WHAT TO WATCH ON HALLOWEEN

As a movie fan, Halloween is my favorite holiday. In fact, this is my favorite time of year in general. The weather is starting to get cooler, but not too cold that it's annoying. The leaves on the trees begin to change their colors. I believe that Fall and the month of October are when you can really consciously feel the Earth changing. But I digress.

Halloween has officially become my favorite time of year in the world of movies. Around this time in October, we see the beginnings of Oscar season. Some of the critically touted movies begin to come out and we see previews for others on their own Oscar hunt. It is also the time of year when horror films are on T.V. almost every night and we have also come to expect the next installment in the Saw franchise. There's nothing better than going to the theaters and getting the crap scared out of you and then going home and getting the crap scared out of you on T.V.

This is also the time of year when people gear up for Halloween parties where they plan on watching the scariest movies possible. Then, there are some people who do not even plan to make a party out of their Halloween movie watching. They look forward to curling up on the couch with a blanket and a bowl of popcorn and spend a few hours in the dark. A friend of mine and I usually fall in the second category. While we were in school together, we would try our best to go see some scary movie together at the movies, and, on Halloween night, get together and watch a few scary movies. This year I have decided to raise the stakes on myself just a bit. I plan on devoting the whole 24 hours of October 31 to scary movie watching. That's right. I am planning my own personal 24 hour horror movie marathon. Why, you ask? Why not? I believe that this is something that should be done by every fan of horror movies at some point in their lives. My time has come this year.

O.K. I've rambled again. Back to the point of this post...

The question that someone always asks me during this time of year is the point of this post: "What are the best scary movies to watch on Halloween?"

I always hesitate and take my time when I answer this question. What I have learned over the years of watching movies is that everyone does not respond to movies in the same way. Just like some people are frightened by spiders and others are not, so too, not everyone will be frightened by the same horror movie. It's always difficult trying to tell a person what movies they should watch to make their Halloween a truly scary and enjoyable one if you don't know them very well. So, in essence, I am giving a non-answer answer to that question this year. Think about what scares you the most. Try to think back to a movie that had an icy grip on you. One that had you scared to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. When you do that, you'll have answered your own question.

The next best thing I can do is give a little insight into some of the movies I have chosen for my personal movie marathon this year. Werewolves scare the living daylights out of me. It's not so much their appearance that scares me, but what I know they are going to do. Werewolves are going to rip you apart and probably eat you. One of my biggest fears is of being eaten by something. I know it's kind of random, but the thought terrifies me. This is why I have two werewolf movies on my list this year: Silver Bullet (1985) and Dog Soldiers (2002).

The whole idea behind the urban legend of Bloody Mary and calling her through a mirror in the dark freaks me out every time I walk into a dark bathroom. So, I have put Candyman (1992) on my list this year.

This is the kind of stuff I am talking about. Analyze yourself and what really scares you at your core. Then, go out and find movies that will play off of those fears. I promise it will make for an unforgettable Halloween experience.


Until next time....


P.S. Reviews for the upcoming Zack and Miri Make a Porno and Changeling will be posted very soon. Keep an eye out!