October is Halloween Month. This should be no surprise. Therefore the theme is essentially scary/thriller movies. My approach this month is a little different. Usually, I have a predefined list of movies I plan to watch for each themed month. However, during Halloween Month there are at least 2-3 movies we/I watch every year; The Nightmare Before Christmas, It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown and Hocus Pocus.
Oddly enough The Nightmare Before Christmas is the only one that we did watch. Perhaps the month went by so quickly that we didn’t get around to the other two. Below are the other movies that I also watched this month.
- Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein
- Bedknobs and Broomsticks (RIP Angela Lansbury)
- Gremlins
- Beetlejuice
- Sleepy Hollow
Homage and Bonus Movies
If you are going to watch Halloween movies I feel like Frankenstein or Dracula has to be on the list. This is why I went with Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. I’m a fan of Robert De Niro and Kenneth Branagh. Gremlins and Beetlejuice are also, almost, must-watch movies especially if you grew up in the 80s and 90s.
Angela Lansbury passed away on October 11th. Therefore Bedknobs and Broomsticks made the list in her honor. Sleepy Hollow is just a fun Tim Burton film. Fun Fact: there are three villains from the Star Wars prequels in Sleepy Hollow. Can you identify all of them? Answer: Ian McDiarmid, Christopher Lee, Ray Park
The Bonus Movie is Nightmare Alley; it’s directed by Guillermo Del Toro and a remake. The original movie, by the same name, was released in 1947 and directed by Edmund Goulding. I did enjoy this movie. Bradley Cooper does an amazing job but it’s a pretty dark film. A decent bonus selection for the monthly theme.
/cheers