FREEZE FRAME: “Halloween” (R), “The Oath” (R)

It’s been 40 years since the masked killer Michael Meyers slashed his way into movie infamy in the horror classic “Halloween,” but there was one victim who got away. After decades in an asylum, Michael escapes to finally finish things with Laurie Strode in the reboot of “Halloween.” Jamie Lee Curtis returns as Laurie and Nick Castle is back as Michael. Filmmaker David Gordon Green’s film dispenses with storylines from all nine of the other bloody sequels and remakes but retains the grisly elements for fans of this violent, morally dubious genre. While the reimagined version doesn’t add much that’s new, the revamped “Halloween” is creepy, unnerving and considerably better than any of the other follow-ups.

“The Oath” is a pitch-black comedy that takes a poke at America’s deep political divide. Comedian Ike Barinholtz wrote, directed and stars in this edgy farce about an insufferably self-righteous liberal whose rigidly right-wing family members come over for Thanksgiving dinner just as the President requires every citizen to sign an oath of loyalty to him. The caustic banter between these relatives quickly devolves into violence. The strong cast includes Tiffany Haddish, John Cho and Carrie Brownstein who make the grating dialogue a bit easier to take. While it’s a daring experiment, “The Oath” swings a noisy hammer without ever hitting the nail.

Also opening this week, “Tea With the Dames” is a documentary featuring four legends of the British stage and screen who get together to shoot the breeze. Dame Maggie Smith, Dame Judi Dench, Dame Eileen Atkins and Dame Joan Plowright are longtime friends who take a weekend in the country to catch up, gossip and banter. “The Sisters Brothers” is an offbeat Western starring John C. Reilly and Joaquin Phoenix. “Kinky” is a drama set in the Atlanta African-American S&M scene.

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