This is the season for spooky, scary, and all things that go bump in the night! What helps define your Halloween season? Is it dressing up in different costumes? Is it the absurd amounts of candy you will probably consume? For me…it is always watching Halloween movies. The season for horror and Halloween themes films is upon us. There is such a great variety of different films that will help get you in the right mood. Here are a few of The Wasteland Reviewer’s favorite picks for the Halloween season…
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Is it really the Halloween season without walking into a Hot Topic and seeing a whole wall covered in memorabilia and clothes from The Nightmare Before Christmas? From the incredible mind of Tim Burton and brought to life by Henry Selick, Nightmare is an incredible achievement in the world of stop motion animation. This brisk little film is packed to the gills with iconic Halloween songs from “This Is Halloween” to “Jack’s Lament”. The visuals are incredible with the demented yet engaging designs of all the crazy characters that fill out Halloweentown. Some top-notch vocal performances from the likes of Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O’Hara, Ken Page, and Paul Reubens fill out the proceedings making this an essential watch for the season. I admit I watch it every single Halloween.
Phantom of the Megaplex
Who is ready for a pure case of nostalgia running wild? Nothing says my childhood Halloween experience quite like watching Disney Channel original films. I was so close to adding the Halloweentown series but something about Phantom of the Megaplex always stood out to me as such a fun time growing up. Who wouldn’t want to spend time at a theater where Mickey Rooney greets you and gets you excited about the Halloween movies? This fun and silly reimagining of Phantom of the Opera sees a crew of preteens and teenagers hunting down a spooky specter that wants to see a big movie theater fail. Is this a truly classic film? Heck no…but it sure is some fun. The campiness you might expect from the ’90s and 2000’s Disney Channel originals permeates this child-friendly mystery. It is hard to deny the joy radiating from this hidden gem.
Little Shop of Horrors
Who wouldn’t want to spend their Halloween rocking it out with horrifying and campy musicals? Well, if you need one, look no further than Frank Oz’s adaptation of Howard Ashman’s Little Shop of Horrors! Similar to Nightmare, this is jam-packed with hit after hit like Skid Row, Dentist, and Mean Green Mother From Outerspace. The sound stage feel and overall campiness bring the stage feel of the musical into the cinema and the overall dark campiness is such a delight from start to finish. Rick Moranis’ Seymour is the perfect down-on-his-luck protagonist to support, and we want him to get the girl. Ellen Greene’s Audrey is the perfect match for him, and we want them to get that green grass someday. Steve Martin is an absolute delight to watch on screen with his dement and sadistic dentist. But the big praise has to go to Levi Stubbs (the impressive leading man of Four Tops) who absolutely kills it as Audrey II. The puppetry is worth the price of admission.
The Thing
Who is ready for the paranoia to set it? Is this not the John Carpenter film you were expecting? Halloween is the most perfect choice for the Halloween season but it is not my personal favorite of Carpenter’s films (or even his horror films). That distinction has to go to The Thing. In this remake of a classic Hollywood-style horror film, Carpenter takes this genre to a whole new level. Creature flicks live and die by the creatures who inhabit them. What audiences witness in The Thing will drive nightmarish visions into your brain from how grotesque and unnerving the alien is. The special effects in this film are legendary and are only matched by the fever pitch of tension that Carpenter can create. Ennio Morricone’s minimalist score is on point while Carpenter chooses to hang his audience with suspense instead of a barrage of creature appearances. There are quite a few times where this film turns out to be downright shocking. But let’s not forget this perfect ensemble of character actors and led but bona fide movie star, Kurt Russell. Russell’s look, cool demeanor, and incredible one-liner are what audiences should hope their horror movie (Halloween movies) heroes can be.
The Shining
Come on…think of a more unnerving and downright eerie film than this. Can you? I doubt it. What Stanley Kubrick morphs Stephen King’s novel into is incredible. Where you might lose the human touch and connection, cinematic The Shining delivers more chilling moments than the world’s largest freezer. Jack Nicholson is at his manic and terrifying best as an unhinged man on the brink of a homicidal breakdown. Nicholson’s physical acting is horrifying with just a glance or a demonic grin or cackle. Poor Shelley Duvall was tortured on set and Wendy Torrance experiences even worse as she is a victim of the most grotesque specters that The Overlook can muster. Kubrick’s perfect filmmaking full of symmetry of steady cam makes for a completely engrossing and inescapable cinematic experience. Your hairs will be on end from the start and will not stop until the credits stop rolling. Shocking and haunting in every way, The Shining is my favorite horror film of all time and needs to be experienced every Halloween season.
I hope you enjoy this list of Halloween traditions for yours truly! But this does not fully encompass the extent of my Halloween season viewing. Check out some of these other honorable Halloween movies as well…
- Trick ’r Treat
- The Addams Family (1991)
- The Conjuring
- Halloween (1978)
- Halloweentown
- The Lighthouse
- ParaNormal
