One of the most enjoyable parts of Spooky Season is watching tons of scary movies, while wrapped up in blankets, on chilly October nights. For those of you with a Hulu account, you may have noticed their section of selected Halloween flicks, which they cleverly call “Huluween.” Since there are more films and shows than someone could possibly watch before the holiday arrives (unless you are an extremely ambitious horror movie fan!), I have compiled a short list of films that are offered under Huluween.
First, let’s begin with some of the older, classic horror movies that you can find on Hulu. Without a doubt, I’ll first mention Children of the Corn (1984). This film is a great, classic scare that is based on Stephen King’s story from 1977 about a couple who are on a road trip, then stumble upon a corn field with a sinister background. This is not too frightening as compared to more modern films, due to its sometimes dated graphics and its lack of “jump scares” that typically turn some people away from horror movies. It has a rating of R, and a runtime of 1 hour and 33 minutes. Some of the other typical and classic movies, such as The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003), are only available to those with a higher subscription. If that includes you, enjoy these thrillers! If not, you could always turn to Netflix for The Silence of the Lambs, though The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is not available on that streaming platform. However, there is an entire section of scary movies dating back to the ’70s within Huluween.
First up on the more modern flicks is one of my all-time favorite horror movies, Oculus (2013). This movie is more of a psychological horror movie, with limited jump scares, and explores the tragedies associated with a haunted mirror, and two siblings’ quest to destroy it. The film jumps back and forth from the past, when they were children being faced with the mirror’s terror, to the present, where their quest to destroy it and make its history public occurs. This film is also rated R, with a runtime of 1 hour and 45 minutes. Another popular movie is Pet Sematary (2019), which is one of the newest horror films featured on Huluween. This film follows the story of a family who moves into an old house, and they discover an unsettling part of their new territory. There are several plot twists and a few jump scares, earning it an R rating, with a runtime of 1 hour and 40 minutes.
Next, there are a few options if you’re a fan of “found-footage films,” which are films that use cinematic techniques to make it look like the characters filmed the movies themselves. Most people are familiar with the Paranormal Activity movies, yet the only one readily available to the basic subscription is Paranormal Activity 3 (2011). This film is actually the first chronologically, since the events take place about 18 years before those in the first Paranormal Activity movie. This 2011 movie is rated R, and has a runtime of 1 hour and 34 minutes. Another really thrilling found footage film offered under Huluween is The Houses October Built (2014). This follows the trip of a group of friends in their search for the scariest haunted houses during the week of Halloween. So, as one would imagine, there are countless jump scares, which are paired with numerous creepy, more subtle horror scares. This movie is filmed very well and the actors have a more seemingly organic relationship than some of the Paranormal Activity actors, so give this one a chance, even if you don’t like those films.
Don’t be discouraged if you want to be involved in Huluween, but you’re bombarded with schoolwork too. There are some options available, like the series Monsterland, which has about 1 hour-long episodes that each start and finish their own unique stories. In addition, if you have even less time than that, there’s a series on Huluween called Bite Size Halloween. Each episode is approximately 2-5 minutes long, and they offer an interesting take on some chilling short stories. This series will definitely make you think about each episode’s meaning long after they’re over.
From old to modern films, or from found footage to short films, Huluween offers a very wide variety of Halloween films for every viewer. Although this article focuses on films presented on Huluween, there is so much more to explore! There are sections for every single type of film taste, including films for the family, TV series, sci-fi, foreign, older films, specific Halloween episodes of shows, vampire movies, zombie movies, and much more. Grab the blankets and the candy corn, and dive into all that Huluween has to offer!