There’s a talent to organizing information — I certainly don’t have it! — and a way to put things together in an order so that it flows from one thought to the next and ends with a conclusion, a point. A purpose. This book, I’m afraid, lost me. The author has an honest respect for the people he’s interviewing, and a love for the Halloween franchise, but the book is a muddle.

First, the quotes. They are long, so very long. Almost always half a page, sometimes longer, the quotes felt as though they were a full third of the book. The other third was broken up between dry facts about the movies and film making content which will probably be fascinating for someone interested in making movies, but as a casual layperson who just wanted to read about the Halloween movies, was a bit dull.

I feel like there were three ideas here smashed together into one book and the ideas rarely flowed together well. But I can’t fault the research. I appreciate that all of the movies — from the original to Season of the Witch to the newest requels — were included, but I’m still left underwhelmed. I think film buffs will like this more than horror fans.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC.

Halloween has had a special place in my heart when it comes to classic horror films for many years. With many films in the franchise, they're a staple for many fans when October rolls around. That's what drew me to You Can't Kill the Boogeyman: The Ongoing Halloween Saga―13 Movies and Counting by Wayne Byrne. While the book offers some solid insights into the series, it didn't resonate with me as much as I hoped.

A cultural and critical examination of the legendary Halloween film franchise, considering the style, themes, and development of the series within temporal and industrial contexts. Through candid conversations with author Wayne Byrne, a variety of directors, screenwriters, cinematographers, composers, and actors from across the Halloween films offer exclusive insights into their careers, their unique aesthetic approaches, and their experiences of working on one of the most celebrated horror franchises within the history of American Cinema.

As I have said before in my review of Your Favorite Scary Movie: How the Scream Films Rewrote the Rules of Horror, "Strangely, despite my deep love for the film, I've never really explored much about its origins, production, or behind-the-scenes stories. Usually, when I am passionate about something, I tend to deep dive into its creation, on-set stories, and the legacy it has built. However, with Scream, it's always been solely about the pure love for the film itself and the enjoyment of watching it." The same stands true for the Halloween franchise.

Wayne Byrne's You Can’t Kill the Boogeyman didn't have the same impact for me. The book is weighed down by overly technical jargon lost me as I don't have a strong filmmaking background. Additionally, it relies too heavily on long quotes, which disrupted the flow and made it harder to read. As a result, the experience felt more tedious than enjoyable for me.

The film insights themselves, especially those covering the more recent films as well as the Rob Zombie entries, were intriguing and made the read worthwhile. Although the book is a bit dense for me, the inclusion of behind-the-scenes photos of the cast and crew helped break things up a bit and added to the overall book.

I did learn a few things from Wayne Byrne's You Can’t Kill the Boogeyman: The Ongoing Halloween Saga—13 Movies and Counting, but it wasn't quite the experience I was hoping for in the end. That might be on me, as I expected something a bit different than what the book ended up delivering. If you really enjoy the filmmaking jargon in addition to the Halloween movie franchise, it might be more up your alley. Personally, I found myself wanting something different in the end.

As a HUGE 1978 Halloween fan, I was really excited for this title! It was neat getting to learn more about the behind the scenes and what all went into the making of the films throughout the series. That being said, this book was not for me. Not because it wasn’t good, but just because it’s not what I typically read.

I love the Halloween franchise. It’s been a staple in my home and my Halloween movie rotation ever since I was little. I remember watching 25 Years of Terror every year with my mom and I swear if I close my eyes I could watch the entirety of Halloween 4 without any mistakes because I watch it at least 3 times a year lol. Suffice to say Halloween’s special not just for me but for a lot of horror fans out there so I was really excited to get the opportunity to read this book early.

It was informative for the most part… but it was also bogged down by so much behind-the-scenes film knowledge that, as an average person with no filmmaking experience, that it made it kind of boring as a good chunk of the novel is long quotes taken straight from interviews. Then getting to the actual Halloween related stories felt like stuff I had heard before from 25 Years of Terror or something from one of those Shudder documentary shows.

I’m very conflicted on this. Perhaps it’s on me for thinking it was going to be something else, I don’t know.

About 15 years ago I bought a Halloween boxset with the first maybe 6 or 7 films in it. As I was buying it, the cashier looked me dead in the eye and said, "Do not watch Halloween 3: season of the witch. It's terrible and life is short. " Obviously, a few hours later, I was watching it and woof... I should have listened. So when this book says that H3: season of the witch is one of the best horror films of the 80s... I knew we might not be on the same page. I did nearly DNF but persevered as I was interested in the Rob Zombie films.

The parts that were actually about the Halloween films were quite interesting, but a large majority of the book is told in long quote form and it makes for quite hard reading at times as it doesn't flow in a cohesive way. It also deep dives into every major crew members past filmwork which I wasn't interested in.

I think if you are a big behind the scenes film buff, you will enjoy this a lot more than I did, but I just found myself getting bogged down in filmmaking jargon with no explanation (hard light for example - no idea what this is).

On a side note, there is also a quote from someone that deadnames and misgenders Caitlin Jenner. The anecdote adds precisely nothing to the book. I personally think she is a terrible person. However, getting someone's name and pronouns right is just common courtesy. Appreciate this is a quote and not the author's own words, but it was not needed.

And referring to Harvey Weinstein's actions as "bad behaviour" was flippant given the scale of his predatory behaviour.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am a huge fan of the Halloween franchise. I love everything about it. Even the slightly cheesier movies and even the remakes. They all have their place. This book was terrific. I love all the tidbits, facts, stats etc. It's like going behind the scenes. I can't wait to purchase a hard copy as well, because I definitely need it!

Growing up with this franchise, I was excited to get a behind the scenes look at each individual film. Getting to learn some of what happened during each production, as well as hearing from the people behind the movies, was very intriguing.

You Can’t Kill The Boogeyman is a retrospective piece about the Halloween series and legacy. It not only features the original seven movies, but Rob Zombie and David Gordon Green’s films are featured as well. There’s lots of great photos of cast and crew on-set. Unfortunately, this book is surprisingly dense. Nearly every other page is a solid wall of text. That being said, I would recommend this for serious fans of the movies only. 3.25

Some writers like to craft and shape the words in their books. Others, such as the author of You Can’t Kill the Boogeyman, prefer to let their interviewees do most of the talking.

The problem with the second approach is that there were many times when less would have been more, but the interviewees answers were represented in full. This includes when they repeat themselves, go on little tangents, etc., which made it less fun to read.

On the plus side, there were some interesting stories about the making of the 13 films that I hadn’t heard yet. It is worth noting, however, that if you also enjoy philosophical horror movies, the author will insult you for it (dubbing it as “intellectual masturbation”).

Overall, this was worth reading, but a more skilled author/editor team could have made it shorter and much more compelling.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion.

You Can’t Kill the Boogeyman is an accessible critically written book on Halloween film series.
As both an academic and movie fan, I can attest to both sides of me being engaged and informed while reading this book.
The thematic structure of the book was a great fit, and the analysis by Byrne is rich with many layers and details. I loved the reading of the 2018 film in particular. It made me appreciate and understand the movie better. I can say the same for the whole book.

This was a fun read especially since Halloween is one of my favorite horror movies. Any horror movie fan or anyone that enjoys learning about films should read this. I recommend this to any fans of the Halloween films.