Some things just go well together - peanut butter and jelly; federalism and a bicameral legislature; douchebags and Abercrombie.
So it's no surprise that as this time of year rolls around, we can examine another classic pairing - Halloween and horror films.
Just like the winter holiday is a time for Oscar hopefuls and Valentine's Day is a time for Sandra Bullock movies, the latter half of October is prime time for slashers, haunted houses and zombies.
Now unfortunately, your local cinemas are slightly lacking in the horror corner these coming two weeks.
"Saw V?"
No thanks.
"The Haunting of Molly Hartley?"
I hear cries of "rip-off!" from 2000's "Bless the Child" (No? No one saw that one either?).
What is one to do to celebrate this, the holiest of all unholy holidays? Head to the video store and make a beeline for the horror section. With this shopping list, you're in for a good night.
First, and pretty obviously, go to the "H's" and pick up "Halloween." It's the original slasher (technically "Black Christmas" and "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" both came out in 1974, but one's a holiday movie and the other's killer doesn't use a knife).
It has the classic slasher story - when 6-year-old Michael Myers murdered his sister on Halloween night of 1968, he was put in a sanitarium where he was to stay until he could be tried as an adult.
Fifteen years later, at the age of 21, Michael breaks out and returns to his hometown to stalk his stepsister Laurie, played by Jamie Lee Curtis.
If the public is any kind of festive, you might have a hard time finding this one on the shelf at Blockbuster, as it will probably be the first to go. There are plenty of sequels, but not all are worth your time.
If you have to settle for something other than the original, go for "Halloween 4," or even "Halloween: H20." You'll get the gist - a guy in a William Shatner mask painted white running around killing young kids with a knife.
Next on your to-do list, we're going to take it a little more old school. For this movie, you might have to venture to the drama section, but it's still pretty creepy - Alfred Hitchcock's classic "Psycho." It was black and white in an era where color was standard.
The first-billed star was killed off within the first 30 minutes.
It's got a surprise ending for the ages.
And on top of all that, it's pretty damn scary.
Anthony Perkins plays hermit Norman Bates who runs a highway-side motel.
He lives in the looming shadow of a gothic house on an adjacent hill, occupied by his mysterious mother.
The film's famous shower sequence where Janet Leigh (Jamie Lee's mother, coincidentally) meets her gruesome demise is still held as one of the greatest scenes in the history of horror, even 48 years later.
A lot of people aren't even familiar with my third and final movie on the list - 1996's "From Dusk Till Dawn."
Written by Quentin Tarantino and directed by Robert Rodriguez, the film's about two brothers on the lam to Mexico who take refuge in a strip club run by vampires.
The first half of the movie, before the brothers (played expertly by George Clooney and Tarantino himself) get to the strip club, feels like classic Tarantino - snappy dialogue, brutal violence and over-the-top characters.
The second half feels more like a Rodriguez picture - anyone familiar with "Desperado" or "Once Upon a Time in Mexico" will instantly recognize how proficient he is with a major action set piece when things at the strip joint start going south.
It's funnier than it is scary, but nestled in between these other two gems, it'll balance the night out perfectly, easing you into the sugar coma sure to come of binging on Reese's cups.












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