There are many things to love about October. The temperature and humidity drops, leaves change color and everything from coffee to candy becomes pumpkin flavored. And of course there's the reason to celebrate at the end of the month, Halloween! I've always been a fan of the haunted holiday itself. It's an excuse to dress up as whatever you choose, throw a party and eat candy, what's not to like?
HORROR MOVIES, THAT'S WHAT.
I hate them. Always have, always will. I am proud to call myself a wimp who will hide my eyes the entire movie or take no part in the viewing party whatsoever. I would much rather spend (roughly) 2 hours laughing instead of fearing for my life and not sleeping for the next several nights. Seriously, I saw Paranormal Activity 3 and slept in my parents' room...at the age of 17. So for all there is to love about October, there is still the overtaking of TV lineups with nightmare-inducing flicks to hate.
Over the years though I've discovered a few Halloween(ish) movies that don't send me running for my mom but still get me in the Halloween spirit. So if you're searching for an alternative to your friend's SAW movie marathon, see below:
1. Halloweentown
Because who didn't want to be Marnie Cromwell in what is arguably one of the best Disney Channel Original Movies of all time?! This movie won't send you off to sleep with nightmares but will have you feeling nostalgic for your childhood and the good years of the Disney Channel (i.e. the 90s and early 2000s).
2. Scooby Doo
I have no shame in my amount of love for the Scooby Doo movies no matter what my age. Scooby is adorable, Shaggy keeps you laughing, Daphne is great outfit inspiration, Velma owns her intelligence, and Fred is played by Freddy Prince Jr. who will forever be a 90s heartthrob. Also, some of the monsters in these movies are actually kinda scary looking so I say you can still feel like a bad ass even if you chose not to suffer through The Ring, The Devil Inside, Lights Out etc.
3. Scooby Doo 2
Same reasons as above except in this one Velma gets a make-over (from Daphne of course) to impress her crush and their date and mutual awkwardness is ADORBS.
4. Mean Girls
Ok, so this is not exactly a Halloween movie. But there is a Halloween party and Cady does scare Janice and Damien in one scene, and let's be real, Regina George is pretty scary. If the Halloween scene and costumes don't get you in the spirit you'll at least get to enjoy the classic moments in this movie that are still quoted/memed every day.
5. The Harry Potter series
There's magic and wizadry and Harry, Ron and Hermione, what more could you want?! Have a marathon of them all or pick your favorite (if you're able to, I personally don't think it's possible). After watching you'll either have your wizard costume picked out, book your trip to Harry Potter World, or just be proud you didn't hide your eyes every time Voldemort's face was on screen.
6. Hocus Pocus
This is just one of those classics that might have scared you a bit as a kid but you really can appreciate as an adult. The witches are comical and there's 90s attire to enjoy throughout. Not gonna lie though, Bette Midler's witch make-up still kinda scares me.
7. The Dark Knight
While I can't do horror movies, I am a huge fan of the action/thrill types such as the Batman series. This movie brings to life characters from your childhood comic books like two-face and the Joker. Christian Bale will either inspire you to be Bruce Wayne on October 31st or hit the gym since his 8-pack abs take up a lot of screen time.
8. The Dark Knight Rises
Same as above but even better because Anne Hathaway SLAYS as catwoman.
9. The Hunger Games series
Katniss brings the bad ass-ness, Peeta brings the sweetness, Gale brings the hotness and President Snow rounds it all out with the scare factor. And if Effie Trinket isn't costume inspiration, I don't know who is.
10. Peter Pan (and any other Disney classic)
With all the sweet treats and dress-up going on, it's hard not to feel like a kid again on Halloween. And what better place to be a kid than Neverland?? Any Disney classic can take you back to your childhood but I don't think any do quite as good of a job as Peter Pan. There's fairy magic and flying and young love and everyone's favorite, mermaids! And whether you want to be a pirate or a mermaid or a fairy, there's a costume idea for everyone. Be warned though, I don't think you'll nail it quite like my squad did last year. (Captain Hook=yours truly)
The end of October will be here before we know it so hang in there, fellow horror haters, the showings of all the Halloween series movies will be over soon. In the mean time, I hope these 10 movies keep your nightmares at bay. Happy Halloween!
