My favorite time of the year, Halloween, is quickly approaching and if you’re anything like me, this means you need to celebrate festively. Today I present you with my all-time favorite movies to put on your list this spooky season.
Hocus Pocus (1993) & Hocus Pocus 2 (2022)
This one is self-explanatory, but it never gets old. I watched Hocus Pocus 1 with my mom at the end of September after a bad day, and it made me so happy. I recently watched the newer one, and I thought it was adorable!
Synopsis- “A curious youngster moves to Salem, where he struggles to fit in before awakening a trio of diabolical witches that were executed in the 17th century.”
Halloweentown, Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge, Halloweentown High, and Return to Halloweentown. (1998-2006)
Another classic! If you were a Disney Channel kid like me growing up, you will appreciate this being so high on my last. Unpopular opinion, but I liked Marnie better in the last season. I wish she was the actress for one, two, and three as well!
Series Synopsis- “When a young girl living with her good-witch grandmother learns she too is a witch, she must help her grandmother save Halloweentown from evil forces.”
Beetlejuice (1988)
Nothing beats the original Beetlejuice from 1988. This movie is a MUST on your Halloween marathon nights.
Synopsis: “This Tim Burton horror/comedy follows a ghost couple who haunt their prior home, alongside, of course, a devious poltergeist named Beetlejuice. Watch for the laughs and THE famed striped suit.”
Ghostbusters (1984)
Can you tell I have an old soul? If you automatically hear the ghostbusters song every time you think of this movie, you’re not alone. I vividly remember playing freeze dance to that song at elementary school halloween parties.
Synopsis: “After the members of a team of scientists lose their cushy positions at a university in New York City, they decide to become ‘ghostbusters’ to wage a high-tech battle with the supernatural for money. They stumble upon a gateway to another dimension, a doorway that will release evil upon the city. The Ghostbusters must now save New York from complete destruction.”
Twitches (2005) and Twitches Too (2007)
Yet another Disney Channel classic series I will never get sick of. The acting may not be great, but the plot is super cute!
Series Synopsis: “Two teen witches who were separated at birth and were adopted by two different families meet on their 21st birthday and must use their powers to save the world in which they were born, where their birth mother still lives.”
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Personally, I like to watch this one towards the end of the Halloween season, because it also prepares you for Christmas! I absolutely love the character of Jack Skellington.
Synopsis: “Jack Skellington, king of Halloween Town, discovers Christmas Town, but his attempts to bring Christmas to his home causes confusion.”
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Adams Family (1991)
They recently came out with a children’s cartoon as well, but the originals are always better. Wednesday Adams is such a mood alone.
Synopsis: “Con artists plan to fleece an eccentric family using an accomplice who claims to be their long-lost uncle.”
Scream (1996)
It may be called “Scream”, but I promise you you probably won’t. This was one of the first horror movies I’ve ever watched growing up, in middle school with my friend group. I remember being terrified, but looking back, I feel stupid.
Synopsis: “A year after the murder of her mother, a teenage girl is terrorized by a new killer, who targets the girl and her friends by using horror films as part of a deadly game.”
Young Frankenstein (1974)
I don’t know about you, but I genuinely love old films. While I didn’t love the book, I watched this movie in class, junior year of high school and thoroughly enjoyed it.
Synopsis: “An American grandson of the infamous scientist, struggling to prove that his grandfather was not as insane as people believe, is invited to Transylvania, where he discovers the process that reanimates a dead body.”
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
If you have never heard of this movie, you must live under a rock. Kids who have never even seen it still know “One, two, Freddy’s coming for you”. Again, this is a not-so-scary “scary” movie because of the quality of the filming (it was done in the 80’s, after all).
Synopsis: “The monstrous spirit of a slain child murderer seeks revenge by invading the dreams of teenagers whose parents were responsible for his untimely death.”
Sleepy Hollow (1999)
I’m sure you have heard of the Legend of the Sleepy Hollow. If not, let me fill you in. It is Washington Irving’s 1820 tale of a headless horseman who terrorizes the real-life village of Sleepy Hollow is considered one of America’s first ghost stories—and one of its scariest. AND Johnny Depp is in it. What a win!
Synopsis: “Ichabod Crane, a Yankee wanderer, arrives in Sleepy Hollow and becomes the new schoolmaster. He meets Katrina Van Tassel, and blissfully fantasizes about how can marry her, ultimately, inherit her father’s rich estate. Her suitor Brom Bones, the blacksmith, wants to scare him away and dresses up as the legendary Headless Horseman. During the prank, the real ghost appears and drives Ichabod off.”
I hope your spooky season is great, but it will be even spookier after watching all these movies ;)