Will evil die tonight?
This review attempts to avoid spoilers while staying truthful to what this film really is. The best way to walk in is knowing as little as you can about it. That said, if you want to trek deeper, follow me into the sewers of Haddonfield. Evil is waiting...
Halloween Ends is the story of Corey Cunningham (Rohan Campbell), a young adult scorned by the town of Haddonfield after the death of a child he was babysitting back in 2019. The year is now 2022, and Corey is struggling to keep it together. Help comes when he befriends Allyson (Andi Matichak) and Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis). It's been four years since Michael's killing spree in Halloween Kills, and The Shape has vanished but the town hasn't forgotten his legend. When Corey has a close call with Michael, everything changes.
Halloween Ends is the finale for David Gordon Green's Halloween sequel trilogy. It's penned by David Gordon Green, Paul Brad Logan, Chris Bernier, and Danny McBride. Ends is one of the most different, original, and unique entries in the franchise. It's also certain to be one of the most divisive. This film makes some ballsy, bold, unexpected, and surprising choices that will likely alienate or even anger many fans.
Jamie Lee Curtis is back as Laurie, and puts on her strongest performance as the character since the original Halloween (Way back in '78). In this finale, she has worked to put Michael behind her. She's bought her own house and is working on a memoir.
Her granddaughter Allyson is now living with her and is working as a nurse at Haddonfield Memorial. Laurie has quite a few voice-overs, and they are all pretty stellar, accentuating themes about dealing with trauma, resisting/denying evil, and moving on/ healing. This feels closer to the Laurie we saw in John Carpenter's Halloween, and it's great to finally have her back.
Andi Matichak is still pretty good as Allyson, but doesn't stand out as much as in previous installments. She's still likable, but hides an undercurrent of anger and frustration. She winds up falling hard for Corey, and the two’s relationship is focused on a good deal.
Surprisingly, the strongest part of Halloween Ends is likely Rohan Campbell as the meek good-boy guy-next-door Corey Cunningham (Who prefers chocolate milk over alcohol). Corey acts as our "protagonist" this go-round, and Ends deeper explores the character of Michael through Corey and his connection with The Shape. These parts are quietly, subtly clever and pretty interesting.
Rohan plays his role to perfection (or pretty close to perfection). He is very believable and likable as a genuinely good person who has started to develop a darker side from the events that transpired during his fateful babysitting gig in 2019. The only real downsides to his character are two of the turns he takes come across as sudden and abrupt. They don’t fully make sense.
Those that buy a ticket hoping to watch a film about Michael and Laurie are going to be very disappointed. Michael is important to the events of Ends, but is treated more as an after-thought. He does do some killing, but only really appears in around a handful (maybe more) of scenes.
Don't expect to be frightened or intimated by The Shape here. When we pick up with ol' Mikey Boy, he has definitely seen better days. His home (The Meyers House) has been demolished, and his wounds/injuries from Kills (as well as his age) have finally caught up with him. He is a shade of his former self.
The previous two entries tried to establish Michael as more flesh-and-blood than boogeyman, but Ends does a complete 180 and chooses to go a more supernatural route with the character (think Curse of Michael Meyers).
Ends more-or-less discards most of the development and themes from 2018 and Kills, making this finale feel disconnected to and separate/distant from what came before. That said, the new path David Gordon Green and crew decide to tread isn't necessarily a bad one.
Ultimately the execution and run-time do Halloween Ends in. The new themes and ideas aren't given the adequate time to be properly or fully explored, and the third act feels pretty rushed (Also, In the first act there's a character from Kills that is shown to have somehow survived Michael's attempted murder of them, though how this person didn't succumb to their wounds is impossible to understand).
Luckily, the final fight between Michael and Laurie is A+. It might top the final fight in H20 for some. The opening sequence was stellar as well. It might be the best since the original Halloween. The way Michael and Laurie's story finally concludes is a bit anti-climactic, and it's difficult to imagine how they could plan any further sequels or spin-offs (unless they just started over from scratch, maybe).
In the end, Halloween Ends resembles a mixture of Christine, Carrie, The Cult of Thorn trilogy (specifically Curse of Michael Meyers), and Mr. Brooks. Many will likely view it as the Jason Goes To Hell of the Halloween franchise. For my money, this isn't the worst Halloween film (that honor still goes to Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Meyers) but it will undoubtedly be the most divisive since Rob Zombie's Halloween 2.
Halloween 2018 was a love letter to John Carpenter's Halloween. Halloween Kills was a love letter to Halloween 2 (the first sequel) and Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Meyers, Halloween Ends feels like more of a love letter to the ending of Halloween 4, Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Meyers, Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Meyers, and even Halloween 3:Season of the Witch (The opening credits are done in blue, much like Halloween 3's. This was likely done to immediately and subconsciously send the message to the audience that this finale is going to be something completely different).
Halloween Ends takes a huge, admirable swing for the fences. It's hard not to appreciate the filmmakers' decision to opt to go for the road less traveled, giving us something no one was expecting (or likely wanted). This last outing is filled with surprising, bold choices. Unfortunately, it doesn't fully hit the mark.
Personally, I really liked Ends but can imagine the overwhelming response will be anger and disappointment. There aren't many kills (most occur off-screen, or the film cuts away from them. There are a total of two stand-out deaths. ) and Michael isn't in it much.
Ends acts as more of a character study and moody introspection piece. It's not bad, but it is baffling. While I liked it, those that don't will have valid reasons for their hate. The discussion and discord over this one will certainly be interesting. Halloween Ends is one of the most unique experiences you will have in a theater this year, and for that it earns a recommendation.
3.5 STARS
