Best Halloween movies to watch during the Spooky Season

Photo for Halloween Movies Article

Photo: Movie Posters for "Get Out," "Hotel Transylvania," "It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," and "Scream"

Movie Posters for "Get Out," "Hotel Transylvania," "It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," and "Scream" Photo courtesy of Bethel Ameha.

The Halloween season calls for screams and shrieks! Halloween is the time for watching jump scares while making pumpkin muffins and munching on a bag of candy corn. Here are four popular Halloween movies to check out, some scary and some perfect for a cozy night with family.

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

4.8/5

Not only is Halloween a time for spookiness, but it's also a time to celebrate the fall season. There's no better way to spend the spooky season than cozying up next to family while watching Charlie Brown. 

This Charlie Brown addition is centered around the legend of the Great Pumpkin that comes on Halloween night and drops gifts to the kids. The movie tells the story of five characters, Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Sally Brown, Lucy Van Pelt, and Linus Van Pelt, and their adventures on Halloween.

From trick or treating to parties, this film is short and sweet, emphasizing the value of family and connections. An iconic part of Halloween and the fall season, you can never go wrong with Charlie Brown!

Hotel Transylvania

4.6/5

Another spectacular movie to enjoy with family is “Hotel Transylvania” which follows hotel owner and overprotective father Count Dracula(Adam Sandler) as he throws a party for his daughter Mavis’(Selena Gomez) 118th birthday. But, plans change because of an unexpected guest.

Hotel Transylvania's 3-D animations create a fun adventure that takes you to a new world filled with monsters and humans. The voice actors are perfect for their roles, with Adam Sandler dramatizing Count Dracula’s overprotectiveness and monsters like Frankenstein(Kevin James) bringing a comedic feel to the movie. 

Hotel Transylvania is a great choice because of its warm message about family and love. The movie is built on the relationship between Dracula and Mavis and allows us to see the sweet development between the two. It’s a great movie that teaches kids the value of family in a fun, interesting, and spooky way.

Get Out

4.5/5 Stars

“Get Out,” directed by comedian Jordan Peele, is one of the most popular black horror/suspense films in history, having won countless awards. Black horror films are generally films predominantly directed or produced by African Americans. Black horror movies are rarely recognized in cinema and this is one of the best thrillers out there. 

The movie follows the life of a black male named Chris Washington (David Kaluuya) and his white girlfriend Rose Armitage (Allison Williams). After Chris and his girlfriend visit Rose’s parents' estate, he finds oddities in his interactions with her parents and family. At first, he believes it’s because they’re an interracial couple but he later finds out there’s more to it.

The plot twists and the fun of trying to discover the motives of Rose’s family members bring the movie to life. The clues to the mystery create a suspenseful and mind-boggling experience that makes “Get Out” one of the best thriller movies out there. Psychological elements paired with hypnotization captivate the audience and make them eager for more.

The movie’s plot is not only exceptional but the cinematography and acting are outstanding. David Kaluulya perfectly portrays his characters' emotions of fear and distrust. The audience is able to connect themes in this movie to systemic racism and the oppression of black people across the U.S. This is a great film to start a Halloween movie binge that’ll have you at the edge of your seat.

Scream

4.5/5

If you’re in the mood for jump scares and suspense, “Scream” is the perfect movie for you. “Scream” is a classic 1996 slasher, with six movies in the franchise. The movie follows the life of Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), a young teenage girl grieving over the terrible murder of her mother, and her traumatizing experiences with a masked killer terrorizing her town. 

Filled with gore and suspense, “Scream” is an adventure to find out who the real killer is. Hints dropped throughout the movie point toward multiple characters, creating a sense of uncertainty and excitement for the audience. 

Horror film fanatic and CAP teacher John Howard recalls the uniqueness of “Scream” compared to other horror films. “What I liked about 'Scream' is that it made fun of the tropes that you see in other horror movies and then built on that and made it brand new so it was different from your regular slasher movie,” he says. Overall, “Scream” is a fun and exciting watch for any horror film fanatic.

These movies will make your spooky season one of the best. Enjoy these movies on several platforms such as Netflix, Hulu, or Youtube!