Hello, October. One of my favorite months of the year has arrived, and there are many reasons I love this month. It’s the most fall-feeling month. The leaves really change, the air gets nice and crispy, and for some reason, the month just has a nostalgic vibe. On top of that, football is in full swing and everything is flavored either pumpkin or apple. Who doesn’t love that?
But one aspect of October stands alone that makes the month special. Any guesses? “Bueller, Bueller, anyone?” If you guessed Halloween, you’d be correct. There’s nothing more nostalgic than thinking about the costumes you wore as a kid and pigging out on candy. Those truly were the days. And what’s synonymous with Halloween? It’s horror movies of course. To save you some time of picking what horror movies to watch, I’ve assembled the perfect October movie calendar.
In the calendar below, you’ll find double features for the weekend along with a double feature on Halloween. The double features I picked for Saturday are two films from great horror directors and the double features I picked for Sunday are two films that are more sentimental and less scary, which is needed to add levity to you’re viewing experience.
October 1st
Film To Watch: Psycho (1960), Rear Window (1954)
To kickoff the month, I decided to give a double feature from the father of horror films, Alfred Hitchcock. You could watch just about any film in his filmography and feel uneasy in the process, but I opted to choose Psycho and Rear Window, probably his two most famous films. I think this is the best way to start the month with a bang with the man who crafted the horror genre with suspense-riddled films.
October 2nd
Film To Watch: The Shining (1982)
While The Shining has more of a wintery feel, it’s one of my all-time favorite horror flicks. I know Stephen King hates the film and thinks it’s one of his worst adaptations, but I strongly disagree. The suspense and claustrophobia created by Stanley Kubrick is immaculate in this picture, and even though it’s a tad long, it’s an amazing film. This also includes Jack Nicholson’s best performance.
October 3rd
Film To Watch: Jaws (1975)
Much like The Shining, Jaws doesn’t exactly fit the fall October vibes, but it’s one of the most influential horror movies of all time. I know that sharks aren’t the typical Halloween scare tactic, that’s usually reserved for ghosts and ghouls, but there is something special about watching Jaws as you only really see the shark for a few moments.
October 4th
Film To Watch: Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998)
After three straight days of intense horror films that’ll push your psyche, I want to let you unwind. Growing up, I was a massive fan of anything Scooby-Doo, but one of the best pieces of content from the multiverse of the crime solving hound is Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island. It’s whimsical and just creates a good vibe around the Halloween season.
October 5th
Film To Watch: Take Shelter (2011)
I recently watched this Jeff Nichols film expecting it to be about an actual storm rolling through an Ohio community, but it was far more complex and terrifying. I think on two fronts it’s a very scary film. The first being that you’re seeing swarms of birds and zombies killing people, but none of it’s real. The second is that you’re witnessing the full schizophrenic spiral of a family man. That’s extremely scary. But Take Shelter is a fantastic, real life horror film.
October 6th
Film To Watch: Alien (1979)
It’s like this first week of October is breaking into the classics in horror. I think Jaws and Alien are very similar because they both take the same risk of not showing the creature for a long period of time in the film and build suspense from claustrophobia and tensions amongst crew members. This is probably Ridley Scotts magnum opus because of how it shaped the horror genre for years to come.
October 7th
Film To Watch: Get Out (2017), Nope (2022)
For the first Saturday of October, I’m introducing a double feature from one of the best horror directors working right now. I saw his 2022 film Nope in theaters and was blown away by his creativity, but I shouldn’t have been shocked. His whole directing career has been remarkably creative, and that includes his debut film that’s equal parts scary and innovative, Get Out.
October 8th
Film To Watch: Ghostbusters (1984), It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966)
Now you’re starting to see a trend. I’ll build up your heart rate with intense horror films and then bring you down with waggish seasonal movies. Ghostbusters, despite its many horrible remakes, remains one of the great Halloween films ever due to its monster cast and hilarious antics. Following that, you’ll watch my personal favorite Halloween film, It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. It’s cute and has my favorite recurring moment in any movie with Charlie Brown saying, “I got a rock.”
October 9th
Film To Watch: The Lighthouse (2019)
While I think Ari Aster and Jordan Peele are the best working horror directors, right below them is Robert Eggers. His directing style brings macabre settings together with engrossing characters that you either love or hate. I could’ve picked any of his three feature films, but none are as good as his strange, psychological thriller, The Lighthouse. The chemistry between Robert Pattison and Willem Dafoe is amazing and the tension that starts right from the jump makes for an awesome picture.
October 10th
Film To Watch: 28 Days Later (2002)
There’s been many great zombie films through the history of film, but one of my personal favorites is Danny Boyle’s 28 Days Later. It mends the post-apocalyptic storyline with sinister zombies and I loved that. On top of the great storyline that I don’t want to spoil, I adore the cast of Cillian Murphy, Brendan Gleeson, and Naomie Harris.
October 11th
Film To Watch: The Menu (2022)
A great surprise film from last year was Mark Mylod’s The Menu. I went into the theaters with zero expectations for it and left having just seen a hair-raising thriller with great performances from Anya Taylor-Joy and Ralph Fiennes. I’ve been consistently harping on originality and will for the rest of this article, but I have to commend Mylod’s originiality with this project because I’d never really seen something like this. It felt like a scarier and better version of White Lotus or Triangle of Sadness.
October 12th
Film To Watch: Zodiac (2007)
You guys are dumb if you think I wasn’t going to try to shoehorn David Fincher into this list. I combed over his filmography and while I debated putting Se7en on here, I went with the more psychological thriller and best film of the 2000s, Zodiac. The melodic pacing paired with dimmed lighting and rain makes you feel uneasy. It kind of flips your stomach and makes you feel like you’re caked in an inch of filth.
October 13th
Film To Watch: Signs (2002)
When it comes to M. Night Shyamalan, I’m super hot and cold. I didn’t love Old or Knock At The Cabin, but I LOVE Signs. It’s cool to see Mel Gibson and Joaquin Phoenix playing normal men in a film that’s based on an alien invasion. Many people knock the poor CGI of the alien in the films third act, but I absolutely loved it. It’s funny, but maybe it’s because I’m easily scared, I thought the alien was little eerie.
October 14th
Film To Watch: Halloween (1978), The Thing (1982)
Maybe you’re thinking that Halloween should come on Halloween, but I wanted to deliver a John Carpenter double feature early on in the month. First, you’ll see an influential film in the horror genre with a terrifying villain, Michael Meyers. Then, you get to watch a snowy, whodunit horror flick with, what I’d consider to be, the most disgusting looking creature in film history. Carpenter is a Mount Rushmore horror director and I think these are his two best films.
October 15th
Film To Watch: Gremlins (1984), Beetlejuice (1988)
Even though I personally see Gremlins as a Christmas film, I’d be remised to not include one of my favorite films from the 1980s. It includes one of my favorite friendships in film with Billy and Gizmo and I think that the gremlins are horrifying little monsters. After you conclude Gremlins, you’ll watch Beetlejuice, a film that when I saw it when I was younger actually made my skin crawl because of how weird and unsettling it made me feel. But when I revisited as an “adult“, I found it to be really funny and think it’s great for the Halloween season.
October 16th
Film To Watch: Black Swan (2010)
A lot like Take Shelter, Black Swan isn’t a horror film that relies on jump scares and ghouls. It takes you on the psychotic journey of a person obsessed with perfection. Black Swan features an awesome Natalie Portman performance, but seeing her break down mentally will spook you.
October 17th
Film To Watch: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
What can I add to the conversation about E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial that hasn’t been said? It’s a heartwarming film from the great Steven Spielberg who was mentioned once already on this list for his horrifying film Jaws. Even though the E.T. alien does look weird and would scare the shit out of me if I found him, you do fall in love with his story. And, it only makes it sweeter getting Reeses Pieces for Halloween if you watch E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial this month.
October 18th
Film To Watch: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
Horror epitomized is The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Before you watch it, I recommend you read about what happened on set of the film where the cast couldn’t wash their clothes and endured 115 degree heat. That and more may have been gruesome for the cast, but it made for an iconic horror film that gives you the heebie-jeebies to the highest extent.
October 19th
Film To Watch: The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Again, in the same vein as Gremlins, I see The Nightmare Before Christmas as a Christmas film, but it doubles as a great Halloween flick. Henry Selick and Tim Burton morph stop motion horror with musical aspects and makes a film that sparked a generation of other great stop motion films with grim plot lines.
October 20th
Film To Watch: Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005)
We’re keeping things light rocking with back-to-back animation. Ever since I was a kid, I loved the antics pulled between Wallace and Gromit. Their best film together is Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit and it has a lot of fun Halloween aspects like a massive pumpkin and demonic rabbits.
October 21st
Film To Watch: Midsommar (2019), Hereditary (2018)
I mentioned this guy earlier, but Ari Aster has a fucked up mind. I didn’t put this film in here, but his short film The Strange Thing About the Johnsons is insanely weird and horrifying. But his two debut feature films, Midsommar and Hereditary, are modern day masterpieces. Midsommar has great technical work from Aster and provides scares in a daylight setting, but I can’t speak higher about any horror film than I can with Hereditary. It’s one of the best films of the 21st century and is paced perfectly to keep you locked in and tensed up for 132 minutes.
October 22nd
Film To Watch: Frankenweenie (2012), Coraline (2009)
A few weeks ago, I battled my parents and lost. What I battled with them about was that I wanted to dress my bulldog Nellie up, who I love dearly, as the Frankenweenie for Halloween. I lost the argument, but still might do it. Frankenweenie is hysterical and very cute, but also radiates the Halloween vibe you desire. It’s just more A+ work from Tim Burton. Henry Selick’s Coraline is arguably the most famous stop motion horror film of all-time and I think it’s the best. It’s rooted in deep emotions and brings the scares through a young girl. Just a chefs kiss to both Burton and Selick, who are geniuses.
October 23rd
Film To Watch: Shaun of the Dead (2004)
I haven’t really added too many comedies to this list and feel that Edgar Wrights 2004 zomb-edy, Shaun of the Dead, fits in perfect here. Besides Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, Nick Frost and Simon Pegg might have the best chemistry in Hollywood. They feel like real life friends who have been attached at the hip since birth, so when you see them slaughtering and evading zombies, it feels pretty damn authentic.
October 24th
Film To Watch: Silence of the Lambs (1991)
While it’s technically not a horror film, Silence of the Lambs truly makes your skin crawl. The character of Hannibal Lecter is one of the best in cinematic history and his interactions with Jodie Foster’s character are bone chilling. There’s great suspense when Foster is tracking down Buffalo Bill, and he unfortunately gets overshadowed by Hannibal Lecter, because he’s a slimy and disgusting villain that’s written terrifically.
October 25th
Film To Watch: Blade (1998)
I recently watched Blade in September and it hasn’t really left my mind. Wesley Snipes when filming this was the coolest person in existence when it came out and while that’s awesome, I wanted to add a vampire film to the list. I could’ve easily went with Nosferatu, Interview With the Vampire, or any other vampire flick, but Blade is just fun. It’s entertaining and fun to see Wesley Snipes slaughtering vampires.
October 26th
Film To Watch: Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride (2005)
While this Mike Johnson-Tim Burton collaboration doesn’t hit hard with horror elements, the animated set designs create a creepy wedding vibe and makes you feel like you’ve been absorbed into this made up Victorian town. I also really love the chemistry that Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter share with one another so it’s cool to hear their voices collide in perfect harmony.
October 27th
Film To Watch: Talk To Me (2023)
Prior to Talk To Me coming out this year, we had a five year gap of not seeing a good horror film. But then, the Philippou brothers came along and crafted a horror flick that’s loaded with emotion, originality, and scary aspects that aren’t hack because they don’t settle with cheesy jump scares. It’s one of the best films of 2023 and is the best film of the 2020s decade.
October 28th
Film To Watch: Blue Velvet (1986), Eraserhead (1977)
I wouldn’t necessarily consider David Lynch a strictly horror director, but he’s pretty close to it. Two of his scariest films and ones that’ll raise you heart rate are Blue Velvet and Eraserhead. For Blue Velvet, you’ll cower in fear when you witness the atrocities Dennis Hopper’s character commits. Then in Eraserhead, you’ll become overwhelmed with anxiety from the mutant child’s screams. Lynch is a genius, and because of that, this isn’t the last we’ll see of Lynch in October.
October 29th
Film To Watch: Coco (2017), Monsters Inc. (2001)
As we near the end of October, I wanted one more day of whimsical films that touch your soul. Coco is great because it’s centered around the Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico, which is essentially their Halloween. Then, Monsters Inc. is a film that was with me all through my childhood and has aged like a fine wine. I loved it as a kid and I love it as an adult. It’s goofy monsters working to scare kids and building relationships. What more could you want?
October 30th
Film To Watch: The Exorcist (1973)
The Exorcist is scary. Like, really scary. But it’s amazing. It came from the mind of the late great William Friedkin and sets the ton for horror films in the 1970s. I recently had the opportunity to see it in theaters for its 50th anniversary and nearly pissed my pants in fear, but that’s what a great horror movie should do. It should make you want to keep watching, even when pushed to the point of covering your eyes. This feels like a great film to watch at the end of October.
October 31st
Film To Watch: Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992), Donnie Darko (2001)
Now don’t give me flack here. I know a lot of people would want to see Halloween or A Nightmare on Elm Street on Halloween, but these two films are two of my all-time favorites, and on top of that, they fit the vibe of the autumn season. David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me is a film I watched recently and it scared the shit out of me. It’s weird, complex, and above all, a tremendous work of cinema. I’ve also been on a big David Bowie kick lately so seeing him in this in a scary role was really refreshing.
After you watch Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, you’ll move on to one of Jake Gyllenhaals best performances in Donnie Darko. A lot like Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, it has a complex and some would say confusing plot, Gyllenhaal’s apparitions of the giant bunny Frank will make a chill run up your spine. It plays a little more like a thriller than a horror film, but does incorporate scary elements I really enjoy.