Staff Recs: Favorite Halloween Movies

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Polina Buchak

WSN Staff recommend their favorite Halloween movies.

WSN Staff

‘Tis the season — and by that, we mean Halloween, the most hyped holiday in New York, or as we call it, Halloweekend. In its honor, WSN staff has shared their best picks for Halloween flicks.

Halloween (1978)

When my mom told me that her favorite scary movie was “Halloween” forever ago, I was skeptical. The first time I watched the film, I was even more skeptical. It really wasn’t that scary, and Jamie Lee Curtis’ acting was not exactly award-winning. However, the more I watched it, the more I understood. This was a regular girl — babysitting after school, just like I used to — being stalked by a serial killer in a mask. It seemed like it could really happen, as odd as that sounds. It’s a true classic and whenever I watch it, it reminds me of autumn back home, carving pumpkins and walking home from school with the leaves changing colors around me. — Jordan Reynolds, Entertainment Editor

Hocus Pocus

There’s somewhat of a running joke between my sister and I that whenever anyone — usually one of us — is rambling on about some story too long, the other one will go “Whoa, Hollywood! Tubular!” That’s probably the most esoteric joke in the entire world, so much so that you’re probably still confused as to why I’m talking about it under the “Hocus Pocus” header. I love this movie so much that if anyone ever actually got that dumb reference, I’d probably just marry them on the spot. My sister and I taped this movie — on VHS! And still use that tape! Who said millennials know nothing?

“Hocus Pocus” has three incredible witches, a talking cat, early ’90s grunge and witty zombie humor. “Hocus Pocus,” my friends, is everything I could have ever hoped and dreamed for. — Bobby Wagner, Managing Editor

Corpse Bride

The Corpse Bride is a pretty macabre movie, though perhaps not so much for Tim Burton, the film’s director. It’s about a man who accidentally ends up engaged to a corpse (don’t you hate when that happens?) and has to figure a way out of the engagement in order to marry the woman he really loves. However, the animation is absolutely beautiful and the soundtrack is amazing (highlight track is “Remains of the Day”). If you’re a scaredy cat like myself, this movie is perfect for getting into the Halloween spirit without needing to sleep with the lights on. — Abbey Wilson, Assistant Managing Editor

A Cinderella Story

Ok, so “A Cinderella Story” isn’t technically a Halloween movie, at least not in the traditional sense, but its quintessential-Cinderella moment happens at the ball, which for Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Murray happens to be their high school Halloween Dance. After a mad dash by her coworkers and adopted family at her dad’s diner to find her a last-minute costume so she can finally meet her online pen pal “Nomad.” Rhonda, her quasi-mother, lets Duff’s Sam borrow her old wedding dress so she can be Cinderella. And guess what Murray’s high school heartthrob Austin Ames is dressed as? Prince Charming. How very convenient. It’s one of those movies that when you rewatch later, you realize how ridiculous it is, but that certainly doesn’t take away any of its charm. And with a bomb mid-2000s soundtrack replete with some classic Hilary Duff bangers, what could be better? The 11 percent it holds on Rotten Tomatoes is an abomination. — Rachel Ruecker, Sports Editor

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein

It wouldn’t be the Halloween season without a viewing of Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein. For those of you who aren’t the biggest fans of horror flicks and enjoy a good slapstick laugh, Abbott and Costello are for you. A classic black and white film from 1948, Abbott and Costello play the roles of two hilarious Florida baggage clerks. On the weekend of “All Hollow’s Eve,” their railway station receives crates filled with the wax figures of iconic horror characters: Count Dracula, Frankenstein and the Wolfman. The humor is timeless, the duo talks so fast you may miss all of their jokes and the nostalgia of old Hollywood are all key to why this Halloween flick transcends time. — Gabriella Bower, Beauty and Style Editor