[Review]—Halloween Ends: The Official Movie Novelization

I spent the early morning hours on this All Hallows Eve reading Halloween Ends: The Official Movie Novelization, written by Paul Brad Logan—based on the screenplay he wrote with Chris Bernier, Danny McBride, and David Gordon Green. Critics, moviegoers, and horror fans all hated Halloween Ends—the ostensibly last entry in the Halloween franchise; it isn't since the rights will revert to Malek Akkad—we all know Michael Myers will never die—except in this film. I wasn't going to say anything about the movie, but after reading a few too many rants from purported fans complaining that it wasn't the "finale" they wanted, I felt compelled to do so. I loved Halloween Ends—there, I said it—and it's my favorite of the new trilogy.

Back to the novelization: People who haven't read the book have left unfavorable reviews or comments. Everyone has their own opinions, so I don't mind if you don't enjoy a book. I do, however, take issue with those who disparage novelizations just because they didn't like the film. Why would you read the novelization if you didn't like the movie? The ones that admitted to not reading the book still left a review stating that it would be just as terrible as the movie. It's unjust to the author, who put a lot of effort into converting the script to a novelized form, filling in the blanks and adding tidbits to improve the narrative flow.

The outlier of the new trilogy, Halloween Ends, shifted the spotlight from Laurie Strode and Michael Myers to a brand-new character named Corey Cunningham, who is a homage to Arnie Cunningham from Stephen King's Christine. Corrie unintentionally murdered the boy he was watching on Halloween night in 2019. The court found him innocent, but Haddonfield residents still viewed him as a killer. Due to his excessively protective mother, leaving the town is not an option for him, so he stays at home, works at his stepfather's auto shop, and avoids social interaction. That is until some teens bully him, and Laurie Strode enters his life.

The short version is that Corey falls in love with Laurie's granddaughter Allyson, and vice versa, but I won't give away all the details. After coming into contact with a weak Michael Myers in a sewer, Corey's hatred and wrath ultimately overtake him, making him the primary killer in this tale. He even briefly donned Michael's mask.

This time, Laurie Strode has more or less a supporting role, although she is highlighted more in the novelization than in the movie, which may or may not have anything to do with the ten minutes—or was it twenty?—cut from the final film edit. Following Michael's murder of Laurie's daughter, Karen, on Halloween 2018, as described in the novel, Laurie searched for him, but he appeared to vanish into thin air. She resumed drinking, developed an obsession with pursuing Michael, and finally fell to her lowest point. To get back on her feet, Laurie received assistance from Frank Hawkins and Lindsey Wallace; she also let go of the past and repaired her relationship with Allyson. By October 2022, Laurie is living a new life and working on a biography. Then, when she encounters Corey Cunningham and essentially introduces him to Allyson, she regrets it since she feels that something is a little wrong with him.

The reason for Michael Myers' being a shadow of his former self—the wounds he suffered on Halloween 2018 have become infected—and more or less, he's slowly dying. How did Michael escape after the Halloween Kills? He ran into some trash collectors, murdered them, drove off in a garbage truck, and hid in an abandoned meat factory. Eventually, he moved into a sewer and was near death when Nelson Christopher (named after make-up artist Christopher Nelson) came upon him. Nelson was one of the Smith's Grove Sanitarium patients on the bus that Michael escaped from on Halloween 2018. This character has a complicated past, which explains why he aids in luring victims to the sewer so Michael may feed on them. Yes, Michael Myers eats other people.

Although the author explains how the residents of Haddonfield heard about the "death" so soon, the final encounter between Laurie and Michael proceeds the same way as it did in the movie, with the same climax.

Halloween Ends is ingeniously transformed by Paul Brad Logan into a novelization that expands on the film by offering readers more character background information and engaging scenes that patch the screenplay's holes. You'll once more fear The Shape after reading Michael Myers' gruesomely unsettling descriptions. ╌★★★★★