Do you know that Halloween is a contraction from A Holy Eve? It is originally a day before All Saints Day when Americans celebrate by getting rid of all ghosts and distressed spirits. Now, the 31st of October every year is dedicated to Halloween, which becomes an excuse for people to dress up as their favourite character, be it scary or not.
In Malaysia, Halloween is not a festival that we celebrate although some shopping malls or theme parks will get on their gear and decorate everything within the theme. Sunway Lagoon has the famous annual Night of Freight every October where haunted houses were built. It is said that it gets scarier year after year.
For a scaredy cat like me, I wouldn’t dare to go to visit a haunted house even though I know that all the ghosts are real people with full makeup on. I rather sit back and scream out my lungs watching not-so-scary movies at home. Here is a list of my favourite Halloween movies that you can enjoy!
Happy Death Day
Let’s start the list with this light-hearted horror film. Premiered in 2017, this movie plays with time when our protagonist, Tree Gelbman played by Jessica Roth was killed on the night of her birthday (thus Happy Death Day) but she then realises that she has been repeating the same day over and over again. Throughout the movie, you can see the character development of Tree from being the “IT GIRL” to a more friendly person on campus. While this serves as comedy, the horror part comes when Tree decides to avoid her death and hunt her killer. She begins to track down everything she did that day and tries to find the solution to the curse.
Jumpscare level: ⭐⭐
Umma
This 2022 horror/thriller film centers around Amanda, a Korean immigrant who lives on the outskirts with her daughter, Amani. Supernatural events start to happen around the house after her mother’s ash is brought by her uncle from Korea. Amanda’s mother or Umma’s spirit is trying to possess her and become one with its body. While sinister things keep on happening, Amani becomes curious about her mother’s history and why she never knew about her dead grandmother. I felt that this movie is not that scary but it makes me feel eerie enough with the jump scare.
Jumpscare level: ⭐⭐⭐
Mr Harrigon’s Phone
Based on one of iconic Stephen King’s short stories, this Netflix Original thriller movie dated back to the early days of the iPhone. Jaeden Martell plays Craig, our boy who got paid by reading books for Mr Harrigon. When iPhone is out to the public, Craig decided to give one to Mr Harrigon as a gift for their friendship. On the day of Mr Harrigon’s funeral, without thinking it through, Craig slips his phone into the coffin thinking that there is where it belongs. When a bad day occurs to Craig because of the school’s bully, he texted Mr Harrigon’s number to confide in. Strange things start to happen after that, is Mr Harrigon’s spirit coming and helping Craig with his troubles or everything is simply a coincidence? Tune in on Netflix and watch it!
Jumpscare level: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
IT
No need for a summary, this movie creates a phenomenon for the whole globe. Another legendary Stephen King’s novel comes alive with a magic touch of Andy Muschietti. Personally, this is by far the most beautiful cinematography in a horror movie I’ve ever watched. The colour palette? The surrounding view? Top-notch! Pennywise has given me countless nightmares with his smile, his voice and simply just his existence. How did all the Loser Club members even confront this eerie clown? The sequel is even better. Although the whole cast reappeared alongside their older version, nothing can stain the movie. The horror injected in this movie didn’t just come from the clown himself, but from the amazing musical score and the amount of jumpscare too!
Jumpscare level: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
HONORABLE MENTION
Hocus Pocus
They say oldies never die. Premiered in 1993, this is one of the greatest and most iconic Halloween movies of all time. Follows the story of three sisters of witches, Winnie, Sarah and Mary who got resurrected on the night of Halloween and need to kill at least one kid to stay alive. Nothing horror about this movie as it is a Disney Walts production movie and very family-friendly. Sit back and laugh watching the quirky acts of these sisters while trying to save their lives. Last month, Disney+ released the sequel and it makes the whole fandom scream! The sisters are back to hunt another soul to be killed and get their revenge on Salem. I haven’t gotten the chance to watch the sequel yet. Might as well tune in this 31st of October!
The Addams Family
Another golden Halloween movie the new generations should watch. Starting as comic strips back in the 1930s, it has been adapted into television series and movies. In 1991, Sonnenfeld’s version of The Addams Family created a stir among Halloween movie lovers. Circulating around this dark and eccentric family, the movie brings us to understand each of the characters more. Everyone is definitely not in their right mind. Living in the old scary-looking mansion, a lot of people don’t want to get near this family. Their love of violence and savageness has obtained the children’s labels at school as the weirdo. None of the scenes is actually scary, rather it was comedic instead. This year, Netflix has released a trailer that will be focusing on Wednesday Addams, their daughter. The internet has shown their anticipation and excitement about this new series. The Netflix Original will premier on 23rd November 2022, so stay tuned and watch it when it is released!
If you haven’t watched any movies on the list, this is a sign for you. All movies mentioned are available to be streamed on Netflix or Disney+. Spend your Halloween this year in the comfort of your bed just like me. Let us know what your go-to Halloween by tagging our social media account, @tehtalkmy!
