In no particular order, here are 10 movies that you absolutely cannot miss out on this year.
1. Halloween
In this notoriously terrifying movie named for the holiday, a psychotic murderer who has been institutionalized since childhood for the murder of his sister escapes and begins to stalk a teenage girl and her friends while being chased down by his doctor. This is definitely a classic Halloween that everyone should watch.
2. It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown
This is one of the favorites from everyone’s childhood. Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus and the whole gang are on the search for the Great Pumpkin. This family classic from 1966 is one that you can never outgrow.
3. Night of the Living Dead
With the latest zombie craze, this movie is surging to the front-runners of Halloween movies. An odd assortment of people in rural Pennsylvania spend the night running from zombies who are out to kill everyone.
4. Hocus Pocus
Three witches are awoken after 300 years in Salem, MA on Halloween. Throughout the course of the night, two teenagers, a young girl, and a talking cat try to escape the witches and save the other children in Salem from their grasps.
5. Paranormal Activity
This movie focuses on the lives of a young couple that believe they are being haunted. They set up cameras around their house to document and try to catch what is haunting them. Some view this film as terrifying and some think it is merely comical. Either way, it’s a great way to get in the Halloween spirit.
6. Halloweentown
Throwback to the Disney Channel Original Movies of the early 2000’s. Halloweentown, along with Halloweentown II, Halloweentown High, and Return to Halloweentown, are classic Disney movies where Marnie and her family travel to another realm where everything is Halloween-y all the time. This is one of my personal favorite Halloween series.
7. Ghostbusters
In this movie, three unemployed parapsychology professors start a ghost-removal service. This movie also stars Bill Murray, who body slammed Lee Corso during the College Dameday Broadcast on October 19. That’s a pretty great reason to watch it.
8. The Changeling
The 1980 version, not the new 2008 version. This classic horror film follows a man who moves into an old, abandoned mansion following the deaths of his wife and daughter. While there, he is haunted by the ghost of a murdered boy. This is definitely one of the scariest movies of all time.
9. Psycho
In this horror classic, a secretary embezzles money from her employers then goes on the run, eventually checking into a motel run by a crazy man. This movie is very well known for the shower scene featuring Marion.
10. E.T. the Extra Terrestrial
And finally, this family classic has been around since the 80’s. E.T. is an alien who is accidentally left on Earth by other aliens. He then makes friends with a human family and has all kind of fun adventures like making a bike fly.
So grab some popcorn and settle down. It’ll take a while to watch all 10 of the classic Halloween movies.