The critics got it wrong, at least in my opinion. This remake isn’t bad at all. Many people are drawing comparisons to the original film, which is easy to understand. However, many claim it's terrible compared to the original, and I don’t see that at all. It's one of those movies where I had seen the first version before, and it was even a favorite of mine back then. I believe this remake stands up pretty well. I initially felt uneasy when they described it as a prequel, or at least partly so. But it isn’t really what I would consider a true prequel. There's some extra backstory in the first portion, but that doesn’t make it a prequel to me. The movie turned out pretty much like I anticipated, or maybe I should say, what I was hoping for. It is a slasher film, of course, but it avoids going too far over the top. These kinds of movies don't really shock or frighten you anymore, so I wasn’t expecting them to. I just enjoyed watching Michael rampage through the town. Of course, it’s a little unsettling to be enjoying yourself while watching someone go on a killing spree in a small town, but hey, it is all fake! One issue with the expanded backstory at the beginning of the film is that it creates something of a plot-hole that I found a bit irritating. When, and more importantly, how did Michael transform from a disturbed child into a supernatural killer who can carry away a ton of tombstone and survive being stabbed and shot? Aside from that, I think this movie wasn't bad at all. Sometimes I thought Michael was acting too human when he stumbled while breaking through walls, but overall I really liked it. The style is different from the original, certainly, but I don’t feel it’s worse or better. It’s a little surprising (though maybe not, since the French have strange scheduling habits for movies and TV shows) that Cine+ didn't show this movie on Halloween itself instead of what they actually aired—this one would have been perfect then, rather than showing it the day after.

Source on TMDB