to disregard Part 4, 5 and 6 and pretend they hasn’t happened (I’m sure plenty of Halloween fans wish they hadn’t either) but if you’re going to follow Part 2 which was a continuation of Part 1, why not make a film akin to those two films instead? Halloween H2O feels like an atypical Dimension studios release that they were reknowned for at that point.

It feels middling, mediocre and kinda beige. There’s nothing striking, startling or memorable here. It’s the equivalent of having the blandest takeaway ever and not even remembering you’ve had it.

It also feels too Hollywood to be a Halloween film. The scene in which Michael lowers himself down using one arm whilst holding onto a pipe feels more like something from an Arnold Schwarzenegger film.

No, it’s nowhere near the terrible depths that the previous three films plunged but it’s still nowhere near the brilliance of the early films. And if you want to see a great Jamie and Janet movie, see The Fog instead.

1.5 out of 5 stars