Note: the following article contains heavy plot spoilers for the Halloween ending.
It’s been almost two weeks since then Halloween is over premiered in theaters and on the Peacock, and some viewers still feel disappointed by director David Gordon Green’s conclusion Halloween trilogy. Although the film featured a compelling final showdown between Laurie Strode and Michael Myers, many viewers were turned off by how the film focused less on that conflict and more on newcomer Corey Cunningham, who becomes an agent of evil after encountering the Shape.
The audience’s backlash is understandable, as the film they were watching was against what they expected to see. However, Halloween is over there are still many subtle qualities that make it much better than people think, and audiences should recognize all the things that make the film a true cinematic treat.
He’s doing something new with the franchise
Much like Avengers: Endgame, Halloween is over deals with the aftermath of the villain’s violent rampage from the previous film, exploring the fear, anger and grief left behind and building up to the villain’s return later in the film. Although audiences are critical of Michael, who does not have much screen time in this film, his influence casts a large shadow over Haddonfield, making him an even darker force of nature than he was before.
Also, the fact that he’s barely seen makes him that much scarier. As in John Carpenter’s original film, the tension of waiting to see when and where it will be shown makes the film more unsettling for the audience. According to @SourceHalloween on TwitterMichael has 10 minutes and 55 seconds of screen time Halloween is overwhile in 1978 Halloweenhe has 9 minutes and 37 seconds.
Although the filmmakers could have just focused on Lori’s final pursuit of Michael, it wouldn’t have been as interesting since this story has been done many times before. For a reboot to justify its existence, it needs to bring something fresh to the franchise with something new to say. And so, Halloween is over shows how Michael’s evil can spread to other people and take a new form. With the citizens of Haddonfield still reeling from Michael’s latest massacre and the Boogeyman nowhere to be seen, they all redirect their anger and malice to an easy target: Corey Cunningham.
After accidentally killing a boy he was watching on Halloween night, Cory becomes an outcast in Haddonfield, as the townspeople see him as a sadistic killer like Michael Myers, when he is just a lonely and misunderstood young man. Eventually, people’s constant abuse and mistreatment of Cory causes him to become a vengeful killer. As a result, Cory’s descent into evil shows how any person, even someone seemingly “normal” like Cory, can become like Michael under the right circumstances.
It explores mental health in a way that few horror films attempt to
The Halloween franchise, Michael Myers in particular, contributed to society’s stigma against mental illness with its frightening portrayal of a mentally ill killer. Halloween is over offers a more progressive portrayal of the theme by exploring the humanity of the characters who have mental issues after Michael’s murders.
Throughout the new Halloween trilogy Laurie struggles with alcoholism and PTSD after her traumatic encounter with Michael as a teenager. However, Halloween is over shows Lori now sober and trying to live a life that isn’t dominated by her trauma. Laurie even wrote a memoir about her experiences with Michael as part of her healing process.
However, Lori becomes fixated on Michael again when she notices the darkness in Cory. Her concerns are proven correct, but she falls back down the rabbit hole of obsession and relapses into drinking, making her fake suicide attempt that much more believable to the audience. Overall, Lori’s struggles in the film show how trauma and grief don’t just go away and they can continue to follow someone like Michael stalks his victims.
Likewise, the way the film explores the misery Michael left in Haddonfield evokes troubling memories of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has been a difficult time for many people’s mental health. Laurie even claims that the people of Haddonfield “descended into a plague of grief, of recrimination, of paranoia” after Michael’s massacre, and the suffering he caused “became an infection passed on to people who never even crossed the road his”.
But no matter how the people of Haddonfield demonize Michael and liken him to a supernatural plague, after Laurie takes off his mask at the end of the film, she admits that this so-called Boogeyman is still just a person inside. There is nothing supernatural or scary about it anymore; he’s just a physically helpless person now, just like the rest of them.
Halloween Ends pays homage to the franchise
Like Greene’s previous films, Halloween is over continues to show tender love to the entire franchise, including the black sheep film, The season of the witches. Specifically, the opening title sequence of Green’s third film uses a blue font instead of orange, just as in The season of the witches. In retrospect, the way this new film references such a controversial film suggests that the story wasn’t going to be the one fans expected to see, and that the filmmakers knew it would be just as divisive.
Similarly, Halloween Finishing replays numerous shots from Carpenter’s first film, such as an exhausted Lori leaning her head against the door and Michael pinning one of his victims against a wall and staring at her. Corey even recreates the iconic image of Michael looking down from the balcony while holding a knife, with Laurie later shooting Corey as Dr. Loomis shot Michael in the original film. Fans may say that the filmmakers are not fit for a reboot Halloweenbut it’s obvious from tributes like this that the entire trilogy, including the finale, is a product of love for the franchise.
There are many great fears
Another thing the film excels at is providing the audience with scary moments. End of Halloweens features a particularly horrifying moment in its opening scene when Cory accidentally kills Jeremy by kicking him over a balcony. While watching a child die on screen is more than scary enough, the fact that someone other than Michael Myers killed a little boy in this movie makes this moment especially shocking.
Likewise, the filmmakers continue to deliver very creative and gory kills like those seen in the previous two films. For example, after Willie the Kid insults Cory and Allison, Cory doesn’t just get revenge by smashing his face into a desk; he delivers an extra bit of karma to the radio DJ by cutting off his tongue, which lands on a turntable and interrupts the music playback. It’s a brutal yet darkly comedic moment that shows how the filmmakers know how to create some truly unique scares.
Laurie finally gets her happy ending
After watching Michael Myers return to terrorize everyone around him many times in many movies, audiences saw Halloween is over brought the best ending to the franchise by ending Michael’s reign of terror once and for all. Since his body is destroyed in an industrial shredder at the end of the film, there is no chance of him returning or any writers repeating his death. The form is gone.
In this way, the people of Haddonfield finally get some closure and can move on to a brighter future. Alison makes amends with Laurie and leaves Haddonfield to live her own life, while the latter finishes her memoir and finds new love in Deputy Hawkins. These characters have suffered so much throughout the franchise, so it’s nice to see Lori and Alison finally get the happiness they deserve.
Halloween is over currently playing in theaters and streaming on Peacock.
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