Halloween Movie Review

Along with the carving of pumpkins and Trick or Treating, watching scary movies is one of Halloween's most hallowed traditions.

The list that I've compiled here is what I believe to be the ten best movies to watch on Halloween.

Inevitably, some are more frightening than others and parents should exercise discretion when deciding which are appropriate for their children and which are not.

With that little disclaimer aside, let us sink our teeth in, shall we?

10. The Shining - Nobody plays a psychotic madman quite like Nicholson. Admit it - you still have occasional nightmares about "redruM."

9. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow - This gets the edge over The Shining simply because Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman have become such staples of the Halloween culture.

8. Night of the Living Dead - Braaains....braaaaiiins! As a kid, this was probably one of the most terrifying movies I had ever seen.

7. Dracula - I have to recommend the Bela Lugosi version of Dracula over the 1992 Francis Ford Coppola version.

6. Halloween - What would Halloween be without Michael Myers? Why...it'd be like Christmas with no St. Nick! Speaking of which....

5. Nightmare Before Christmas - Jack Skellington steals Christmas! In truth, this will probably show up on my "Top ten movies to watch during the holidays!" list as well. It still deserves to be listed among the best Halloween movies too, though.

4. The Exorcist - This movie did for split pea soup what the Village People did for the YMCA.

3. The Omen - According to the Name Machine website, virtually no males born in the United States were named Damien before the decade of 1970. During that decade, the popularity of the name skyrocketed its way into being one of the 1000 most popular names in the country. Oh, by the way - The Omen came out in 1976. Coincidence? Hmmm.

2. Nightmare on Elm Street - Who has caused more loss of sleep than Freddy Kreuger (other than perhaps GW)? Any of this series' slash-'em-ups will suffice, but the older, the better. I highly recommend the 1984, 1985, and 1987 vintages.

1. It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown! - The fact that this movie was made in 1966, and generation after generation of children are still falling in love with it every year earns this flick the number one spot on my list.

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