Halloween Discussion Forums, Costumes, Horror!

1. Poltergeist

2. Hocus Pocus

3. The Uninvited (1947)

4. The Innocents

5. Freaks

How about these movies?


House Of 1000 Corpses
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
The Devil's Rejects
Silent Hill
Ghosts of Mars

1. House on Haunted Hill (original of course)
2. Van Helsing
3. The Halloween Tree
4. Ghostbusters (although I've seen it so often I've lost a lot of interest in it)
5. The Ghost and Mr. Chicken

1. Hocus Pocus
2. Cinderella
3. Halloween
4. Evil Dead
5. The Little Mermaid

Not sure I can put my favorite Halloween movies in any ranked order, but some I enjoy screening in October include

The Exorcism of Emily Rose (Seriously, this one scares me more than The Exorcist)

Mary Reilly (Not sure why I love this one so much--I think maybe because it is atmospheric and sensual without really showing much. Plus, John Malkovich gets to me.)

An American Werewolf in London (What's to say? Wonderful, dark humor)

Ghostbusters (Classic comedy)

Hocus Pocus (It's got all the holiday motifs I love, and is great for viewing with kids.)

Sometimes I am in the mood for Rosemary's Baby, too.

I like many of the others you all mention, too. My favorite vampire is Barnabas Collins, though I don't have any Dark Shadows in my private video library. I just remember him so well from my adolescence. I think he was the original conflicted vampire.

Sometimes I will put on Sweeney Todd (1982 stage production, Lansbury/Hearne) during the Halloween season. Sometimes also I will screen the Phantom of the Opera (musical) at that time, even though some things about it disappointed me (chiefly, that the Phantom couldn't sing well, and he didn't look very scary when his mask was removed).

I guess I like romantic atmosphere over gore, and I enjoy laughing at the macabre sometimes.

1.Halloween
2.Sleepy Hollow
3.Hocus Pocus (the universal Halloween favorite)
4.Halloweentown
5.Halloween 5

Another movie I like to watch during October is From Hell. Love Johnny Depp in that one.

I'm not sure I'd call it a Halloween movie, but for a romantic ghost story, it's hard to beat The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (black & white 1940s version with Rex Harrison as Captain Gregg).

I also enjoy the Tim Burton/Johny Depp Sleepy Hollow, although it is just a jazz riff on the original story. The best version I've ever seen for preserving the tone of the original story is actually the cartoon version narrated by Bing Crosby (Disney, I think). Because the Washington Irving short story is more comic than scary, really.

I kinda like the Wynona Ryder/Gary Oldman Dracula, too. The best part of it, IMO, is when the "young" Dracula comes to London as an 1890s dandy. I love the way they recreate that fin-de-siecle time, which was when the novel Dracula was written (and it does follow the story pretty well, except that the original doesn't have that part about Dracula's seeking his lost lover, IIRC).

To go in a completely different direction, I also find that Beowulf film from 4-5 years back (the one that was computer generated in 3-D) very effective. Lots of demons, darkness, and seduction going on in it. I'd say it could qualify as a Halloween movie, too.

writerpatrick wrote:1. House on Haunted Hill (original of course)
2. Van Helsing
3. The Halloween Tree
4. Ghostbusters (although I've seen it so often I've lost a lot of interest in it)
5. The Ghost and Mr. Chicken

I luv all these too!!

1. Killer Klowns from Outer Space - Holds a near and dear place in my hear. Because it's ridiculously stupid.
2. Dog Soldiers/The Howling - My two favorite werewolf movies.
3. The Thing - One of my all-time favorite movies.
4. Carnosaur - I love dinosaurs and horror movies, so it's cool. A horrible movie by all accounts, but I like it. It's like if Jurassic Park was directed and acted out by kindergarden kids.
5. A Nightmare on Elm Street - My favorite of the slasher movie icons.

I think that last scene of Blair Witch is really effective. I wish the college kids hadn't used the "f-word" every other word, though. I mean, I'm not prudish about language--believe me, I've heard it all--but it gets tiresome hearing that kind of vocabulary endlessly.

Murfreesboro wrote:I think that last scene of Blair Witch is really effective. I wish the college kids hadn't used the "f-word" every other word, though. I mean, I'm not prudish about language--believe me, I've heard it all--but it gets tiresome hearing that kind of vocabulary endlessly.

Yeah, call me old-fashioned but I only use that kind of language when I'm really mad. It's very uncooth.
Anyway, for a fake documentary BWP is a pretty good movie. I liked the 2nd even more when it came out but after a few times it's like, eh, there's too many holes in that plot.

If I were bring chased and tormented by a ghost witch lady, I'd toss F bombs left and right because I'd be scared sh!tless.

Castle wrote:If I were bring chased and tormented by a ghost witch lady, I'd toss F bombs left and right because I'd be scared sh!tless.

Hey, I love F-bombs!

Castle wrote:If I were bring chased and tormented by a ghost witch lady, I'd toss F bombs left and right because I'd be scared sh!tless.

Honestly, if this were happening to me, for real? I think I'd be praying, not cursing.