Halloween Ends: Finding Life after Murder

A year after the events of Halloween Kills and Michael Myers’ disappearance, Corey Cunningham (Rohan Campbell) is babysitting when a tragic accident occurs that changes Corey’s life forever.  The residents of Haddonfield, still reeling from Michael’s latest killing rampage and needing to find a new target for their fear and hatred, choose to place it on Corey, making him a target for the town’s bullies.   Three years later, Michael has been missing for four years, and Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) is trying to leave the past behind her and move on with her life without paranoia or fear.  She has bought a house and lives with her granddaughter, Allyson (Andi Matichak) and the two try to help each other deal with having both escaped from Michael’s previous killing sprees. In a chance encounter, Laurie introduces Allyson to Corey and the two begin a romance.  But as the story progresses, Corey becomes connected to Michael and the killings begin again. Can Laurie and Allyson survive, and can they finally put an end to the evil that has haunted Haddonfield for so many years?  Watch and find out.

I was caught off guard by this film and it wasn’t really what I was expecting.  The other films within the franchise have largely been standard slasher with a type of frantic energy.  This is a very different type of depiction and has a more intimate feel and it definitely made me think.  The movie is less about Michael Myers, and more about what could drive someone into becoming a serial killer like Michael. The production is full of metaphors and symbolic actions, there was even some indication that Michael himself is a symbol for society’s evils which can directly influence the right person and pass along the murderous intentions. There are a lot of comments on society’s reaction to tragedy and how it needs a place to put our fear and how people need closure. I applaud this film for doing something different instead of falling into the same old storyline that all the other sequels seemed to.

That being said, I think a lot of people wanted to see a bigger showdown between Michael and Laurie, and some fans may find this story unfocused and convoluted. Where Michael is a presence throughout the movie, he doesn’t really get physically involved until the end.  The film itself has a very different vibe that I am not sure the majority of audience goers are going to accept.  I feel like they gave Laurie the ending she deserved, and I am hopeful that any new installments in the franchise (I never trust when anyone says this is the last film) will not be set in Haddonfield or involve Laurie or Michael Myers.   Critical response for the film has been mixed, with most being negative.  There are a few reviewers, like myself, that enjoyed the more complex emotions and the deeper look into society.
On the technical side, the film had a serious sound mixing problem. There are many scenes where a dialogue is happening that are very difficult to hear. The talking gets overwhelmed by either songs, the original score or other background noise or talk. We kept the remote nearby and had to constantly adjust the volume.
Michael Meyers has terrorized Laurie Strode, the town of Haddonfield and audiences for 44 years. He has gone from a mysterious almost mythic embodiment of “The Boogeyman” to a generic stalking killing machine. The character and the storyline is played out now. Let Halloween truly end here and let Michael go.