Iâm kind of a purist when it comes to Halloween. When you watch horror movies all day, every day, the spookiest time of the year tends to be an opportunity to either go classic or to go party, depending on oneâs mood/company.
If a marathon is in the cards, then Iâd pack as many favourites into the day as possible. For a party atmosphere, it would have to be classics interspersed with fun, festive flicks to keep everyone entertained through the night.
The following is a mixture of both, for the perfect Halloween:
Scream
Scream is one of the greatest slasher movies of all time, and one of my own personal favourites, too. Scary, funny and endlessly entertaining, itâs self-referential without being smug, gory without being over the top and, in spite of the fact itâs nineties as hell, it never seems to ageâit also boasts one of the most legendary, jaw-dropping opening sequences in the horror history.
Mix it up: Watch Scream 4 if youâre with anyone under the age of twenty (but also because itâs great in its own right, too). Or marathon all four, for maximum holiday fun.
Halloween
Whatâs a Halloween movie marathon without the Halloween horror movie? Iâm not one of those lunatics who thinks Season Of The Witch is some sort of masterpiece. Halloween is arguably the greatest horror movie of all time and almost every sequel that followed it pales in comparison (2 is decent, but still doesnât really compare). Itâs the go-to. Always.
Mix it up: Check out Rob Zombieâs Halloween remake from 2007, which attempts to do something different with the Michael Myers mythology (at least for half of its run-time) and is unfairly derided by elitists purely for existing. Ignore the hatred and give it a go.
Trick ârâ Treat
Up until this year, Trick ârâ Treat was the ultimate Halloween anthology movie. Now, following the release of the terrific Tales Of Halloween, its reign as the festive anthology must-watch may be in jeopardy. But, until we all, inevitably, add Tales to our collections/holiday rotation, Trick ârâ Treat is still a fun, exciting and scary little Halloween treat that will make you fear opening the door in case little Sam is behind it.
Mix it up: This time, next year, Tales Of Halloween will be the go-to for spooky anthology movies but its fellow new, Halloween-y release Hellions may be gaining traction by that stage tooâit even features some super-creepy, Sam-esque trick-or-treaters of its own.
Hocus Pocus
Iâm kind of cheating with this one because Hocus Pocus is my go-to movie every day of the year, whether Iâm sick, bored, tired or just unsure of what to watch in general. Itâs a classic, which is kind of surprising considering just how bloody weird it is. Hilariously funny, festive and surprisingly dark in places, this is one of those movies that gets better with each and every re-watch. A Halloween classic, any time of the year.
Mix it up: The Nightmare Before Christmas is officially a Halloween movie, according to comments recently made by its director. But, any self-respecting anti-Christmas, pro-Halloween fan already knew that. Besides, is there any better Halloween song than âThis Is Halloween?â
The Thing
Ending the night on a high is important, because chances are youâre going to be bummed out Halloween is over for another year. You canât go wrong with a classic from a horror master, and Carpenterâs The Thing has somehow managed to get even scarier over the years. The practical effects are still spot on, Kurt Russell is still brilliant as MacReady and the ending is still just as simultaneously frightening and sad as always, if not more so.
Mix it up: Considering most of us will likely be honouring our dearly-departed Wes Craven this year, you canât go wrong with A Nightmare On Elm Street. If itâs body horror youâre after, Cronenbergian classic The Fly makes for a gooey Halloween treat thatâll make you sicker than eating too much candy before dinner.