Two Good Movies for Halloween

Back in 2012 and 2013, I recommended some good movies to watch on Halloween. I thought I’d add a
couple of movies to the list. As with previous lists, the two movies listed below don’t have the typical “blood and spilled guts” that are found in so many new horror movies. These movies work at a basic level providing us with “good, clean scares” because the characters in them remind us of how frail we humans are. You’ll see as we go through the list.

– Goosebumps (2015) – A teenager teams up with the daughter of young adult horror author R. L. Stine after the writer’s imaginary demons are set free in the town of Madison, Delaware. The surprise in this movie is the outstanding performance of Jack Black as author R. L. Stine. I confess that I’ve never read any of Mr. Stine’s Goosebumps stories, but it’s not a requirement to enjoy this movie. It like all the movies on this list is “family-friendly.” It’s available on Netflix and Amazon.

 

 

– Corpse Bride (2005) – The collaboration of Johnny Depp, Tim Burton, Helena Bonham Carter and Danny Elfman continues in this story of a young man who is betrothed to one woman, but inadvertently marries a murdered one. The pacing is a little slow and the stop-motion animation doesn’t seem as fluid as Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas. However, the voice acting carries the day and leaves us with a good, dark story that can be enjoyed day or night with young and old. It’s available on Netflix and Amazon.