The Halloween season has begun. Halloween might mean dressing up and going trick-or-treating and carving pumpkins, but do not forget about watching those classic Halloween movies. These movies will put you in the mood for the spooky season ranging from family movies to horror movies that make you want to sleep with the lights on. These are the top 10 Halloween films that will put you in the spooky spirit, grab a blanket, and tag along for the fun holiday movie season. 

*SPOILERS AHEAD!*

Hocus Pocus (1993)

Directed by Kenny Ortega, Hocus Pocus is a great movie to watch with your friends or family. Set in the small town of Salem, Massachusetts, the movie follows a boy named Max Deniroson and his friends as he faces off against the 3 Sanderson Sisters. They get into mischief and meet a black cat along the way. This is a classic movie with good laughs and interesting characters. The Sanderson sisters stand out, with each sister having a different loveable personality. From Wilfred, the evil, fierce, and mean sister, to the quiet loveable dimwitted Mary, who can smell out children, and the youngest sister, Sara, who is flirtatious and vain. The clash of each character makes each scene more fun and the designs of each character are memorable. Recently, Disney Plus released Hocus Pocus 2, having good ratings with the public. This is a great film to watch in a group, with family and friends with all the cheesy jokes and classic characters. 

Halloween (1978)

Imagine being hunted by a mysterious man with a white mask covering his face. That is the main premise of Halloween. Released in 1978, and written and directed by John Carpenter, Halloween follows young Laurie Strode as she is stalked and followed by Michael Myers, a tall man wearing a white skin mask. She is hunted throughout most of the film, with us not knowing much about the strange man. There are many twists in the end that make the viewer question the storyline of the Halloween franchise. This film helped other films in the horror industry get to where they are today with the storyline and characters. The film’s music track and theme would become a classic, composed by John Carpenter. This opened the storylines in horror films about the classic final girl character in this film, Laurie Strode. The Halloween series is still going on today, with the most recent film, Halloween Ends, releasing October 14, 2022. This film will supposedly be the great end to the whole Halloween series, but fans feel that nothing can kill Micheal Myers.  Overall Halloween is a great movie to watch with your friends and will make you more paranoid than you were before. 

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

The Nightmare Before Christmas has been debated about if it is considered either a Halloween movie or a Christmas movie, with most people considering it a Halloween movie. Written and Directed by Tim Burton, The Nightmare Before Christmas is a classic Halloween film, starring Chris Saradon. This film is about the Pumpkin King, Jack Skellinton, the king of the Halloween Holiday. He lives in Halloween town, where every year, the members of the town make Halloween happen. Jack However, wants more and gets bored of Halloween. He decides to leave the town and falls into Christmas town, where he is inspired to be Santa Claus. He meets love with Sally, a girl built from scraps. He learns that he has everything he needs in Halloween town in the end. This film is visually stunning, made from stop motion clips, and with Tim Burton’s special touch to his films. 

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

Imagine you are getting into bed ready to have a good night’s sleep with nice, peaceful dreams when all of a sudden a strange man with burned skin enters your dream and calls himself Freddy, and begins to stalk you until he kills you in the dream and in real life. That is the premise of A Nightmare on Elm Street. Written and directed by Wes Craven, A Nightmare on Elm Street is a creepy film that will definitely spook you out when you try to sleep. The film introduces characters like Freddy Krueger who has become a classic scary movie icon. Freddy has burned skin and wears a green and red striped shirt with a knife claw on one of his hands. Freddy stalks his victims in his dreams and is especially attracted to a girl named Nancy Thompson, who puts up a good fight against the villain. A Nightmare on Elm Street is a great classic to watch with a group of friends and will definitely make you feel more paranoid. 

Scream (1996)

Scream was a film directed by Wes Craven, and written by Kevin Williamson, Scream is a classic film that follows a girl named Sydney Prescott (played by Neve Campell) and her friends as they are stalked by a killer in a Ghostface mask. This movie shocked the world with its classic phone call scenes and the opening scene with Casey Becker (played by Drew Barrymore). Scream changed the horror industry with a strong female lead and likable side characters. Scream is set from the perspective of high school students who all have different backstories that clash together to make a likable movie. There are lots of jokes in this film that balance its horror comedy-drama style. Scream is a great film to watch with a group of friends and is classic horror, scary movie. 

Beetlejuice (1988)

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice is how you summon the ghost of this movie. Beetlejuice is written and directed by Tim Burton and stars Micheal Keaton as Beetlejuice. The film follows the couple Barbra and Adam Maitland as they die and find themselves in an afterlife adventure. They end up summoning the ghost Beetlejuice, who is supposedly supposed to help but ends up trying to mess up the couple’s afterlife.  They meet gothic teenager Lydia Deetz (played by Winona Ryder) who is able to see the dead couple and figure out how to defeat the evil, odd Beetlejuice. This film is hilarious with many fun loveable characters and is visually stunning. Beetlejuice has an interesting and funny storyline with cool makeup effects and sets. Beetlejuice is a great family film to watch with your loved ones and with friends with good laughs and more to watch. 

Ghostbusters (1984)

If there is something strange in your neighborhood, who are you going to call, Ghostbusters! This fun film was directed by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. It follows 4 scientists in New York as they hunt and capture ghosts. The film has an amazing classic soundtrack that is played all year round. Ghostbusters has many interesting and loveable characters like Slimer and Dana Barrett (played by Sigourney Weaver). Each character adds fun to this film, which has many laughs and giggles. This film was the start of a multiple-movie franchise that is still going on today. Ghostbusters is a great family and friends film that should bring everyone together and help everyone enjoy a fun film. 

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966)

This is a very classic and old Halloween film that can be enjoyed with your family and friends. Made in 1966, and directed by Bill Melendez, the film follows Charlie Brown’s sister Lucy and his best friend Linus as they walk through the pumpkin patch looking for the biggest pumpkin. Linus tells the story about The Great Pumpkin and on Halloween night, waits out in the pumpkin patch to see it. This film has many interesting fun loving characters, especially the lovable Snoopy, as he has his adventures in his flying dog house. This film is a classic Charlie Brown film and is a fun film to enjoy during Halloween. 

Hubie Halloween (2020)

Hubie Halloween, starring Adam Sandler, was released on Netflix in 2020. It follows the dimwitted Hubie, as he tries to help the community during Halloween, and finds himself involved in a real-life murder investigation. This film has many familiar faces, including Noah Schnapp, China Anne McClain, Maya Rudolph, and many others. The film is directed by Steven Brill and is a perfect family Halloween story. There are both funny and serious parts in the film and overall is a fun film to watch. 

Coraline (2009)

Coraline is a young girl who hates her life. She moved to a new house away from her friends and it is in rough shape.  She fights with her parents all the time and they don’t give her enough attention. She stumbles upon a strange small door, which during sleep at night, she is able to go through it to a beautiful world, similar to her own but better. She finds that everything in her house is the same, but better, including a copy of her mother. She looks the same but has buttons for her eyes. Coraline was directed by Henry Selick and was based on the novel, written by Neil Gaiman. The film is filmed entirely in stop motion and is visually stunning. There are interesting characters and lots of twists and turns in the plot. Coraline is a good starter horror film for young kids and is a great movie to watch any time of the year.