I have decided that Halloween will last a whole week.
I plan to spend it wearing all the Halloween items in my wardrobe. Fortunately they’re not as extensive as my Christmas wardrobe, so a week is plenty, I don’t need a whole 12 days.
Then I plan to spend it working through my Netflix list for anything Halloween appropriate.
If you’re looking for some good Halloween viewing, here are myĀ Halloween Netflix Picks, and they’re not all guts, gore and grossness. Some of them are funny, creepy, or just really, really good.
American Horror Story
Ok, this one has a lot of gore, grossness and occasionally some guts. I’ll be honest, it’s not the sort of thing I normally watch, but something about this captured me from series 1. It’s very dark, and most series I recommend for watching at 2 o’clock on a sunny afternoon. I’m watching series 5 at the moment, which is pretty horrifying, and also, weirdly, features Lady Ga Ga and Naomi Campbell. If you haven’t seen it before, start from the beginning, and prepare to be scared.
Wallace & Gromit : The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Because when you’ve finished watching American Horror Story you’re really going to need to spend some time watching a giant rabbit attack the townsfolks vegetables.
Trust me, you really will.
The Craft
I remember watching The Craft when it came out in the 90s and I REALLY wanted to be a Witch and have a Coven and just basically be that cool.
It’s 1996, so technically it’s vintage now. Depending on your age you can remember wearing all the clothes when you were a teenager, or marvel at how weirdly similar they are to ASOS current stock.
The Addams Family
More light-hearted, fun, Halloween watching to help you get over American Horror Story. Who doesn’t love the Addams Family? Well, actually, I remember my Mum not liking it when it came out because she said they were too horrible and the original Addams Family were much nicer people.
Watch the comments, because I bet 25 years later she’ll want to either deny or confirm this opinion.
iZombie
I’m half way through series 2 of this program, which is based on a Graphic novel.
Vampire stories often have Vampires maintaining a normal life, blending in with society. Zombies, however are always either shambling wrecks or rage filled attack monsters. iZombie is the first one I’ve seen to show Zombies blending in, getting their brains on the quiet and living (un-living?) lives as part of society. Plus the lead Liv Moore (geddit?) has great hair and I quite like her eye make up too. Though I’m not sure why becoming a Zombie meant she automatically had to go all goth with the eyeshadow.
The Woman in Black
After those 4 more light-hearted Halloween offerings, you might be ready for some more horror of the “hide behind the cushion” variety.
The first time I watched this I remember being utterly terrified. It’s relentlessly creepy.
Top tip, if you are drinking, put the glass down during jumpy bits. I once threw a glass of wine in own face when a film made me jump.
Scream
Ah, now a classic, and one of the films I did my dissertation on (The others were I Know What You Did Last Summer, Halloween and Prom Night, in case you were curious. 2 originals, 2 post-modern reboots).
A post-modern slasher in which all the towns teens KNOW the rules of horror movies, but they still run upstairs, make out with their boyfriends and generally do all the things you’re not supposed to do when there’s a serial killer bumping off teenagers one by one.
Stranger Things
You’ve totally watched this already. Everyone has totally watched this already, but frankly this would be a rubbish list if I didn’t encourage anyone who HASN’T already watched it, to watch it at Halloween.
It’s creepy, occasionally scary enough to mean I need to leave all the lights on in my house at night and fabulously atmospheric. It’s set in the early 80s, which makes it technically a period piece, though anyone who was around in the early 80s might find themselves resisting that definition a bit.
Also, if you don’t watch it you won’t know what all these people in pink dresses with bloody noses are on about at Halloween costume parties.
So that’s my list.
Is there anything you’d add?
