Halloween Movie Recommendations

It was almost halfway through last week when it finally donned on me that Halloween was almost here and that's when I realized that I hadn't seen any horror movies or shows. I got the idea to make this list a day or two later but I felt that it was already too late. Despite this feeling I thought 'what the hell, maybe someone might like a few recommendations that will scare you and get you in the Halloween mood. I am planning on expanding on this for next year, I'll try to get more of a comprehensive list together then. This isn't a review post, these are just some of my personal recommendations. Hope you enjoy!

Halloween (1978)

Directed by John Carpenter

Written by John Carpenter and Debra Hill

What better way to start off a list of Halloween movies than with one of the classics? Halloween follows Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) as she is hunted by a masked killer. When he was six years old Michael Meyers (First played by Will Sandin and later in the film by Tony Moran) kills his older sister and is institutionalized. Years later he breaks out and his doctor, Loomis (Donald Pleasence) works with the police to help stop him.

The status of this film as a classic is indisputable, it single-handedly launched the slasher genre (though to be fair it did not invent it, I believe that was Black Christmas) and it is great. John Carpenter is a master of his craft and is responsible for some of the best movies of the 20th century and a few of my own favorites. The acting is very good, especially Pleasence who appeared in all but one of the Halloween sequels until his death, despite their nosedive in quality. Quiet, spooky and with a fantastic synth main theme that is ubiquitous with the holiday it's named after. Spoiler alert: this isn't the only Carpenter movie that appears on this list.

It Follows (2014)

Written by Directed by David Robert Mitchell 

The story follows Jay (Maika Monroe) who one day sleeps with her boyfriend Jeff (Jake Weary) but he knocks her out and she wakes up tied to a chair and he informs her that now she is the target of 'it', a force that follows whoever is marked and the only way to be safe is to pass the mark on to whoever else by having sex with them.

An interesting story with some sleek cinematography combined with a unique take on genre tropes makes this a very fun watch. The monster does nothing but slowly walk toward it's victim and take on any form it wants. The performances are pretty decent across the board and the shots are great. It's got a bit of an 80's vibe which I appreciate a lot. I think the best part about this is the monster and it's a real treat to watch.

Let the Right One In (2008)

Directed by Tomas Alfredson

Written by John Ajvide Lindqvist

For a bit of a foreign flavor here is a 2008 Swedish vampire film. The movie follows Oskar (Kåre Hedebrant), a twelve year old boy who is bullied at school who meets a new girl, Eli (Lina Leandersson). He strikes up a friendship with this girl as people begin to be killed and drained of their blood. Soon he falls in love with her and learns that she is a vampire.

This film is less of a horror movie and more of a young romance with a horror backdrop. Normally child actors are the worst parts of any movie but the two leads are actually very good, especially Lina. As a fair warning though, if you can hear it in it's original Swedish with English subtitles that is your best option. I don't know what kind of direction the dub actors were given but it sounds like some of the secondary characters didn't speak English and were just given a phonetic script. It's pretty bad, which is a travesty when put with an otherwise excellent film.

The Shining (1980)

Directed by Stanley Kubrick

Written by Stephen King (Novel), Stanley Kubrick and Diane Johnson

This classic follows Jack (Jack Nicholson) moving with his wife Wendy (Shelly Duvall) and son Danny (Danny Lloyd) as Jack is hired to take care of the Overlook hotel while it's guests and staff are away for the winter. The troubled family sees this as a way to start over but soon become haunted by ghosts and their own personal demons.

This film has certainly earned it's status as a classic and stands as a towering achievement for Kubrick. The acting across the board is fantastic and the cinematography really makes you feel lost in the maze of hallways and the horrifying and downright confusing imagery goes a long way to unnerve you (the final shot and the man in the bear costume are great examples of this).

Stranger Things (2016-)

Created by Matt and Ross Duffer

Stranger Things follows a group of young boys (Finn Wolfhard, Caleb McLaughlin, Gaten Matarazzo), two teens (Natalia Dyer and Charlie Heaton), the town police chief (David Harbour) and a mother (Winona Ryder) after a boy goes missing one night from a small town in Indiana in the early 80's. Outside of town is a mysterious government laboratory run by Dr. Martin Brenner (Matthew Modine). Strange things begin to happen and the boys come across a weird girl with psychic powers named  11 (Millie Bobby Brown).

For the three people that haven't seen this fantastic Netflix series it is an absolute must-watch. It's an interesting story with great, loveable characters. The children are fantastic in this, especially Millie as fan-favorite 11. There is a real love for 80's culture in this show and it's perfect for anyone looking to get in the Halloween mood.

The Thing (1982)

Directed by John Carpenter

Written by Bill Lancaster and John W. Campbell Jr.

This classic follows Macready (Kurt Russell) and others Americans at a research base in the Arctic when the discover a nearby Norwegian research base destroyed and the scene to gruesome murder. Soon after a strange dog brings some kind of alien infection that takes on it's host and tries to infect the others. Soon no one knows who is human and who it the thing.

This film was panned when it came out and still sits at a 57 on metacritic but has gained a massive cult following in the years since. In my opinion it is John Carpenter's masterpiece, a brilliant combination of isolation, tension and some of the most gory and magnificent practical special effects I've ever seen. Famously he never told the actors who the thing was. He would only tell the one who was the thing right before their transformation, making even the cast themselves unsure of who to trust. A great performance by the excellent Russell and some incredible special effects by Rob Bottin, if you're looking for a gory special effects extravaganza with almost unbearable tension there isn't a single movie that's better.

The Babadook (2014)

Written and directed by Jennifer Kent

The Babadook follows Amelia (Essie Davis) and her six year old son Samuel (Noah Wiseman). Amelia's husband was killed in a car accident while driving Amelia to the hospital to have Samuel. Amelia is struggling raising him, he has bad behavioral issues and it takes a serious toll on her. One day Sam finds a book called Mister Babadook and she begins to be tormented by the Babadook.

This movie is actually why I made this list today. I was actually scared by this movie, something that doesn't happen very often. Essie Davis is phenomenal, I was actually astounded by just how good she is in this movie. She sells the movie and I can't imagine just how hard it must have been. Noah Wiseman was generally pretty good for his age but he didn't give a great performance but given his age I think that's acceptable. The story isn't a creature feature, it's more of a psychological horror story set against the backdrop of a troubled mother-son relationship. It's a fantastic film and was a deeply unsettling and unpleasant experience in the best way possible.

I hope you have a wonderful Halloween and I hope this list has helped you enjoy the holiday! There were several things I left out of this list but I just cobbled this together quickly. Seen anything good that I missed here? Leave a comment and let me know!

Happy Halloween!