We are 13 Halloween films in (4 for this particular timeline), so who can really argue with wanting to be a little different? After all, long before this point, Freddy had attacked his creators, Jason had gone to space and Leatherface was wearing a neglige.

For over 40 years Laurie Strode has done battle with Michael Myers. And Ends or not (our money is on not), this film is in many ways a definitive finale. A finale to Myers/Strode’s original story, a finale to David Gordon Green’s legacy sequel trilogy, and likely a finale for Jamie Lee Curtis in a role she has made unforgettable. It is easy to compare this recent trilogy to the sequel trilogy of Star Wars actually (in more ways than one), so is this a Rise of Skywalker? Well, it will certainly be talked about that is for damn sure…

The story picks up four years after Michael Myers’ 2018 Halloween night rampage, and The Bogeyman has since remained absent, while Haddonfield has been plunged into a tense, desperate kind of shared grief, amidst it all though Laurie Strode has managed to persevere and pull things somewhat together, choosing to live a more peaceful life with her granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak). However, evil never sleeps and soon The Shape beckons, but something is very different this time.

This film has received praise from Stephen King, which is funny because Halloween Ends very much plays out like IT. Tipping its mask early to the notoriously Myers-less Halloween III: Season of the Witch too, as well as John Carpenter films like Christine (a King story again) and The Thing. Ends is an ‘80s joint of a movie, that plays out like a Halloween-infused campfire tale, where Michael Myers and his evil is transformed into a shadowy Pennywise-esque presence, the troll under the bridge, the silent onlooker and influencer (not that kind silly), that corrupts all it touches.

Curtis is outstanding as Laurie again, and has been the anchor for this new trilogy from the very start, as has James Jude Courtney’s excellent take on Michael (who will likely get the Kane Hodder treatment by fans in the future). Here, both are older and tired, but both are different. Strode is a survivor that sees the light, the solace and will reach it at any cost, while Michael is a battered, strained, mouldy force of evil. They are on an inevitable course to collide but the direction to it is anything but atypical.

Let’s not mince words, many people may indeed be pissed off with this knowingly, hugely divisive, neck-breaking change of direction for the series, that challenges fans. If we can draw parallels to a fellow classic horror series, Ends comes close to walking the Jason Goes To Hell path, but instead sticks nearer to A New Beginning, only with the thankfully added quality of actually delivering on its central promise and what you are paying your money for (the promised clash). 

Going in blind and off the marketing, many will be taken aback completely by this film, which is a character-driven slow burner, detailing how evil never dies but only changes shape, and how tortured souls can let it in. Green has boldly made a point here and after Myers dominated the two previous films, this time his shadow rather than form is omnipresent. This is a film that will provoke a strong response, a film that could have simply been one thing but brazenly decided to be another but also does not let down those coming for the main event.

True some legacy characters are edged to the side a bit as a result and the film does undeniably not have a steady, slick, flow due to a large portion of it tacking a thematic story surrounding a new character. Meaning the final act in particular quickly ties things up to get down to the final piece of business. Yet, in spite of this, the bloody (some kills are twistedly inventive) journey is one worth taking, as long as you open up to its change of pace. 

Whatever your thoughts, everyone should certainly be applauded for not playing safe, and crafting something that will most assuredly face backlash but could likely be reevaluated years down the line. The series has attempted different before with VERY mixed success, see the Thorn timeline, Busta Rhymes does Big Brother at the Myers House, and whatever Rob Zombie’s H2 was, but Ends oddly feels more assured than those examples. While also perhaps being the weakest of this legacy sequel trilogy as a result of its big swings.

Hard to review really (this writer has tossed and turned with their actual score) because this slasher will entirely hang on your expectations and whatever shape they take. From the eye opening beginning, all the way to the strange final procession, all backed by John & Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies’ reliably ace score, this is many things all at once. Great. Flawed. Polarising. Creative. Unhinged. But there can be no doubts that Halloween Ends is the franchise’s most fearless offering in years. It dares to be different and truly succeeds.

HALLOWEEN ENDS is in cinemas now.