The Scream Team Halloween Movie Recs
This month, I asked all contributors to send through their favourite Halloween movie recommendations to help readers prepare for the spooky season. Please enjoy this eclectic collection of spooky movies to view thanks to our amazing contributors!
Andy
Guillermo Del Toro’s Hellboy (2004) is a movie I regularly revisit as a huge Del Toro and Hellboy fan, but the Halloween season in particular really fits the mood for a re-watch. If you’re not already familiar with Del Toro’s Hellboy, it follows the titular big, red monster-man (Ron Perlman) as he, his blue amphibious friend Abe Sapien (Doug Jones and David Hyde Pierce), pyrokinetic girl-boss Liz Sherman (Selma Blair) and human newbie John Myers (Rupert Evans) set out on a quest to save the world from evil; all the while making sure the BPRD (Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense) and monsterkind stay out of the limelight. It’s a movie that’s action-packed, cheesy, fun, and chock-full of wonderfully strange monsters. At the core of Hellboy is a story about loving the more “monstrous” parts of yourself, and finding comfort and connection in shared experiences. Obviously, I'd recommend this masterpiece any time of the year, but if you’re into hot monsters and want to celebrate the most monster-packed season of the year, Hellboy is a Halloween staple.
Honorable Mentions: Hellboy 2: The Golden Army (2008), An American Werewolf in London (1981), and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986
Aspen
My favorite movie to watch during the spooky season is Trick ‘r Treat (2007). I watch this movie every year, and in fact, I almost always watch it on Halloween night. The five intertwined stories that take place on Halloween are so entertaining and refreshing. I love its use of comic book-style animation woven into the storytelling and the adventure within each vignette. Sam is undoubtedly the most adorable creature and a staple for spooky iconography. From Sam’s rules of Halloween to the opening kill scene, this film is such a classic and the epitome of the Halloween spirit. I love cozying up with some popcorn and wine to watch every year. From one ghoul to another, always follow his rules and NEVER blow out your jack-o’-lantern before midnight!
Honorable Mentions: Halloween III Season of the Witch (1982), Pumpkinhead (1988), and Monster House (2006)
Alex
Over the Garden Wall is essential Halloween viewing, and I have to work it into my October horror marathon schedule every year. It’s a ten-episode animated mini-series that can be binged in one sitting, or you can spread it out over the season for a more prolonged experience. It’s got it all; skeletons wearing pumpkins on their heads, creepy monsters, songs, spooks for days, all those lovely autumnal vibes and children in peril. What more could somebody ask for? I'd recommend anyone who hasn't seen it to do so. It's just a perfect little pot of Halloween joy.
Honourable mentions are Evil Dead 2 (1987), Hocus Pocus (1993) and Troll 2 (1990)
Blayne
WNUF Halloween Special (2013). Having grown up in Pennsylvania in the '90s, this found-footage romp reminds me exactly of small-town decorating and celebrations around Halloween. From the ads to the fun scares, this movie melds nostalgia and modern fright delights into a fantastic Halloween tradition.
Honorable mentions (but also movies I watch year-round): Paranorman, Casper, and Trick 'r Treat (2007)
Violet
As a scare actor and found footage enthusiast, The Houses October Built is a film dear to my heart. This found footage gem follows a group of friends on a cross-country road trip to the most “extreme” haunts across America. A love letter to spooky season, The Houses October Built features actual footage from a wide range of haunted attractions. The interviews with real-life scare actors behind-the-scenes transport me back to my scare acting happy place, half-slathered in grease paint and fake blood, ready to elicit some screams. Much like a good haunted house, this film deftly blurs the lines between fact and fiction, making viewers wonder, “how far is too far for a good scare?”
Honorable mentions: Trick 'R Treat, Haunt, Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum
Marina
Grave Encounters is my favorite found footage movie and every year I force my friends to watch it with me during the spooky season. It follows the crew of a ghost-hunting reality show that decided to film their next episode in an abandoned asylum, so they have the property caretakers lock them inside and he will only return to let them out at dawn. What I love the most about it is how the film pokes fun at the reality shows by having the characters behave completely differently whenever they aren’t addressing the show’s viewers. It has plenty of jump scares, which is always a plus for me. The ambiance of the asylum is creepy as hell and it fits into a trope that I adore: survive the night. At its core, Grave Encounters consists of a group of sceptics that enter the asylum solely to do their jobs and end up finding out in the worst possible way that the supernatural does exist.
Honourable Mentions: Voces (2020) - Translated as Don’t Listen, Hell Fest (2018), and Demonic (2015).
Dylyn
As much as I love grit and gore, I have a massive soft spot for gentle horror as well! Since I was a little kid, my go-to Halloween film has been Casper (1995). There are scenes from that film that just feel like a part of me somehow, like they’ve been woven into my own personal fabric. Maybe it’s that I often feel like a ghost myself or that I’m haunted by, well, everything. But the story within that film of family, friendship, and tenderness just hits home for me on so many levels. Plus, it has everything you could want in a Halloween film including Bill Pullman as a ghost therapist, Wednesday Addams (also known in some circles as Christina Ricci), a delightfully haunted mansion, the best breakfast scene ever, and a score that goes right to your heart. If you’ve not seen it yet, I dare you not to cry during the “Can I keep you?” scene. Even thinking about it makes my soul hurt. If you’re looking for a lighter film, however (albeit one that might still make you cry if you’re anything like me), I’d recommend Mary-Kate and Ashley’s Double, Double Toil and Trouble (1993). It’s adorable, witchy, and perfect. What can I say? And if you want a bit more blood, check out Idle Hands (1999), a body horror comedy adventure that’s wonderfully weird as hell or the newer classic The Guest (2014), a violent action thriller with the coolest Halloween decor I’ve ever seen in my entire life. Either way, you can’t go wrong with any of these incredible films for your Halloween festivities! Happy haunting!
Felipe
Listen, no one sets out to make a bad movie—the worst movie, even. That’s what Claudio Fragasso delivered with Troll 2, and I couldn’t be happier to watch it with my friends during the Halloween season. Troll 2, with its goofy special effects and awkward dialogue, gives me the same pure joy as eating a bag of candy corn. Watching a kid take a piss on his family dinner to save them from tainted meat never gets old. That’s all I want from a Halloween flick; something easy to watch that will bring the homies together with drinks and laughter.
Honorable Mentions: Night of the Living Dead, Hausu, Evil Dead 2
Lor
We watch Monster House every Halloween. I think it has great holiday vibes (taking place on the date itself) and while the animation is a bit dated these days, it has a good ghost origin story with a sweet romance at its core. And Steve Buscemi!
Runner ups:
John Carpenter's The Thing is just, one of the best horror films ever made and a personal favorite of me and my partner. Every viewing I catch new things and appreciate the practical effects even more.
The Re-Animator is such a FUN horror film and great for parties. It's hilarious, gross and well made. I've read they practised the scenes for months before filming them and you can tell, everyone does a great job.
Taylor
My favorite Halloween pick is the original Scream. It was the first slasher that my best friend showed me and I love how equally fun yet genuinely horrifying it is. Also, Matthew Lillard is the KING of all kings, come on. Some others I love for this time are Crimson Peak, Ready or Not, and Vampires vs the Bronx!
Carly
While not set on or around Halloween, Scooby-Doo is a cornerstone of all things spooky. I grew up watching several iterations of the series on Cartoon Network and Boomerang which were nearly identical in structure, but when I watched Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island, the formula was changed — and not just the increased animation budget that still holds up, but the fundamental theme that humans are the real monsters. Well, that’s still true, but having Fred rip a zombie’s head off? That was like no other moment in the series up to that point. I introduced my nephew to some Scooby-Doo episodes, and he started watching Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island on his own. While he was definitely too young for this more intense Scooby-Doo, he still loved it. I still love it.
Honourable mentions: The Blair Witch Project, Cat People, Clue
Catherine
My favourite movie to get into the spooky season is The Addams Family: Family Values! This is a movie that I watch with my nieces when they visit in October as they have recently gotten into Halloween. Growing up in Australia meant I wasn’t exposed to Halloween until I was old enough to celebrate myself. I am obsessed with the aesthetic and the tone of Family Values and how well the film has transcended time.
Honourable mentions: Evil Dead (2013), The Nightmare Before Christmas (1994), and Pumpkinhead (1998)
RC
Eduardo Sánchez and Daniel Myrick’s The Blair Witch Project is a spooky season staple for me. The film is one of my all-time favorites and is absolutely mesmerizing to watch as the foliage in New England begins to show its colors. A masterful exercise in mood and naturalistic story telling, The Blair Witch Project still holds its own among the very best horror has to offer.
Honorable Mentions: Phenomena (Dario Argento), House By The Cemetery (Lucio Fulci), and Wes Craven’s New Nightmare
Amber
Freddy Vs Jason. It was released around the time that I was starting to dive into the horror genre so while I wasn’t quite as deep into it as a lot of older fans were, I couldn’t help but see the hype around it and impact it was having on the fans. It became one of the first horror movies I bought on VHS, buying it during the same shopping trip when I bought Final Destination 2. I also have a soft spot for the horror soundtracks of the millennium that were full of metal and I keep the Freddy Vs Jason soundtrack CD in my car. Other movies that are on my must-watch list for the Halloween season are Halloween III, Night Of The Living Dead, and House of 1,000 Corpses.
