I really understand why people, so so many people, hate this movie. I get it. But it’s actually good. 

Just like how I adore Rob Zombie’s Halloween 2 and think it’s the second best film in the franchise, Ends does something different and succeeds. Does it play off of the absolutely brutal and kill filled Kills to provide a crescendo to the new series that ends in this big monumental way that is both entertaining and satisfying? Hell no. Hell to the no. Ends is such a major left turn for the main franchise that it’s almost like how when Halloween 3 came out. In fact, it’s exactly like that. And the makers of the film new that. Why the fuck do you think they used the same font as H3 for the credits? That wasn’t by accident. 

But it still ties into the new series and does provide a conclusion. A very fitting on I felt. The film is about finally letting go. About finally closing this chapter in your life and moving forward. Laurie is t a crazy gun lady anymore. She has mourned her daughter’s death and come to peace with everything that has happened. Allyson is ready to leave Haddonfield for a new start. One where she isn’t just seen as the survivor but as an actual human being. We cling to our past because it’s all we know but we cannot continue living in the past. We must break free from those constraints and move forward. 

Halloween fans should be taking notes. 

I’ll say the same thing I said in my first review of RZ’s H2: this franchise generally kinda sucks. Every film got worse and worse because they kept trying to do the same thing without having a single clue as to why the original film was so good and has stood the test of time. Why the fuck do you want each new film to fit into the tiny unimaginative box? Why do you want every entry to be like the original? Don’t you get tired of the same thing? This film takes huge swings and goes way outside the box and I love it for that. 

Having this film be about this kid who had tragedy strike and the people around him won’t let him move on from it so it takes it’s toll is a very strong story. It continues a theme from Kills that people can be just as monstrous as the supposed monster or boogeyman. The people of this town refuse to move on from the past. The events of the previous three films in this timeline have destroyed this community and it refuses to face it and move forward. We as Americans understand this wholeheartedly. This country has never fucking moved on from 9/11 and it has poisoned this country beyond repair. The lies and the hatred that sprang forth from that tragedy have only been fueled further and the general cultural mindset has been twisted and perverted to such an ugly degree. I’m surprised we don’t have more Corey Cunningham’s around. Oh wait, we fucking do! We have millions of them. But we still refuse to see how this culture has created them. Our lack of compassion and general goodwill to our fellow man has poisoned the well. 

This movie is good y’all. 

The way Michael Myers is utilized in this film is very underwhelming only because people just want more of the same. Dude got fucked up throughout Kills and is like 70 years old at the time this film takes place. It’s totally believable and a very interesting direction to take the character and I liked it. 

Did the marketing lie to everyone? Yes. Very much so. The marketing sells us a very different film than what we got but that shouldn’t make us hate the film. There is still the showdown but it Carrie’s a different weight because of the tone of the film and the events that come beforehand. It’s not as satisfying as we think we wanted it to be but it’s still a poignant moment of release. Of closure. Of moving on. 

I can see this being in my top 3 after further watches. It does have a lot of issues and weird clunky bits but overall it’s a very effective film that really feels like a breath of fresh air to the series and it’s something we haven’t really seen before and yeah, the movie’s good. 

Give it a chance, y’all. You don’t want to be embarrassed in twenty years when it gets reappraised and becomes beloved ala Season of the Witch.