This caldron-sized collection of Halloween flicks bubbles with humor, suspense and in some cases a bit of trampy erotica.
For different reasons these 15 fantasy-flicks have earned STP’s 4-broom swirl of approval.
By no means is this list complete. You’re welcome to suggest other favorite Halloween thrillers… add them if you dare!
Hold on to your Broom , Here we go….
- Addams Family and Addams Family Values: Gomez, Morticia, Pugsly, Wednesday and even Uncle Fester are back with treacherous twists in these dark comedies webbed with supernatural silliness Rated PG-13
- Dark Shadows: This Gothic TV series ran from 1966-1971. It’s a 200 year old soap opera filmed in a Newport Mansion but instills the moodiness of Collinsport, Maine in a shroud of lust and suspense. PG 13
3. Death Becomes Her: Glammy entertainment with a touch of magic and a twist of poison with a few thousand belly laughs Rated PG 13
4. Eyes Without a Face: This 90 minute French film is macabre. The black and white Horror /Drama film is sutured with guilt and treachery. No Rating
5. Exorcist: No Halloween film list is complete without this Academy Award winning classic tale, based loosely on actual events. Rated R
6. Ghostbusters: Who else ya gonna call for family entertainment? Revisit this movie when you’re ready to stumble into another dimension of Halloween fun for all. Rated PG
7. Hocus Pocus I and II; The Sanders Sisters haunt Salem and surrounding areas with a mix of merry, magic and morality. Catch the movie on Disney Plus and visit the streets used as movie locations when you tour Salem’s Pioneer Village and Peabody Essex Museum. History and Halloween live on every corner! PG
They have arrived. The Sanderson Sisters are BACK!#HocusPocus2, an Original movie event, is now streaming on @DisneyPlus. pic.twitter.com/iT3R7BoSHE
— Hocus Pocus 2 | Now Streaming (@HocusPocusMovie) September 30, 2022
8. Hubie Halloween:Filmed in Marblehead, Ma this Adam Sandler film was nominated for a Kid’s Choice Award. Playing a good-natured town-eccentric Hubie is mixed- up in the middle of mean-pranks and a spooky murder investigation. Smirky, quirky and kinda sweet PG-13.
9. Muppets Haunted Mansion: Released in 2021 by Disney this film has less than 60 minutes of Muppet mania but it’s ideal for little people and older kids hooked on the genre. Rated PG ’cause it may be a little scary and dark for the really little ones.
10. Rosemary’s Baby: Nostalgic horror directed by Roman Polanski. The cast includes Mia Farro, John Cassavetes and Ruth Gordon. Diabolically frightful Rated R
11.The Omen: Psychological suspense with Lee Remick, Gregory Peck and some really scary stuff, Filled in 1976, it maintains it’s shock value Rated R for sex, gore and substance abuse
12. Practical Magic: Beautiful sisters have a wicked problem, the men they love are cursed by a spell! Funny chemistry, great music. Rated PG-13
13. Sleepy Hollow: based on Washington Irving’s classic tale of dream-like horror fantasy and romance. Directed by Tim Burton in 1999, Ichabod Crane remains on the hunt to investigate 3 decapitations.This dark fantasy is spellbinding Rated R for erotica and violence
14. The Witch: filled in 2015 with suspicion and paranoia this film is saturated in the New England of 1630. Small town family life sets the tone for the pre-witch trial anxieties. Rated R for graphic nudity and violence
15. Witches of Eastwick: Released in 1987 this John Updike story is one of STP’s all time favorite flicks. WOE won an Academy Award for Best Music and other awards for best special effects, and best dramatic presentation but the ensemble cast is brilliant. WOE is a morality play on what happens to 3 witches when their wildest dreams come true. Funny, playful and imaginative this chick flick flips the script on the super-natural powers of male dominance without being preachy or matronly-militant. Rated R for sexual innuendo
However you celebrate this season ~ STP-News wishes you and your coven a caldron of wicked Halloween fun ~ and candy, please let there be plenty of candy on your broom ride. xoxox
Swirl of approval photo credit: @BroomChick