217) Spirit Halloween: The Movie (2022)

Director
David Poag

Cast
Donovan Colan - Jake
Dylan Frankel - Carson
Jaiden J. Smith - Bo 
Christopher Lloyd - Alec Windsor
Marla Gibbs - Grandmother
Marissa Reyes - Kate

I admit I was curious more than I should have been when I heard a movie based completely on the Wal-Mart of seasonal stores, Spirit Halloween, was dropping back in 2022. 

I feel like I'm on track reviewing "Spirit Halloween: The Movie" as I wanted to use this blog as a platform for the campiest, or underrated, or off-the-radar type of oddball horror movies out there - new or old. 

I didn't go out of my way to see what kind of movie centered on a chain of retail store the so-called "writers" could come up with. I anticipated a movie that would be nothing more than an hour and a half long commercial that, by the way, stars Christopher Lloyd! It's the only logical conclusion one can make. To assume otherwise would be nothing short of high expectations. 

I didn't watch "Spirit Halloween: The Movie" until now, and that's because I happened to come across it on a streaming app. I can't recall which one. 

Again, I was curious to see what kind of story could be pounded out for a movie named for a Halloween costume store. I do have to say I enjoy Spirit Halloween whenever I come across one around in October. It's a fun experience. The animatronics are entertaining enough. And being the horror fan that I am, I appreciate the range of "stuff" for sale. 

The movie begins sometime in the 1940s or 1950s as a corrupt developer named Alec Windsor (Christopher Lloyd) harasses a landowner claiming he now owns her property. He has seemingly tried to obtain her land for some time. 

The woman happens to be a witch, and curses Windsor causing him to drop dead on the spot. His soul then floats away someplace. 

Things transition to the present time. Teenage buddies Carson (Dylan Frankel), Bo (Jaiden J. Smith), and Jake (Donovan Colan) walk through town discussing plans for Halloween.
Jake is still grieving the loss of his father as his relationship with his mother and stepfather is a bit strained. He wants to go trick-or-treating with his friends just as they've done before. It's tradition. 

Carson, however, thinks they've outgrown trick-or-treating and prefers to do something new. Bo thinks Carson has a point. They've outgrown trick-or-treating. 

The three of them visit their local Spirit Halloween superstore and decide to hide somewhere inside until it closes so they can spend Halloween night within. And it works. 

Once the store closes, the three buddies have fun messing with all the animatronics and other Halloween merch. The scenario makes the perfect sales pitch for the seasonal pop-up Spirit stores. 

While having fun inside like it's their own personal Pleasure Island, one of the animatronics comes to life. Little do the boys know that the store was built on the property from the beginning of the movie. And Windsor's cursed spirit is free to roam during this time of year looking for a living person to possess. 

So, his ghost takes possession of different animatronics, chasing the kids around until they discover a secret underneath the building. 

The whole movie reminds me of something I would have watched on Nickelodeon back in the late 1990s. 

I wouldn't go so far as to say this is a terrible movie. I would say, however, that it's forgettable and void of any real personality. It's as plain and level as it can be.

There is a thin and very general moral about courage, friendship, and strengthening family bonds. That's all fine and good. The mystery and lightheadedness are also fine and good for young viewers. There's no profanity and, basically, it's a clean-cut movie. 

Though it's aimed at kids, the movie is simply bland. It's not bad. It's not a great kids movie. It's just...bland. There's nothing memorable nor anything to take away. I get the feeling that had it any depth to it, "Spirit Halloween: The Movie" would be criticized for taking itself too seriously. Or it would just be "too deep" for a movie called "Spirit Halloween: The Movie." 

I do have to give a nod of approval for the scene in which "Night of the Living Dead" is playing on a TV. As far as I'm concerned, "Night of the Living Dead" is the "It's a Wonderful Life" of Halloween movies. 

Christopher Lloyd always makes an enjoyable villain. In fact, he's great at it. He plays a villainous role in the 1993 movie "Dennis the Menace" and even more notably, plays Judge Doom in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit." 

Lloyd strikes me as an actor who's in the field for the joy and love of being an actor. He doesn't strike me as someone who's in it for fame and all that entails. Rather, I wouldn't be surprised if he takes on any role that he deems enjoyable and expressive. 

Thankfully, "Spirit Halloween" has an hour and twenty-minute run time. So, it doesn't overstay its welcome. It gets to the point, hits a climax, and then ends.

I love how the title includes the phrase "the movie." It brings to mind the days of pop culture cinema from my own youth when intellectual properties and such got the movie treatment. Writers sold the novelty to audiences by calling their movies, "the movie." 

"Garbage Pail Kids: The Movie," "Superman: The Movie," "The Transformers: The Movie," "Twilight Zone: The Movie," "Jetsons: The Movie." Though that's still a practice with movies titles, it has a sense of nostalgia to it. 

I predict "Spirit Halloween: The Movie" will pop up some twenty years from now as a cinematic oddity when people will recall "that Halloween store movie." Maybe then it will have some appeal for the novelty it is. And it is a novelty. Otherwise, it's just a bland experience. I got nothing out of it. It didn't even arouse a desire to head to my nearest Spirit Halloween.