‘Halloween Ends’? Movie goers should be so lucky as latest release hits rock bottom

How many babysitters must endure the wrath of the masked boogeyman who comes to seek revenge on Halloween night? After nearly 44 years, that answer may finally have been revealed. Halloween Ends is the 13th installment in the Halloween franchise originated by John Carpenter and Debra Hills. While it purports to be the final film following Halloween (2018), many doubt this will mark the actual end of a franchise that has been stretched out for a far-too-long half century of inconsistent performance.

To mark the end, the movie features some established characters of the past, such as Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis, Everything, Everywhere All At Once), the iconic final girl of the franchise, Michael Myers (James Courtney, Halloween Kills), the masked boogeyman, Allyson Nelson (Andi Matichak, Foxhole), the granddaughter to Laurie, Deputy Frank Hawkins (Will Patton, Yellowstone), one of the original officers who tried to stop Michael in 1978, and Lindsey Wallace (Kyle Richards, Halloween Kills), one of the kids Laurie had to babysit in the original film. Not only did some familiar actors of the series reprise their roles, but the film introduced a new character who becomes essential to the plot: Corey Cunningham (Rohan Campbell, Hardy Boys). Nick Castle, the original actor for Michael Myers, also makes a quick and special guest appearance.

The plot for Halloween Ends pivoted completely from the one established in the past two films, featuring a brand new character who oddly overshadows the main killer, Michael Myers. While movie posters and trailers promised a final showdown between Laurie and Michael, the movie was absent of one, with Michael seeming to lack any interest in fighting Laurie when the two meet face-to-face. Throughout the 111-minute run-time, Myers actually only appears in 10 minutes and 55 seconds, even though the whole series and the current promotion was based around him. This obviously has irritated many fans, especially those who came into watching the film to witness this promised “final showdown.” Not only that, but the purpose of the killings were only aggravated by the character of Corey.

The movie opens to a scene that takes place a year after the last installment in the trilogy; Corey is called to babysit Jeremy, who quickly unleashes a sugar-riddled screed that enrages Corey, who storms off to the kitchen before somehow getting locked in the attic by Jeremy. Right before the parents arrive home from a Halloween party,Corey frees himself by kicking the door open, sending Jeremy falling to a messy death when he plunges to the hardwood from the third story (a much appreciated kill as Jeremy’s screeching voice was probably triggering packs of wild dogs several counties over).. While Corey was cleared of manslaughter charges, he still has to deal with being called a murderer and becoming the town pariah (no easy task in a town haunted by Michael Myers).

Director David Gordon Green hoped the addition of Corey would change up the plot, introducing how the town has been affected by Michael, but the film lacked in bringing out this new perspective. Instead of focusing on the aftermath of the 40 years of massacres, the movie became hyper-focused on the romance between Corey and Allyson and how Laurie disapproved of the two. The entire established plot of Michael seeking to finish Laurie was completely forgotten by the studio, and instead changed to a story about the town moving on from its collective boogeyman. Yet even as Michael disappears from the town for decades, Haddonfield continues to be consumed by “Michael mania.” 

Laurie’s essential role in the movie is to try and show how this will be her last appearance, for she is officially moving on and healing from her past trauma (she is even writing a self help book for a VERY narrow niche of the reading public). But even as she makes little progress in the right direction, the infamous story of Michael Myers stalking her seems to reverse any progress, forcing her to take steps back to face her past. The moment she felt life was better, Corey comes into the picture, dates her granddaughter, and (spoiler alert!) evolves into the new Michael Myers. 

The first of Corey’s murders was accidental, but once he actually encountered Michael after half an hour of the film has passed, he can’t seem to run away from the urge of seeking revenge for those who have done him wrong. The first scene of this overly and unnecessarily complicated film stands as a way for the audience to feel remorse over Corey and sympathize with him; only  later does the audience turn on Corey once he embraces the inner Michael and eventually provokes Michael to teach him how to kill. While the premise of the plot was to retire Laurie Strode from the series, there could have been better ways to fulfill this story.

Halloween Ends stands as its own film instead of a continuation of a trilogy. With new characters and a plot that is completely disconnected from the past films, it proves a disappointment to critics and fans alike. Halloween Ends caps a trilogy marked by inconsistency and the stench of desperation. Green and Curtis are to be saluted for their desire to finally bring closure to a legender tale of horror, but they should have stopped after the glory of 2018’s Halloween. 

C While Halloween Ends tried to prove that evil takes on a new shape by introducing a new conflict, the film ultimately undermines the original slasher plot that the franchise was created upon.

By Ruby Pluchinsky

Oshkosh West Index Volume 119 Issue II

October 31 2022