Fall is a great time to sit down with friends or family and enjoy a classic Halloween movie. The Limelight staff each chose a favorite childhood Halloween movie to review. As the weekend approaches, make plans to enjoy one of these classics.
Spookley the Square Pumpkin is about a pumpkin who tries to gain confidence with the help of a scarecrow and a spider. He proves his importance when a storm comes in and rolls around the other round pumpkins. This movie is an 8/10. It can provide the viewer with an open-minded perspective about how their struggles can be seen in a positive way. Spookley the square pumpkin can be streamed on Netflix, Tubi, YouTube, Apple TV, and Amazon Prime Video. -Lauren Jackson
The Nightmare Before Christmas is a holiday-themed movie written by Tim Burton. The story follows Jack, the Pumpkin King, as he accidentally leaves his home of Halloween Town and finds himself in an unfamiliar, yet strangely joyous, Christmas Town. Jack makes many discoveries about himself and those he cares about, and embarks on a perilous journey to save both of his beloved holidays. I would rate The Nightmare Before Christmas 5 out of 5 stars and would highly recommend it for anyone looking for a throwback movie that will keep you entertained. Speaking from experience, this movie may be a bit scary for younger kids, so keep that in mind when deciding who to watch it with. It is streaming on Disney+ and Amazon Prime -Kinley Elliott
Coraline is a 2009 film directed by Henry Selick. It is a movie about a young girl who isn’t happy with her life at home, but she finds a tunnel that leads to what looks to be her house, but it’s different. The movie was filmed in stop motion, a type of animation where the characters are physical objects, usually made of clay, and are moved by hand frame-by-frame. Coraline has a 91% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 74% audience rating. This movie is a classic, which is loved by families around the world. Overall, I would rate it 4 out of 5 stars. I enjoy the animation style. Catch it streaming on Tubi or Amazon Prime. -James Hauptly
My favorite Halloween movie has to be Monster House. It was made in 2006. Monster House is about a house that only loves the owner inside the house and hates people who go anywhere near the house. One day, some kids lost their ball in front of the monster house. When one of the kids tried to get his ball back, the monster house started making some noise around them, and they left the house when one of the kids went missing. When the movie ends with the house being destroyed, the owner feels happier without the house being alive and spends the rest of his life being happy with his neighbors. I like motion-capture animation style. The plot twist at the end was interesting. Overall, I would rate this 4 out of 5 stars. Monster House is streaming on Peacock. -Ethan Garske
Hotel Transylvania is a film made by Sony Pictures that follows a bunch of monsters who live in a hotel. The main character is Dracula (Adam Sandler), and it follows him from being more closed-minded to being more accepting and open-minded, especially toward his growing daughter, Mavis. Other celebrity voices for the series include Andy Samberg and Selena Gomez. I really enjoyed the movie Hotel Transylvania 3! It was a funny and energetic movie with great animation. I liked seeing Dracula and his friends go on a cruise. The part where he falls in love with the ship’s captain was also very funny. The jokes made me laugh, and the music made everything feel upbeat and exciting. I thought the humor was great. It also shows the importance of family. I also watched it with my mom, so it’s a good movie for the entire family. I would rate this film a 4/5. It is streaming on Amazon Prime and Netflix. -Macie Hill
