Jade’s Top 10 Halloween Movies

Jade Aparicio

Note:  This is not in order and some parts of this article may be opinionated.  

It’s that time of year, where you drink hot cocoa, hang out with your friends and watch the funniest or most terrifying Halloween movies. These are the Top 10 Halloween movies you should watch this spooky season. 

  1. Hocus Pocus 

Hocus Pocus is a classic movie made in 1993 starring Sarah Jessica Parker (Sarah Sanderson), Bette Midler (Winifred Sanderson), and Kathy Najimy (Mary Sanderson). After 300 years, Max Dennison (Omri Katz) lights a candle from an abandoned house where the Sanderson sister live. Max, Dani (Thora Birch), and Allison (Vinessa Shaw) steal the witches book of spells to stop them from becoming immortal. So if you like funny, fantasy and witches – this is for you. This movie was directed by the one and only Kenny Ortega.

  1. SCREAM

“No, please don’t kill me, Mr. Ghostface – I wanna be in the sequel!” Wanna make it out alive? Scream is a horror movie made in 1996, directed by Tyler Gillett, Wes Craven and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin. The movie is about killers murdering students. They start by giving making a phone call saying the same thing, and next thing you know it, the person is dead. Who are the murderers, you might ask? I won’t say that much, but the only thing I will say – Ghostface. “Do you like scary movies?” 

  1. Beetlejuice 

Have you watched Beetlejuice yet?  Beetlejuice was made in 1998 and stars Michael Keaton as the title character. The genre is Comedy/Fantasy. It has some songs that you can sing to, but if you’re not a musical person, there are many other Halloween movies to watch. Beetlejuice is about Adam and Barbara, a seemingly-normal couple that happens to be dead. They have taken their sweet time to decorate their ghostly house and make it their own, but unfortunately, a family is moving in, and not quietly. Adam and Barbara try to scare them out, but end up becoming the main attraction to the money-making family. They call upon Beetlejuice to help, but Beetlejuice has more in mind…

  1. Halloweentown

Halloweentown was released on October 17, 1998. In a poll, 83% of people surveyed said they love Halloweentown.  Marnie (Kimberly J. Brown) and her siblings get a big shock when they follow their grandma home to Halloweentown – and find out they come from a family of witches. The town is the only place where supernatural beings can lead a  ‘normal’ life, but trouble is looming. On her 13th birthday, Marnie not only finds out that she is a witch, but also that the veil is threatening to take over the world. 

  1. The Exorcist 

Released in 1973,  The Exorcist is a horror/supernatural movie. Did you know The Exorcist is the most successful and terrifying horror film of all time? People say that they can’t sleep at night after watching! One of the most profitable horror movies ever made, this tale of an exorcism is loosely based on actual events.  When young Regan (Linda Blair) starts acting odd – levitating, speaking in tongues – her worried mother (Ellen Burstyn) seeks medical help, only to hit a dead end. The local priest (Jason Miller), however, thinks the girl may be seized by the devil. The priest makes a request to perform an exorcism, and the church sends in an expert (Max V. Sydow) to help with the difficult job. 

  1. It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown 

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is one of my personal favorites. In this Halloween short, Linus (Christopher Shea) waits in the pumpkin patch for the elusive Halloween symbol (The Great Pumpkin) to appear. It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown was released on October 27, 1966, and was directed by Bill Melendez. This animation/comedy short-film is a Halloween classic! 

  1. The Nightmare Before Christmas

Rotten Tomatoes, a movie rating website, gives The Nightmare Before Christmas a 95% – WOW. This film is about the misadventures of Jack Skellington (Danny Elfman), Halloweentown’s beloved pumpkin king, who has become bored of the same annual routine of frightening people in the “real world”. When Jack accidentally ends up in Christmastown, Jack sees all the bright colors and warm spirits, and he gets a new lease on life. Jack begins to plot to bring Christmas under his control by kidnapping Santa Claus. 

  1. IT 

Pennywise is out to get you! Seven-year-old outcasts in Derry, Maine are not ready to face their worst nightmare – an ancient, shape-shifting evil that comes up from the sewer every 27 years to prey on the town’s children. Over the course of one horrifying summer, the kids in town must overcome their own personal nightmares/fears to battle the murderous, bloodthirsty clown known as Pennywise. The new IT movie was released on September 5, 2017 and was directed by Andres Muschietti. 

  1. Coraline 

Was it just me, or is everyone terrified by Coraline? In this film, a girl named Coraline (Dakota Fanning) just moved into her new home, and discovers a secret door. Behind this door lies an alternate world that closely mirrors her own life but, in many ways, it’s better. Coraline rejoices in her discovery, until her other mother (Teri Hatcher) and the rest of her parallel family try to keep her there forever. She must use all her resources and bravery to make it back to her own family and life. 

  1. The Addams Family (1991)

When a mysterious man arrives at the Addam’s Family home and claims to be the missing brother of Gomez Addams (Raul Julia), the family is thrilled to see their long-lost uncle/brother. However, Morticia (Anjelica Huston) quickly begins to suspect that he is a fraud, since he seems to not remember his own life. Will the Addams family figure out the man’s true identity?