Halloween Movie and TV Favorites: Reader Picks
After we shared our list of movies and TV shows that we watch on Halloween, many of you replied with titles that you find essential to make your Halloween spookily perfect. We compiled a list of some of those suggestions below - see titles fellow IMDb readers recommend watching this All Hallow's Eve. Happy Halloween!
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- DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsDonald PleasenceJamie Lee CurtisTony MoranFifteen years after murdering his sister on Halloween night 1963, Michael Myers escapes from a mental hospital and returns to the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois to kill again.The most commonly recommended title of all was Halloween with readers AJ Gallagher, Tara Michaels, Jeff Wilder, Jaclyn Erhardt and many others naming it at essential movie to watch on its namesake day. For those of you with a little more free time on your hands today, Alexander Draganov advises you to watch the Halloween movies 1-7.
- DirectorWilliam FriedkinStarsEllen BurstynMax von SydowLinda BlairWhen a young girl is possessed by a mysterious entity, her mother seeks the help of two Catholic priests to save her life.The Exorcist was another title that many of you, including Fernando Schiavi Leite, Bill Smee, Pierre Chevrefils and Hugo Emanuel Melo, watch on Halloween.
- DirectorJohn R. Cherry IIIStarsJim VarneyEartha KittAustin NaglerErnest accidentally unleashes an ugly troll that plots to transform children into wooden dolls in the town of Briarville, Missouri.Jeff Maynard's pick: "I always watch Ernest Scared Stupid. It still holds up after all these years."
- DirectorGeorge A. RomeroStarsDavid EmgeKen ForeeScott H. ReinigerDuring an escalating zombie epidemic, two Philadelphia SWAT team members, a traffic reporter and his TV executive girlfriend seek refuge in a secluded shopping mall.Brian Reeves: "Dawn of the Dead (either one -- they're both good for different reasons)"
- DirectorBernard RoseStarsVirginia MadsenXander BerkeleyTony ToddThe Candyman, a murderous soul with a hook for a hand, is accidentally summoned to reality by a skeptic grad student researching the monster's myth.1865 declares: "Candyman should be in the list."
- DirectorBill CondonStarsTony ToddKelly RowanCaroline BarclayThe Candyman arrives in New Orleans and sets his sights on a young woman whose family was ruined by the immortal killer years before.Bill Smee added: "Candyman 2 - one of the few sequels BETTER than the first."
- DirectorHenry SelickStarsDanny ElfmanChris SarandonCatherine O'HaraJack Skellington, king of Halloween Town, discovers Christmas Town, but his attempts to bring Christmas to his home causes confusion.Uzong Films: "The Nightmare Before Christmas! Can curl up and watch it both on Xmas and Halloween."
Reaganross1 agrees, noting that the movie "always felt more Halloweenish than Christmas." - CreatorKim CoghillAndrew De AngelisJeff DetskyStarsTatiana MaslanyDylan BruceJordan GavarisA streetwise hustler is pulled into a compelling conspiracy after witnessing the suicide of a girl who looks just like her.Zindee recommended the whole first season of "Orphan Black."
- DirectorJohn LandisStarsDavid NaughtonJenny AgutterJoe BelcherTwo American college students on a walking tour of Britain are attacked by a werewolf that none of the locals will admit exists.Adele Heather Taylor offered An American Werewolf in London as essential Halloween viewing.
- DirectorTucker GatesStarsSarah Michelle GellarNicholas BrendonAlyson HanniganOn Halloween, Buffy and her friends find themselves trapped inside a haunted frat house complete with real bats, zombies, and a terrifying demon.Ptoriadactyl says, "The Buffy Halloween episodes are some of the best on TV, so I'll go with those."
- DirectorPaul W.S. AndersonStarsLaurence FishburneSam NeillKathleen QuinlanA rescue crew is tasked with investigating the mysterious reappearance of a spaceship that had been lost for seven years.John Potter keeps it simple: "Two words, "Event" and "Horizon"."
- DirectorTarsem SinghStarsJennifer LopezVince VaughnVincent D'OnofrioAn F.B.I. Agent persuades a social worker, who is adept with a new experimental technology, to enter the mind of a comatose serial killer in order to learn where he has hidden his latest kidnap victim.Trish Barnes recommends: "For me personally I'd add The Cell (yes, the one with J-Lo and Vince Vaughn). That movie scares the pee out of me!"
- DirectorZack ParkerStarsAlexa HavinsJoe SwanbergKristina KlebeThe life of three parents who have all shared the loss of a child. Motives are not what they seem and sanity is in short supply in this thriller.Linda Diane Brewer notes: "Saw Proxy at TIFF. Not spooky but terrifying."
- DirectorScott GlossermanStarsNathan BaeselAngela GoethalsZelda RubinsteinThe next great killer and psychopath has given a documentary film crew exclusive access to his life as he plans his reign of terror over the quiet town of Glen Echo.Chris Coffman offers: "Behind The Mask. (Perfect mash up of horror/mocumentary)."
- DirectorTommy Lee WallaceStarsTom AtkinsStacey NelkinDan O'HerlihyKids all over America want Silver Shamrock masks for Halloween. Doctor Daniel Challis seeks to uncover a plot by Silver Shamrock owner Conal Cochran.Mr Jackson: "A departure from the Michael Myers storyline and quite ghoulish."
- DirectorDon CoscarelliStarsA. Michael BaldwinBill ThornburyReggie BannisterA teenage boy and his friends face off against a mysterious grave robber, known only as the Tall Man, who employs a lethal arsenal of unearthly weapons.Nick Harper added Phantasm, Brandon Perrine agreed, noting the movie as "a solid choice".
- DirectorKevin TenneyStarsCathy PodewellAlvin AlexisHal HavinsTen teenagers party at an abandoned funeral parlor on Halloween night. When an evil force awakens, demonic spirits keep them from leaving and turn their gathering into a living Hell.Geir Sundet says: "Try out Night of the Demons, a perfect Halloween-movie!!!"
- DirectorJuan Carlos FresnadilloStarsJeremy RennerRose ByrneRobert CarlyleSix months after the rage virus was inflicted on the population of Great Britain, the US Army helps to secure a small area of London for the survivors to repopulate and start again. But not everything goes according to plan.VonKaroliina's recommendation: "28 Weeks Later, it is a great zombie movie."
- DirectorWes CravenStarsBill PullmanCathy TysonZakes MokaeAn anthropologist goes to Haiti after hearing rumors about a drug used by black magic practitioners to turn people into zombies.Jackson J. Apure Rivera suggests: "Try The Serpent and the Rainbow, a must-watch Halloween flick!"
- DirectorJames WanStarsRyan KwantenAmber VallettaDonnie WahlbergAfter his wife meets a grisly end, Jamie Ashen returns to his hometown of Ravens Fair to find answers. His investigation leads him to the ghost of a ventriloquist named Mary Shaw who seems to have ties to his entire family treeAmanda Sofie Jensen singled out Dead Silence, including in the ominous quote:
"Beware of the stare of Mary Shaw,
she has no children only dolls.
And if you see her in your dreams...
Remember not to scream!"