My Misuse of Halloween

 Every September, or whatever day we're lucky enough to have a morning temperature that hovers around the low 70s, or I am lucky to catch a leaf falling off a tree - I start digging though my dusty crates of DVDs and pull out all of the horror movies. A collection to which I add a film or two each year in anticipation of my favorite season. Come, November 1, I have watched one dvd; the same one I watched last year, and the year before, and likely again this year. The only one that as any meaning to me on Halloween - I watch the original Halloween. 

What my phrasing suggests is exactly my point in writing this post. We have pretty definitive boundaries in what can be considered a Christmas movie; and those of us that want Die Hard, Trading Places, and Gremlins to get their holly-jolly good times included in the festivities. 

Like many people, I have no such boundaries for Halloween. Not Halloween... that's fine. No pumpkins, not even Autumn, oh - you're at camp, so it's probably Summer - okay, fine. People getting senselessly murdered by something, anything... that's the threshold for Halloween. That isn't right. Maybe my heart understands this, and it's why I only ever seem to make time for one movie. Why don't we have boundaries for Halloween movies that just like Christmas movies, set a mood and create an excitement for the event?

Go ahead and check out these lists: 

https://www.thecut.com/article/best-halloween-movies.html

https://www.imdb.com/list/ls000091321/

https://www.imdb.com/list/ls003790985/

https://collider.com/best-halloween-movies-list/

I'm clearly not alone in my folly of just throwing all the ghouls into the soup. Vampires, Zombies, Witches, Axe-Murderers - those are the Santa Claus and Christmas Trees. I suppose this stems from local TV stations airing "The Blob" or "Plan 9 From Outer Space", or whatever old horror movie was affordable enough to run on Halloween night, and thus our associations with any ol' horror movie will do on Halloween solidified.

I watch horror movies all year, I love getting creeped out, especially when it's done well. But I am writing this post as a reminder to myself, to: A) only pull out Halloween to watch because it's the only thing I am going to watch, and B) put as much time and research into finding the "technically" Halloween movies that I can add to my collection, and maybe I will find myself making more time getting psyched for the holiday.