Concluding a fan-favourite saga after 44 years and 13 movies is no easy feat, and while Halloween Ends bows out on a satisfying, emotional note, it still leaves much to be desired.
The film opens on a promising note taking us back to Halloween night 2019 in Haddonfield, IL, when Corey Cunningham (Rohan Campbell) arrives to babysit a young boy who is traumatized from the Michael Myers (James Jude Courtney) killings of the previous year. Unfortunately, the night ends in a tragedy when the young boy dies and Corey is blamed for his death. This is a smart setup parallel to when Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) was first a babysitter in the original film.
Cut to present day and we see that Laurie has moved on after the death of her daughter four years ago at the hands of Michael Myers. She lives with her granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak), is working on a memoir, and even flirts with Sheriff Deputy Frank Hawkins (Will Patton). She's generally living her best life.
When Laurie crosses paths with Corey, who is now an outcast in town and gets bullied and abused by other kids, she takes it upon herself to introduce him to Allyson.When Corey runs into Michael in the sewer, however, something dark clicks in him, as if he inhabits Michael's killer spirit. Soon, Laurie realizes this change when she sees that same look in Corey's eyes.
Of course, the more Laurie warns Allyson to stay away from Corey, the more Allyson feels drawn to him, as she gets swept up in romantic bliss, riding on the back of his motorbike and hoping to leave town with him. As expected, bodies soon start to pile up and it's carnage time.
This story is not about Laurie or Michael, but about the introduction of a new character who the audience hasn't been given much reason to care about. Halloween Ends doesn't feel like the OG Halloween franchise that started in the '70s, or even the trilogy that began with 2018's Halloween. Instead, this feels like a standalone horror film about trauma and violence. (Michael doesn't even show up for the first 45 minutes of the movie, which was disappointing.)
For a film that is supposed to be the end, as a fan of the franchise, I expected a throwback to the classic with more carnage and chaos as Michael slashes away to John Carpenter's legendary score. Perhaps the writers wanted to offer something new with this story, but I would have preferred to see more of the legacy characters — especially Michael who's barely seen on screen.
Nevertheless, the film does deliver on gruesome, gory kills, as is expected from the Halloween films. There's also a fine display of camerawork, resulting in some solid jump scares.
Curtis gives a performance that reminds us why she is a powerhouse. There are two scenes where she crushes the fiery dialogue and it will forever be some of my favourite Laurie Strode moments from this trilogy. While in the previous two films Laurie was traumatized and revengeful, now that she has moved on, Curtis can relish the lighter side of the role, reminding viewers she has impeccable comic timing, too.
The most rewarding part of the movie was the third act, which involved a standout killer kitchen fight between Michael and Laurie. This leads to a finale that gives the franchise a fitting send-off, offering viewers some emotional and much-needed closure.
There's a brief homage to Laurie, with a burst of shots from the very first film, which hit me with a dose of nostalgia, wishing the franchise wasn't really coming to an end. As the camera slowly zooms in on sweeping frames of an empty house against nothing but the soft iconic Carpenter score, I was left with a rush of memories and emotions to hold on to — at least until another reboot is announced. (Universal)
(Universal)The film opens on a promising note taking us back to Halloween night 2019 in Haddonfield, IL, when Corey Cunningham (Rohan Campbell) arrives to babysit a young boy who is traumatized from the Michael Myers (James Jude Courtney) killings of the previous year. Unfortunately, the night ends in a tragedy when the young boy dies and Corey is blamed for his death. This is a smart setup parallel to when Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) was first a babysitter in the original film.
Cut to present day and we see that Laurie has moved on after the death of her daughter four years ago at the hands of Michael Myers. She lives with her granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak), is working on a memoir, and even flirts with Sheriff Deputy Frank Hawkins (Will Patton). She's generally living her best life.
When Laurie crosses paths with Corey, who is now an outcast in town and gets bullied and abused by other kids, she takes it upon herself to introduce him to Allyson.When Corey runs into Michael in the sewer, however, something dark clicks in him, as if he inhabits Michael's killer spirit. Soon, Laurie realizes this change when she sees that same look in Corey's eyes.
Of course, the more Laurie warns Allyson to stay away from Corey, the more Allyson feels drawn to him, as she gets swept up in romantic bliss, riding on the back of his motorbike and hoping to leave town with him. As expected, bodies soon start to pile up and it's carnage time.
This story is not about Laurie or Michael, but about the introduction of a new character who the audience hasn't been given much reason to care about. Halloween Ends doesn't feel like the OG Halloween franchise that started in the '70s, or even the trilogy that began with 2018's Halloween. Instead, this feels like a standalone horror film about trauma and violence. (Michael doesn't even show up for the first 45 minutes of the movie, which was disappointing.)
For a film that is supposed to be the end, as a fan of the franchise, I expected a throwback to the classic with more carnage and chaos as Michael slashes away to John Carpenter's legendary score. Perhaps the writers wanted to offer something new with this story, but I would have preferred to see more of the legacy characters — especially Michael who's barely seen on screen.
Nevertheless, the film does deliver on gruesome, gory kills, as is expected from the Halloween films. There's also a fine display of camerawork, resulting in some solid jump scares.
Curtis gives a performance that reminds us why she is a powerhouse. There are two scenes where she crushes the fiery dialogue and it will forever be some of my favourite Laurie Strode moments from this trilogy. While in the previous two films Laurie was traumatized and revengeful, now that she has moved on, Curtis can relish the lighter side of the role, reminding viewers she has impeccable comic timing, too.
The most rewarding part of the movie was the third act, which involved a standout killer kitchen fight between Michael and Laurie. This leads to a finale that gives the franchise a fitting send-off, offering viewers some emotional and much-needed closure.
There's a brief homage to Laurie, with a burst of shots from the very first film, which hit me with a dose of nostalgia, wishing the franchise wasn't really coming to an end. As the camera slowly zooms in on sweeping frames of an empty house against nothing but the soft iconic Carpenter score, I was left with a rush of memories and emotions to hold on to — at least until another reboot is announced. (Universal)
