Trick 'r Treat (2007) **1/2

I'm very much in the minority, but I don't get the love for Michael Dougherty's Trick 'r Treat (2007). As a film, it's fine. As a horror anthology, it's okay. It's well made but unremarkable. There's no meat to the (cardboard cutout) characters or the story and when the film does attempt to subvert expectations it feels too pleased with itself in the process. I've also never been enamored with the Sam character the way that people seem to be. 

The movie features the type of mid-to-late 2000s cinematography that was very popular at the time and does nothing for me. The picture plays like a decent horror TV show episode at best. Any time it references better films (Halloween (1978) (review), The Howling (1981) (review), The Thing (1982) (review)) I just wish I was watching those instead. I liked it less on a rewatch and I don't feel the need to watch it again (I felt the same way about the director's 2015 Krampus).