10 Nostalgic Movies to Watch During Spooky Season
Let your Halloween watch parties commence!
When the first leaf falls, the sun sets a bit earlier and there’s the slightest chill in the air, Halloween lovers rejoice: spooky season is upon us! All October long, fans of Halloween movies start their rewatches and get nostalgic for the classics. We’ve put together a list of ten fan-favorites to make sure are on your list. Make sure to tell us what you’re watching this month in the comments below!
1. Hocus Pocus
Originally a box office failure, it’s a bit inconceivable that Hocus Pocus is a bigger hit now than it ever was when it came out in 1993. Through airings on the Disney Channel and Freeform’s Halloween countdowns, the movie eventually found an audience and a cult following. It even inspired a sequel in 2022. The movie is about siblings and unbreakable family bonds. The movie begins in Salem, MA in the 1600s, where Thackery Binx’s little sister Emily is lured away to the Sanderson sister’s cottage. There, the three witches drain her life for their own youth potion (a reminder that this is a KID’S movie!) while turning brother Thackery into a cat. Just before the three witches are put to death for the murder, they cast a spell that they will be resurrected on a future All Hallow’s Eve if a virgin lights the Black Flame Candle. In 1993, newcomers to Salem, Max and his little sister Dani, find themselves in the old cottage and…you guessed it: Max lights the candle and resurrects the witches, putting all the city’s youth in danger unless they can stop the witches for good. It’s rather dark for a children’s movie, but with Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy playing the hilarious witches–and an intoxicating musical number–it’s a classic for a reason. Thora Birch, a popular child actress of a particular generation, plays young Dani. While a teen love story bubbles under the surface as well, the movie is a real testament to the bonds of sibling love, particularly between brothers and sisters, but even if you’re a 300+ year old witch. Today, you can see the Sanderson sisters in Walt Disney World during Mickey’s-Not So-Scary Halloween Party event at the Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular show, a testament to the film’s consistent popularity with older and newer fans alike.
2. Halloweentown
The Disney Channel made a hit out of Hocus Pocus, so it was no surprise when in 1998, Halloweentown became an instant cult classic. The movie is set in a magical world where Halloween creatures like witches, goblins, and ghosts live together in harmony. Marnie Piper is a young girl whose mother never lets her go out on Halloween, but she’s not sure why. When her grandmother, Aggie Cromwell (played by Debbie Reynolds), comes to visit, she reads her a story about Halloweentown. When she follows her grandmother home, she is shocked to find out that Halloweentown is real, and discovers her heritage as a witch. As Marnie learns about her powers, she also helps protect the town from dark forces. The film became a beloved family-friendly Halloween classic, spawning several sequels and solidifying its place in Halloween pop culture.
3. Beetlejuice
Beetlejuice is a 1988 dark comedy film directed by Tim Burton, featuring a legendary cast (Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Geena Davis, Alec Baldwin, Catherine O’Hara) and a quirky blend of supernatural elements and humor. Recently deceased couple Adam and Barbara Maitland become ghosts trapped in their former home. When an obnoxious new family moves in, the Maitlands are distraught because their attempts to frighten them out don’t work; only the new family’s daughter, Lydia, can see them. They soon seek the help of a mischievous and chaotic “bio-exorcist” named Beetlejuice to scare the family away. However, Beetlejuice's unpredictable and dangerous antics quickly spiral out of control. With its eccentric visual style, gothic tone, and memorable performances, Beetlejuice has become a cult classic in the world of fantasy-comedy. The 1988 film is still so popular that in 2024, a sequel featuring original cast members plus additional cast members like Justin Theroux, Jenna Ortega and Willem Dafoe absolutely killed at the box office. And the musical production was a huge hit on Broadway and tours all around the U.S.
4. Practical Magic
Based on Alice Hoffman’s 1995 novel of the same name, the 1998 film Practical Magic is a cult classic starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman as Sally and Gillian Owens, sisters who are descendants of witches. Unfortunately the family witches are cursed when it comes to love: all the men the witches love tend to die. The sisters are raised by their quirky aunts in a magical household. As adults, they struggle with their powers and the family curse, especially when a dangerous lover from Gillian’s past resurfaces. Filled with magical realism, sisterly bonds, and romance, Practical Magic is an enchanting tale of self-acceptance and breaking free from fate. A sequel is currently in development.
5. Ghostbusters
The 1984 classic movie, Ghostbusters, blends comedy and thrills and spawned a multi-billion dollar franchise that is immensely popular in pop culture. A group of eccentric parapsychologists—Peter Venkman (Bill Murray), Ray Stantz (Dan Aykroyd), and Egon Spengler (Harold Ramis)—start a ghost-catching business in New York City after being kicked out of their university. Paranormal activity is rising all over the city, and the Ghostbusters become the residents’ last defense against supernatural threats, including the malevolent spirit Gozer who is attempting to bring about an apocalypse. Sigourney Weaver and Rick Moranis star as apartment neighbors whom the spirit’s servants possess in its endeavor to bring about destruction. Armed with proton packs and a lot of humor, the Ghostbusters battle these ghosts, save the city, and become unlikely heroes. With its mix of comedy, sci-fi, and memorable characters, Ghostbusters became a cultural phenomenon with action figures and lunch boxes as well as Halloween costume inspiration and more, and remains a beloved classic. Originally, Dan Akroyd came up with a slightly different concept of the movie that would star himself and fellow comedian John Belushi, but after Belushi’s death Harold Ramis came on board to help rewrite the film with more realistic elements. Ghostbusters was the first comedy to use expensive special effects, which ended up paying off since the film was a box office–and critical–hit. Even the theme song, by Ray Parker, Jr. was a number one hit in August of 1984.
6. The Rocky Horror Picture Show
The Rocky Horror Picture Show isn’t just a movie–it’s an experience. The film, which came out in 1975, is based on the 1973 musical theater production, The Rocky Horror Show. The musical was a huge hit in London at the Royal Court Theater and had a successful run in Los Angeles, CA. Its New York Broadway run was less successful, but did earn Tony and Drama Desk nominations. The film adaptation features many of the cast members from the various stage productions including actor Tim Curry who stars as mad scientist Dr. Frank N. Furter. The plot is a satirical homage to the sci-fi and B horror movies of the 1930s-1960s, and follows a young couple whose car breaks down near a castle where they search its inhabitants for help. Inside they find Dr. Frank N. Furter who is working on bringing muscle man Rocky to life, and soon reveals himself to be an alien transvestite from the planet Transsexual in the galaxy of Transylvania. At the time, the stage show and the movie was one of the first musicals in pop culture to celebrate fluid sexuality, a direct influence on counterculture of the era. Its initial release was panned by critics and not particularly successful, but it soon became a hit as a midnight movie, shown in New York City’s Waverly Theater in the West Village where attendees would shout lines and come in costume. This tradition prevailed and extended to other cities where even today, almost five decades after its release, theater goers still attend local midnight showings in costume and come ready to sing along.
7. Halloween
The original horror movie Halloween was released in 1978, and since then a huge film franchise has emerged that includes twelve films, novels, comics, and games. Many remakes and reboots exist, making timelines and continuity somewhat confusing unless you’re a big fan. But regardless, Halloween, directed by John Carpenter, is a landmark in the horror genre and helped popularize the slasher film–and it’s a cult classic. All of the films take place on Halloween, where Michael Myers, who was committed to a mental institution for the murder of his sister, escapes to stalk and kill residents of his town. Among those who try to stop him is his sister, Laurie, famously played by Jamie Lee Curtis. With minimal dialogue and a chilling score composed by Carpenter himself, the film builds suspense through atmosphere and tension rather than excessive gore. Because of this movie and its huge franchise, Michael Myers is an iconic villain and horror figure.
8. The Addams Family
Before Netflix’s megahit show Wednesday, but after the classic 1960s sitcom The Addams Family, came the 1991 movie The Addams Family, a dark comedy film based on Charles Addams’ original cartoons. The eccentric, gothic Addams family, led by the charmingly macabre couple Gomez (Raúl Juliá) and Morticia (Anjelica Huston), live with their odd but lovable children, Wednesday (Christina Ricci) and Pugsley, and a cast of bizarre relatives in a spooky mansion. The plot of the movie is about family patriarch Gomez, missing his long-lost brother Fester. Gomez’s lawyer schemes to con the family out of their fortune by having his lone shark’s adopted son Gordon pose Fester, played by Christopher Lloyd. The rest of the plot is positively kooky, just like this family–but it is a classic cult favorite because of its dark humor and excellent cast. Christina Ricci even appears in Wednesday, no doubt a nod to the fandom that grew up watching the 1991 movie and its sequel, Addams Family Values.
9. The Shining
The very idea of haunted hotels can probably be traced back to The Shining. This 1980 movie directed by Stanley Kubrick is a classic, and is based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name. It was King’s third novel and first hardcover bestseller in 1977 and solidified his current place in the horror literature genre. A psychological horror masterpiece, the plot follows Jack Torrance (famously played by Jack Nicholson), an aspiring writer who takes a job as the winter caretaker of the isolated Overlook Hotel in the mountains of Colorado, bringing along his wife Wendy (Shelley Duvall) and son Danny (Danny Lloyd). The manager lets Jack know that the previous caretaker murdered his wife, children and killed himself in the hotel, and to beware. As the hotel becomes snowbound, a violent Jack slowly descends into madness, influenced by the malevolent forces within the hotel. Meanwhile, his son Danny, who possesses psychic abilities called “the shining,” experiences disturbing visions of the hotel’s dark past including the murder of the twin daughters and is told to avoid Room 237. With its haunting atmosphere, iconic performances, and chilling visuals, The Shining has become a defining work in horror cinema.
10. The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), directed by Henry Selick, produced by Tim Burton, and with an iconic score by Danny Elfman, is a stop-motion animated musical that has become a holiday classic that people watch from Halloween through the Christmas season. It began as a poem that Tim Burton wrote in 1982 while working as an animator for Walt Disney Productions, and through a development deal with the studio was made into a film through Touchstone Pictures (as Disney thought it might be too dark for kids). In the film, Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, becomes bored with the same old Halloween routine. When he stumbles upon Christmas Town, he becomes enchanted with the holiday and decides to take over Christmas, with disastrous and whimsical results. Jack’s misguided attempts to bring his Halloween flair to Christmas lead to chaos, but he ultimately learns about the true spirit of both holidays. The movie was a modest hit, but quickly gained a cult following because of its unique blend of gothic visuals and quirky characters. It is regarded as one of the best animated films of all time, and is a permanent fixture in Disney Parks Halloween festivities, including both Walt Disney World’s Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, special events that occur during the holiday seasons.
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