Halloween Holiday Movies and Television Specials

Halloween is not just for trick or treating; it's for movie watching! As I searched for ideas, I was overwhelmed with the diversity of other people's picks. Everything from Invasion of the Body Snatchers to Jaws was considered a Halloween movie as well as every slasher film ever made. You can't really go wrong with a Stephen King (Carrie) or Alfred Hitchcock (Psycho) film, but I needed to limit my criteria. Instead of "Fear-factor" movies, those designed to scare you despite plot; I went for those movies that are also inexorably linked to Halloween. In some cases, these movies redefined our vision of the spooky holiday. You will not find any slasher flicks here as I am not a fan. Most of the movies I have seen with two noted exceptions. So look through the lists and see if something doesn't jump out at you.

CLASSICS:

1. Frankenstein or The Bride of Frankenstein: These old black and white classics must make the list. No one knew what Mary Shelley was envisioning for the "monster" in her book but these movies certainly made a lasting impression. Go for the classic versions if possible. The newer Frankenstein movies just aren't the same.

2. The Fall of the House of Usher: There are several adaptations of this Poe classic and I'm sure it was the original that scared the pants off me and still haunts me to this day. Though not a scare-a-minute type film, it has one scene toward the end that builds with suspense as the guest reads a story to his nervous host while the dead rise from the grave. I am still cautious about opening a door on a darkened hallway.

3. House of Wax or House on Haunted Hill: I don't mean the new versions of these flicks but the old Vincent Price movies. That alone makes them Halloween worthy. House on Haunted Hill has been remade several times, I believe, but who can outdo Price for a spooky effect or a madman's cackle?