Halloween is just around the corner! There is no better way to celebrate (especially with this COVID-19 culture) than to snuggle up on the couch with friends, make some popcorn, and watch Halloween movies. If you are like me and are not a huge fan of scary movies, there are plenty of other Halloween movies that will not give you nightmares.
Of course, there are the infamous “Halloweentown” movies that most of us watched on Disney Channel growing up. However, up until this year, I did not know there were four of them! Therefore, I am here to help you pick out the best one to watch and personally rank them from worst to best.
- “Halloweentown High”
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Starting at the bottom, this is, in my opinion, the worst one. The plot of this movie is good, but it does not follow the story that the other films do. It is really about Marnie (who, as the movies go on, gets so annoying) creating a student exchange program so that monsters can also attend Halloweentown High, not just witches. It is the least interesting to me, as I am more interested when Halloweentown is being taken over and destroyed by the villains like in the other movies. It also annoys me (this could just be my OCD) that the other films have specific names, where this one is just called “Halloweentown High.”
- “Halloweentown II: Kalabar’s Revenge”
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This is the second movie in the series, and in my opinion, ranked as the second-worst “Halloweentown.” I like the plot. An evil warlock casts a spell that will turn people into their Halloween costumes at midnight. However, this one involves humans mainly. I like the “Halloweentown” movies that focus more on magical creatures, like goblins, skeletons, and ghosts. It is more exciting since we don’t see movies like this all the time, only once a year. Still, I would recommend watching it, especially if you want the whole experience of the “Halloweentown” movies.
- “Halloweentown”
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In second place, I put the original and first movie in the series, “Halloweentown.” This movie is where it all started, and as a child, I just loved the grandma’s never-ending purse in this one. This plot was simple but exciting. The three kids sneak out and follow their grandma to the magical land of Halloweentown. Kalabar freezes the mother and the grandma, and then the three kids have to create a potion for the magic wand and save the town. I loved it when the three kids went out to find all of the ingredients and met all of these creatures in the process. This one’s a classic, and everyone needs to see it.
- “Return to Halloweentown”
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Last but not least, but my favorite, “Return to Halloweentown.” First things first, Marnie’s actress does change which usually really annoys me in a series. However, it changes to Sara Paxton, and she also plays aquamarine in another movie, so I was okay with it. This movie has a similar plot to the first one, where Marnie and Dylan head off to Halloweentown University. Here they find out an evil group of wizards is trying to unlock a family heirloom that has the power to mind control, anyone. At midnight on Halloween, spells become permanent, meaning that the mind control will stick forever. This movie also has some fun flashbacks and time traveling in the plot with a big plot twist.
Furthermore, the film is also the most modern Halloweentown. It has the best graphics out of all the movies and the best music in my opinion. Not to mention, Sharpy’s brother Lucas from “Highschool Musical” makes an appearance that you cannot miss.
Overall, I would suggest watching all four movies (you can skip Halloweentown High, it doesn’t add to the plot) so that you can get the full Halloweentown story from start to finish. I suggest a movie marathon all day on October 31 this year since it will be a COVID Halloween.