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Halloween Ends Blu-ray Review

“Halloween Ends” in an unsatisfying fashion.

After the intense, violent, and frankly underrated “Halloween Kills,” the stage was set for an epic climax with Michael Myers facing off against Laurie Strode for one last time. Or so we thought. Instead, we get what is sure to be a divisive movie more akin to “Jason Goes To Hell” in that this is not the story we all expected. “Halloween Ends” isn’t about Michael and Laurie. Sure, they are in it and, yes, they do face off at the end, but the plot is more about a new character- Corey (played by Rohan Campbell). Who is Corey, you ask? He’s a new out of the blue character devised by writer/director David Gordon Green and co-writers Paul Brad Logan, Danny McBride, and Chris Bernier. He’s a young man whose life is ruined by an accident that claimed the life of a boy he babysat. His hopes and dreams are shattered and he finds himself becoming corrupted by evil…especially after he meets a wounded Michael Myers living in a sewer like the Rat King (yes, you read that right). 

Elsewhere in the story, Laurie and her granddaughter Allyson are attempting to move on with their lives. Laurie is writing a novel and living with Allyson in a new home while Allyson is working as a nurse. Allyson is struggling mentally having lost her family, but manages to develop a connection with, you guessed it, the damaged Corey. Despite a new romance, Corey becomes increasingly more unhinged as he begins to collaborate with Michael Myers on a new wave of terror. 

It’s clear that David Gordon Green had a desire to go against expectations by concocting an unpredictable final chapter in his Halloween trilogy, but the creative decisions within “Halloween Ends” are puzzling to put it gently. Why introduce a new character and have the movie built around him this late in the game? What is with the bizarre evil eyes through line here? Why is this slasher 110 minutes? Does anyone buy Allyson’s character arc here let alone the romance with Corey? There are so many head scratching moments here. Yes, the movie does relent and eventually gives us a showdown between Laurie and Myers, but it’s too little too late (and wholly underwhelming). Jamie Lee Curtis deserved a better sendoff than this. What makes it all the more strange is that David Gordon Green went out of his way to retcon all of the Halloween sequels when several of the sequels are still better than his trilogy. “Halloween H2O” basically did what Green did in one movie but did it better.

If there were any highlights here it would have to be the cinematography by Michael Simmonds and, of course, the score by John Carpenter, Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies. The score in ‘Ends’ (and the whole trilogy for that matter) was always atmospheric and haunting in the best way possible. 

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 2.39:1 1080p. How does it look? The cinematography shines with this crisp hi-def transfer.

Audio Track: Dolby Atmos. How does it sound? An effective track to be sure (especially when it comes to the music).

Extras:
* DVD copy
* Digital copy
*  A nearly 3 minute gag reel
* “Final Girl”-A featurette about Jamie Lee Curtis and her 40 year journey of playing Laurie.
* 6 deleted/extended scenes
* “No Place Like Haddonfield”- An extra that explores Haddonfield and its characters in this installment. Interviews and set footage are included.
* “Ending Halloween”- A featurette on the final installment of this trilogy.
* “A Different Threat” is all about Corey.
* “The Visions Of Terror”- A piece on the visual look of Michael Myers in “Halloween Ends.”
* “Twisted Deaths” is all about the grizzly death scenes.
* Commentary by David Gordon Green, Andi Matichak, Rohan Campbell, Atilla Salih Yucer and Hugo Garza.

December 27, 2022 - Posted by nicklyons1 | Blu-Ray review | David Gordon Green, Halloween Ends Blu-ray Review, Jamie Lee Curtis, John Carpenter, Michael Myers