With fall finally in full gear, Halloween is just around the corner. Preparing for this holiday can consist of many factors, such as finding the perfect costume to impress your peers, decorating your dorm room, and realistically, having enough money to do all of this. But don’t stress, after a long day of searching the internet for an appropriate costume, unload your party city decorations and watch one of these very creepy and intriguing Halloween movies to get you into the holiday spirit.
Tim Burton is an obvious choice for a scary Halloween classic. The mix of fantasy and horror captures the true sense of the season. If you’re looking for a gothic and somewhat creepy film to add to your list, here are some suggestions; “Edward Scissorhands,” “Beetlejuice” and “Nightmare Before Christmas.” But, if you plan on adding any of his movies to your watch list, I highly recommend “Corpse Bride.” The storyline follows Victor and Victoria, who get set up by their families in an arranged marriage. Although the two like each other, Victor becomes increasingly nervous about the ceremony and walks into the woods. While in the woods, Victor is grabbed by a hand in the ground and taken to the spirit world by the Corpse Bride, Emily, who wishes to marry Victor. In an effort to get back to Victoria, Victor does everything he can to get back to the living world. This stop motion film is over an hour long and is the perfect start to the fall season!
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Another great suggestion is “Coraline” directed by Henry Selick; this will be your choice if you enjoy the odd and gloomy-themed stop motion animations. Coraline, a young girl who just moved into a new house, finds a hidden door that takes her to what seems like an alternate dimension. Her curiosity gets the best of her as she searches this new world for some similarities to home and stumbles across her family, but they’re very different. With her new family’s efforts to try and keep her in this dimension, Coraline must find a way back to her original one. This movie was quite popular when I was a kid, so chances are you’ve seen this one already, but it is time to sit down and watch it if you haven’t. With a running time of one hour and forty minutes, popcorn and a soda are a necessity.
Image courtesy of Wired.com
If cartoons are not your speed, and you’re looking for something that will likely make your heart rate increase, there are a plethora of movies that will do the trick. “The Nun,” “Ma,” “Us,” “A Quiet Place,” “Lights Out” and “The Conjuring” are some of the most popular. If you’re searching for a more comedic thriller, you have several options, including “The Scream” series, which will be releasing its fifth film in January of 2022. Other suggestions are the “Scary Movie” series, “Rocky Horror Picture Show,” “Jennifer’s Body” and “Ghostbusters.” While I am not so fond of the jump scare genre of film, I do love psychological thrillers. Two of my favorites are “Midsommar” and “Hereditary,” they are both written and directed by Ari Aster.
Image courtesy of Microsoft
Adding some scary movies to your to-do list this October is sure to get you in a Halloween mood!