This October, sit down with friends and plushies and spend some time watching Halloween-themed movies you may not have seen or heard of before. In other words, I’m here to give you five movies that I’ve seen and recommend in the hopes that you find something new that you might not have considered otherwise.
- Suspiria (1977)
Suspiria by Dario Argento is an Italian epic supernatural horror from the late 70s that stars American actress, Jessica Harper, as the main character Suzy. Suzy is a talented ballerina who happens to arrive in Germany to attend an elite ballet school just as a mysterious murder occurs within the eclectic building. Dubbed in Italian, this film is beautiful visually and includes a bright color scheme, a breathtaking atmosphere, and a witchy storyline. If you choose to watch this film, I hope you fall in love with the magical soundtrack as much as I did.
- Prey (2022)
Prey by Dan Trachtenberg is a prequel to the 1987 sci-fi, hyper-masculine, action movie that didn’t have great sequels afterward. This straight-to-streaming prequel changed that string of luck, and lead actress Amber Midthunder stars in her role as a skilled Comanche warrior who must protect her tribe from the Yautja warrior that landed on Earth. The action sequences, human antagonists, and effects are all extremely well done and make this movie a great hit, even if it’s not a conventional horror movie. A creature from another planet that hunts for sport would be a scary thing to face off against, especially a few hundred years ago.
- The First Omen (2024)
The First Omen by Arkasha Stevenson is one of the few horror movies that caught me off guard with how much I enjoyed it. This is another prequel, this time to the well-known 1976 movie The Omen. Margaret, an American woman, moves to Rome, Italy, to live in the church and serve God as a nun, though she quickly feels that something is off. Becoming close with an orphan girl who shares similar terrifying visions, Margaret relapses into a dark corner of her mind and discovers a nefarious and evil plot by the Catholic church to bring about and control evil. For a movie about the devil, the story is much more fascinating than anything else I’ve seen. As someone who loves great cinematography and music, this movie was a breath of fresh air, despite the dark content.
- The Wicker Man (1973)
The Wicker Man was released in 1973 and was directed by Robin Hardy. It is a British folk horror and mystery film. I watched this recently and though I have mixed opinions on it, I would still recommend it to anyone interested in folk horror and those who enjoyed Midsommar, as this inspired the 2019 movie. This story follows a Christian policeman who investigates the disappearance of a young girl on a Scottish island, becoming suspicious when the residents cannot give him clear answers to his questions. He finds himself at odds with strange members of a cult, whose practices become increasingly more eery. This movie will interest you if you find pagan religions interesting and enjoy a good, unexpected twist towards the end.
- As Above, So Below (2014)
As Above, So Below by John Erick Dowdle gets a surprisingly low score on Rotten Tomatoes, despite being entertaining and self-aware with the content it works with. As someone with a goal of visiting the Paris Catacombs, this movie was such a fun movie, and on the shorter side, that was at times scary and memorable. Archaeologist Scarlett Marlowe believes that she can find the infamous Philosopher’s Stone (Harry Potter reference, anyone?) by assembling a team and entering the catacombs illegally. The group quickly finds themselves stuck in their own personal hell and must fight to survive and find their way out of what they realize is something similar to the nine circles of Hell, referencing Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy. The terrors continue as they treck deeper and deeper below.
Hopefully, some of these movies sound interesting enough to check out, even if their reviews aren’t the highest. If these wind up being too spooky for you, perhaps it’s best to stick to a 1949 Disney classic, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Although on second thought, sometimes even an animated headless horseman is enough to give me shivers.