I remember being excited about a new Halloween trilogy. Why? Well, when we get trilogies nowadays, there tends to be a reason for them, like an overall plan, maybe some theme spread across all three films. And David Gordon Green seemed like a great choice because he came across as a genuine fan of this franchise. But after seeing the third and final chapter in this latest Halloween addition to an already crowded franchise (this is the 13th Halloween film we have gotten since 1978!) I don’t understand it. I don’t understand whether there was a theme (besides the obvious one), and I don’t understand why Halloween Ends made some choices it had. But I still had a decent time with this film (the first Halloween film I managed to see in theatres, by the way).

It’s next to impossible to discuss this movie without going into spoilers because Halloween Ends started with a choice that fascinated me. It was brave and intriguing to watch, but I don’t think it landed in the way the movie intended. I usually try to discuss new films without any spoilers, but I would be talking in riddles here and let’s face it, it’s a Halloween film. There are some surprises here, but ultimately if you are interested in horror films and this franchise, you will see most of these coming. So, without further ado…

Beware, SPOILERS are coming!

Firstly, I hate the current climate of movie trailers unashamedly lying to viewers. Every trailer we got for Halloween Ends emphasised the “this is the end of this saga; also, Michael will go up against Laurie one more time!” And technically, they weren’t lying, as that happens in this film. What the trailers (I am guessing purposefully) don’t show you; is that you must wait for 80% of the movie for that to happen. And listen, that alone isn’t necessarily bad; you might think: “Ok, well, the movie will at least set it up properly then!” Nope. Because of the courageous but ultimately weird choice of this final movie in the trilogy, not only starting but primarily focusing on a new character we have never met. Rohan Campbell plays Corey, who accidentally kills a child he was babysitting.

Then, we have a time jump (I believe four years) where the film forces the debate “nurture vs nature” regarding evil, and we are led to believe; he might be transforming into the new “Shape”, and the only thing it takes is to be “in the wrong place at the wrong time”. And look, this idea is worth exploring and could yield something interesting, but this should have been done before, not in the last film of this trilogy! This decision was my biggest problem not only with Halloween Ends but with this new trilogy too; instead of having some vision regarding what themes you want to explore, it seemed like there was little to no plan for these three films. No matter how this Corey storyline pans out, you aren’t as invested because you have not met him before this film. Imagine for a second how great it would be if he were one of our main heroes in Halloween (2018), and during that film, he would have done something similar to what he does here (kills a child by accident). Then we would see his storyline play out a bit more in the sequel, but with him still being a supporting character and seeing “cracks” appear slowly. We would watch how the entire town is slowly turning against him whilst still focusing on Strode family against The Shape. And then, he would take centre stage in this last chapter, entirely on the evil side, a fully fleshed-out character we have watched grow over these films into what he ultimately becomes. Doesn’t that sound better?

The other thing that struck me as odd about Halloween Ends was The Shape itself, aka Michael Myers. I get he is getting old, but since when does he tag team with anybody? In this final film, Corey becomes Myers’s apprentice, a choice that (again) comes out of nowhere. And to repeat, this should have been set up throughout the trilogy. Maybe had we seen them bump into each other in the previous film, Michael would have let him survive, and this film could have gone back to that…? Yes, as you can tell, I am having a hard time judging this film on its own merits because I can see how this trilogy could have been improved and given us something new, something that would have paid off in the last movie.

Ok, let’s talk about some positives. The kills were creative (mainly the DJ’s death), and I really liked Andi Matichak‘s character as she seems to be the only semi-normal one in this world. It’s through her we see both Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Corey’s characters and how both are trapped in this fucked up world full of death, and she is the only one who still has a chance to escape and have a “normal” life. But since we spend most of the time with Corey’s character, I thought they missed a trick with Allyson as there is one clear theme throughout this trilogy – trauma, sense of loss and fear. But instead of delving deeper into that through Allyson’s character, who lost her mum in Halloween Kills (2021, my review here), she gets put aside so we can “catch up” with this new character, Corey. A character, by the way, that gets wasted towards the end so we can have the big “Laurie vs Michal, one last time” finale.

Can you see now why I had to talk spoilers straightaway? This film wants to explore some deep themes, but it didn’t take the time to set everything up suitably. And the big theme of Halloween Ends (nature vs nurture) would have been inspiring had it not felt like it was pitched five minutes before the cameras started to roll. If you want to elevate the Halloween franchise and make it about something more than this unstoppable “Shape”, give Michael some motivation, instigate a debate on how evil can be just a reflection of how people around you treat you, that’s fine. But in order to do that, you must have SOME plan, some roadmap for how you get there and where you need to “stop”. And individually, these films work on “it’s an average slasher film with some interesting visuals”. But I have a hunch that the people behind this latest trilogy wanted much, much more than that, and I am afraid they ultimately failed to deliver that. It’s a shame because it seemed that, this time, they had everything going for them, from Jamie Lee on board for them to learn from the mistakes of the past ten Halloween films. Oh well…

Overall, Halloween Ends is technically a solid horror film. It is shot very well, the jump scares are mostly ok (even though they are predictable), and the main cast is trying their best. Where it fails is this film (and the other two before) failed to justify a trilogy. The film starts the age-old “nature vs nurture” debate which would be fine if the film’s answer wasn’t the copout: “Well, it’s kinda both.” I still enjoyed myself enough that I don’t regret seeing this in the cinema, but I don’t know whether I will want to rewatch this new trilogy, knowing everything I know now. The lack of any plan, themes and character development is puzzling, notably, since the people behind this claimed: “We always planned this as a trilogy”. As the meme goes: “Press X to doubt”.

That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!

Until next time,

Luke