Scary(ish) Movie's I'll watch for Halloween

Spooky season is here!

Phil loves and I mean LOVES Halloween. To the point where I think his love comes across as a unhealthy obsession on social media. I, on the other-hand, like it because it makes my husband happy. I decorate the house to appease him and to give myself more leverage when it comes to going all out for Christmas. 🎅🏼

I can get on board with Halloween but not legit scary stuff. I am very picky with our decor and ever more so with the movies we watch. If it was up to Phil he would full on have a scary movie marathon every day.

The movies that make my “Okay, fine I’ll watch it” Halloween list are few and far between. For the most part they must be old, have outdated special effects or outrageous acting. That way I don’t get too caught up in the movie and I am reminded it’s not real at every turn. Other key factors include frequency of which I have seen them before, there for know what will happen and general predictability.

Under each movie/franchise or series you’ll see that I give it a score of how scary it is on a scale of 1 👻 to 5 👻. 1 being not very scary, 5 being I was miserable.

Alright fellow scaredy-cats, let’s talk scary movies.

Halloween (1978 - 2018)

This makes the cut because the first one, while terrifying, is from 1978. The original movie was made on a budget of $300,000. So we’re talking minimal effects and a lot of playing on your fear of what you can’t see but know is there somewhere. I’ve been able to watch multiple movies from this franchise all because I started with the first one and was able to predict the storyline and keep my cool (to some degree).

👻 👻 👻 out of 5

Scream (1996 - 2011)

This is pretty much peak scary for me. What I like about this franchise is that the killer is always someone different and they have a reason to become Ghostface. Not a good reason, because there is none, but it’s fun to try and guess who it could be. There are a few factors that make Scream a watchable scary movies. While the movies are newer than Halloween and other “classics,” it’s the acting that keeps me from getting too caught up in it. The actors are either over acting, bad actors, or they are down right cheesy. I’ve also seen the movies multiple times and understand the gist of the series which helps me stay calm. Do I still watch part of the Scream movies through my fingers… DUH! I’m only human.

Fun fact, the set of Scream 1 is where Courtney Cox and David Arquette first met.

👻 👻 👻 👻 out of 5

The Shining (1980)

I first saw this in middle school - thanks Mom and Dad! It’s scary as ALL GET OUT but… it’s 40 years old and that makes it somewhat tolerable. I think another reason I can watch this movie is because it’s pretty outlandish for my current reality. I can’t imagine Phil and I ever being winter caretakers for a hotel in it’s off season. So I think we’re good on not running into this exact scenario, but hey, money talks. That being said, you will never ever catch me at the Stanley Hotel (served as the inspiration for the Overlook Hotel in The Shining).

👻 👻 👻 👻 out of 5

Zombieland (2009)

This is not Halloween themed or anything, but Zombies = spooky Halloween vibes to me! Zombieland is actually the only zombie themed movie or show I’ll watch. I credit that to the great actors and interesting story line. I haven’t seen the second one, so I can’t speak to the newer version of the flick, but the main characters are the same, so I’m thinking the same things that kept it from being too scary for me the first time will still apply. Here’s hoping!

👻 👻 out of 5

Scream Queens (2015)

Scream Queens is a TV series, not a movie - so let’s get that technicality out of the way.

It’s been a couple of years since I saw this, but I recall the first season serving some pretty serious jump moments. This is another one where the acting and script are somewhat cheesy and prevent me from getting to engrossed (which is a good thing for my sanity). This show is suppose to be horror/comedy and that definitely comes through.

Season 1 was great - 2 went downhill pretty quick. But if you’re a scaredy-cat like me, you might just be able to handle this/enjoy it.

👻 👻 👻 out of 5

Ghostbusters (2016)

Yes, I am talking about the 2016 Ghostbusters. I know the OG Ghostbuster fans might not appreciate this, but I like this one better than the original series. Maybe that’s because I didn’t grow up watching the originals. The 2016 re-imagination is funny, spooky and has great special effects. The first time I watched this movie I had a few jump moments, but for the most part - not scary. I love the cast and think they did I wonderful job, I was so bummed to hear they weren’t doing a second with the female leads.

👻 out of 5

Hocus Pocus (1993)

I have no idea how many times I’ve seen this, but like most 90’s kids it’s at least 20 times. So would I consider this movie scary? No, not outright. Again it’s an older movie and I’ve seen it pretty much annually since I was a kid. Obviously, it was a little scary the first time I saw it, but now it’s more of a habitual holiday movie for me. IMO it’s a must watch and a total classic!

👻 out of 5

The following are NOT scaredy-cat approved:

The Amityville Horror (2005) 👻 👻 👻 👻 👻

I watched this because I believe Ryan Reynolds is very attractive. Spoiler alert - not worth it.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) 👻 👻 👻 👻 👻

My boyfriend at the time thought it would be fun to watch a scary movie together. He was wrong.

Saw (2004) 👻 👻 👻 👻 👻

Same boy, I was miserable. He might have even talked me into watching a second one. We aren’t still together.

The Ring (2002) 👻 👻 👻 👻 👻

I think all the cool kids were watching this in 7th grade, terrible idea. I’ll never fully shake this one.

The Grudge (2004) 👻 👻 👻 👻 👻

…If I could just speak to the youth of America real quick - you don’t have to watch scary movies just because your friends or boyfriends/girlfriends do.

What do you think? Do you agree with my 👻 ratings? Did I miss one of your favorites? Let me know in the comments!

Happy Halloween, friends!