This Michael Myers franchise is officially over.
The 2018 “Halloween” movie, directed by David Gordon Green, was able to continue the story of how Jamie Lee Curtis’s Laurie Strode wants to end Michael Myers’ reign of terror. That was an entertaining one, because of how committed it was to the 1978 horror classic by John Carpenter.
The next sequel from last year “Halloween Kills” was a disappointment, as audiences weren’t surprised to know that the serial killer would survive, because there would be a final chapter “Halloween Ends.” I agree with that notion, but I was really disappointed in how some of the likable supporting characters had to die when they had so much potential. Some of them made stupid decisions (what horror movie wouldn’t have characters like that?), some had amazing deaths, and others were too gruesome for me to comprehend. But it is supposed to be a slasher franchise, so what did I really expect?
Obviously because horror moths love horror movies, especially in the month of October, I can’t stop most of them from seeing “Halloween Ends.” But I can tell you, if you’re reading this, that it’s an irritatingly stupid and crass conclusion that makes “Jurassic World: Dominion” look like a stress relief candle.
The movie has to begin with a mean-spirited intro when the babysitter Corey (Rohan Campbell) accidentally kills a troublemaking kid, who teases him by locking him in his he attic and pretending Michael Myers made his way inside. He kicks down the door, which sends the kid falling to his death. A little karma for his “Boy Who Cried Wolf” pranks.
Then, Laurie gives a monologue about how blame and paranoia has plagued the town of Haddenfield, Illinois. She believes he’s innocent, her granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak) believes he’s innocent, his parents believe he’s innocent, and other people believe he’s innocent. But there are those who label him a psycho-the dead boy’s mother, a group of punks, and the local cop Allyson dated.
Something could have been done in the plot to give the kid some redemption, and try to forget what other people think of him. But instead, he has to be given a stupid plot in which he teams up with Michael Myers to kill people. Going on a killing spree isn’t helping his case. Or has he found his true calling in life-being the next Michael Myers? No clue.
But Laurie may know.
Back to Allyson, for a moment, she begins dating Corey, and is too blind to see that he has crossed the Dark Side. Sorry about “Star Wars” pun, but you get the concept. Laurie tries to warn her about him, but she retaliates by saying: “My friends are dead and my parents are dead.” In fact, she blames Laurie for everything that’s happened in her life. And Corey also has to have the line: “If I can’t have her, no one can.”
Now, back to Michael Myers for a moment. He has to murder the DJ, by bashing his mouth in and cutting off his tongue. And in the next scene, that severed tongue is spinning on the turntable. A bit much, wouldn’t you say?
“Halloween Kills” is advertised as the one when Laurie finally gets to kill the monster, but with this Corey plot, it acts like it wants to be a spiritual sequel/reboot. Or how about a “requel,” as this year’s “Scream” sequel would like to deliver? Maybe that’s what it wants to go for. I don’t know.
This is the kind of conclusion which makes you want to shout: “Are these people stupid or something?!” And if you want to see a great Jamie Lee Curtis movie that came out this year, go back to “Everything Everywhere All At Once.” It’s the wiser one to see.
In Theaters and Streaming on Peacock
Leave a Reply