Halloween
The original 1978 slasher film’s title alone makes it an obvious choice, and a good one if you want to scare yourself from babysitting or ever leaving the house. The low budget feel; Myers’ trademark mask was a spray-painted $1.98 Captain Kirk mask, and Carpenter’s wonderfully dated soundtrack anchor the film just far enough from reality that you probably won’t be too scared to enjoy a bowl of popcorn whilst watching. However, I’d recommend leaving it on the table rather than your lap as there are some brilliantly jumpy moments.
Let The Right One In
This critically acclaimed 2008 Swedish romantic-horror film, set in the early 80s, follows two 11-year-olds through a gloomy snow-covered Stockholm suburb filled with run-down flats, violent bullies and estranged adults. The beautifully shot storyline rewards perseverance through subtitles and extended periods of artsy silence with a sweetly underplayed and refreshing alternative to the vampire-romance dross which has dominated pop culture for the past few years – as long as you can deal with searching for the sweetness between severed limbs and pools of blood.
The Shining
Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece of psychological horror sees a young and bearded Jack Nicholson get snowed-in at an empty old hotel, descend into madness and eventually try to murder his wife and very cute (if a little creepy) son. Some complain about the slow pace, some say it adds to the hypnotic quality which is exactly what makes the film so unnerving. If you’ve never been able to judge for yourself, book now for The City Screen’s 8.30pm Halloween screening and come find out why all the weird boys at school used to scream “here’s Johnny!” at you in the hallway.
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
If you want to celebrate your “inner freak” (rather than get too scared to sleep) but don’t fancy doing the Time Warp for the hundredth time, try this cult musical comedy-drama. It was adapted and directed from his own off-broadway production by John Cameron. Mitchell, who stars as Hansel, a “slip of a girly boy”, finds a way out of East Berlin through rock music and genital mutilation and embarks on a journey fabulous enough to get you howling along to the choruses of the (incredibly catchy) soundtrack, but also harrowing enough in places to justify a Hallowe’en viewing.