Editor’s Pick: Our Favorite Halloween Movies

If you feel like turning off the lights and kicking back with a scary (or spooky…or not really either but still Halloween-themed) movie this October 31st, you’re speaking our language!

With Halloween just around the corner, we asked our editors about their favorite flick for a ghoulish good time. Here’s what they said:

Brandan – Movies section editor

1. My Halloween jam is: 28 Weeks Later
2. It’s my favorite Halloween flick because: Fast zombies may be the most terrifying zombie apocalypse scenario there is. They WILL catch you.
3. The best scare of the movie is: The opening scene when Robert Carlye is running as fast as he can to get away, and every zombie in the area is running as fast as they can to catch him. The music in that scene is perfect.
4. The most quotable moment is: “…there was nothing I could do. I managed to get away. Just running, running, and running.”
5. The MVP is: Danny Boyle & Alex Garland from 28 Days Later. Before that movie, you needed a crowd of zombies to feel tension. That movie (and this one) requires only one.
6. I know someone loves it if they get this obscure reference: They say fast zombies are better than slow zombies…because they are.

Julia – TV section editor

1. My Halloween jam is: Hocus Pocus
2. It’s my favorite Halloween flick because: It’s truly iconic for any kid raised in the ‘90s and it’s the perfect Halloween movie for the inherently squeamish. Plus it definitely lead to a revival in witch stories – everything from Charmed to The Craft should thank Hocus Pocus for laying the groundwork.
3. The best scare of the movie is: Probably Billy bursting out of his grave (or getting his fingers run over – yikes!)
4. The most quotable moment is: “Oh look, another glorious morning…makes me SICK!”
5. The MVP is: Bette Milder rocking a crazy red wig and huge fake teeth – and still managing to command the screen in every scene.
6. I know someone loves it if they get this obscure reference: SO many, but the one that first comes to mind is “Amuck, amuck, amuck!”

Alex – Sports section editor

1. My Halloween jam is: Insidious
2. It’s my favorite Halloween flick because: It’s genuinely terrifying and relatable. The focus on the family relationships convinces you that you could experience the exact same things that the characters in the movie experience. Every time I watch it, I’m scared to turn of the lights before I run up the stairs (you all know the feeling!).
3. The best scare of the movie is: When the Lipstick-Face Demon first appears. In the plain, family suburban home setting, the sudden appearance of the demon’s red and black face is horrifying.
4. The most quotable moment is: “It’s not the house that is haunted. It’s your son.”
5. The MVP is: The Further. The Further isn’t a character, but a place, or I guess you can call it a place. It is a separate, dark dimension between Heaven and Hell that is the epitome of every person’s nightmare.
6. I know someone loves it if they get this obscure reference: Any mention of “The Further” should get someone excited who loves Insidious. Even though The Further is a terrifying place, the entire concept fascinates any true Insidous fan.

Ryan – Music section editor

1. My Halloween jam is: Halloween II 
2. It’s my favorite Halloween flick because: This is the very first horror movie I ever watched as a kid. For some reason I watched it entirely alone, which was obviously a huge mistake. I could not go into a dark room or hallway for YEARS because I absolutely knew Michael Myers there…waiting…watching… ready to kill again!
3. The best scare of the movie is: I’m not sure if the scariest moment, but for me the most memorable moment is when Michael stalks up behind the nightshift nurse in the hospital and not only shivs her in the back with a surgical scalpel, but proceeds to lift her about three feet off the ground as her shoes fall off her feet. Also – why aren’t there more people in this hospital?! Haddonfield, Illinois must be the safest place on Earth. Minus the murderous manic, of course.
4. The most quotable moment is: After having shot Michael several times, Lorie softly, blankly asks Dr. Loomis “Why won’t he die?”
5. The MVP is: John Carpenter’s iconic original Halloween theme song. I mean, come on!
6. I know someone loves it if they get this obscure reference: My aversion to hot tubs because I don’t want to get “Halloween II’d”

Happy Halloween from all of us to you!

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