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Horror Movies

Horror Movies to Watch to Get in the Halloween Mood Here on the Suncoast

| Angela Naff |

It’s that time of year again. There is a slight cooling of the temperatures, the end of the year right there on the horizon ahead of us, and Halloween is ready to liven things up. Are you looking for some amazing horror movies to get you into the mood for Halloween pranks, parties, and fun? We have the list for you here, including family-friendly options, oldies but goodies, and those not to be missed for the diehard horror fans out there.

Family Friendly Horror Movies

Horror Movies for Kids

We know it might be tough for children and some that don’t like gore to find movies this time of year. Never fear, we did manage to come up with some amazing options without an R rating in the group.

  • The House with a Clock In It’s Walls (PG) 2018 – Starring Jack Black, Owen Vaccaro, and Cate Blanchett, Eli Roth’s adaptation of the John Bellairs’ 1973 children’s book follows the story of Lewis Barnavelt (Vaccaro), a young orphan who moves in with his eccentric warlock uncle Jonathan (Black) in his strange (and seemingly infinite) home filled with frightful and extraordinary surprises.
  • Toy Story of Terror (G) 2014) – Buzz and Woody are back again. This time, the characters end up stranded at a roadside motel and as toys start to disappear, the crew has to band together to figure out what’s going on.
  • Halloweentown (G) 1998 – Plucky young witch Marnie has been living in the fantastical Halloweentown with her grandma and has a series of misadventures with other witches, warlocks and creatures. Four movies in total to enjoy.
  • Labryrinth (G) 1986 – With only 13 hours to spare, Sarah must navigate the treacherous corridors and traps of Jareth’s labyrinth in order to rescind her wish and bring Toby back home, all while defeating the challenges constructed by the Goblin King’s minions.
  • Mad Monster Party (G) 1999/1967 – While technically more of an animated comedy than anything resembling a horror movie, Mad Monster Party is a fun, silly, and thoroughly enjoyable children’s film to ease kids into a familiarity with some of pop culture’s most iconic horror characters.
  • Tower of Terror (2003) – After being fired, a investigative journalist goes to an abandoned luxury hotel to find out why five people disappeared sixty years ago. You won’t want to miss a young Kirsten Dunst as his sidekick.
  • Monster House (PG) 2006 – What’s better than a haunted house? A haunted house that eats people. That’s the main premise of the 2006 animated film, which finds young hero D.J. (Mitchel Musso) embarking on a mission with his friends to stop the creepy house down the street from eating people.

Oldies But Goodies in Horror Movies

All of these must be a minimum of thirty-five years old. They will showcase how movies have changed over the years, but many have hysterical takes on the Halloween genre. Maybe not the horror movies of today with the blood, guts, and gore but definite must-watch options.

  • The Wolf Man (1941) – Larry Talbot returns to his father’s castle in Wales and meets a beautiful woman. One fateful night, Talbot escorts her to a local carnival where they meet a mysterious gypsy fortune teller.
  • Night of the Living Dead (1968) – A ragtag group of Pennsylvanians barricade themselves in an old farmhouse to remain safe from a horde of flesh-eating ghouls that are ravaging the East Coast of the United States.
  • Psycho (1960) – A Phoenix secretary embezzles $40,000 from her employer’s client, goes on the run, and checks into a remote motel run by a young man under the domination of his mother.
  • The Haunting (1963) – Hill House has stood for about 90 years and appears haunted: its inhabitants have always met strange, tragic ends. Now Dr. John Markway has assembled a team of people who he thinks will prove whether or not the house is haunted.
  • What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) – A former child star torments her paraplegic sister in their decaying Hollywood mansion.
Horror Films

Top Grossing Horror Films

Of course, no horror film list could be complete without some of the most iconic films in the horror genre. There have been a lot of films made over the year, but here is what looks to be some of the goriest, most horrifying films ever to grace the movie screen. If these don’t have you screaming and jumping, ready to join in the Halloween madness – nothing will.

  • IT (2017) – The highest-grossing horror movie of all time, It, based on best selling author Stephen King’s book of the same name, is also one of the most iconic horror films of the century. The plot, revolving around the story of seven children in the 1980s who are terrorized by a supernatural being, Pennywise the Dancing Clown.
  • The Exorcist (1973) – One of the most classic horror movies of all time, The Exorcist is not only one of the scariest or best-rated horror flicks in cinema history either, but it remains one of the highest-grossing films as well. 
  • The Conjuring (2013) – The doll Annabelle which was the focal point of the plot proved to be so popular with the fans that a separate trilogy series was made revolving around the doll only.
  • Halloween (2018) – The eleventh installment in the Halloween franchise, the 2018 film retconned all the previous films in the series and acted as a direct sequel to the original Halloween directed by John Carpenter and released in 1978.

Did you start scrolling your streaming services to bookmark some favorites on the list you forgot about? Or maybe did we have one or two you haven’t seen before? Whatever the case, grab some popcorn, a friend whose shoulder you can scream in, and get to watching some of these great flicks. We are sure you will laugh at some special effects, jump at others and be ready to don a costume for some fun this Halloween!

Photos courtesy of Deposit Photos and Pixaby

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