Behind a Cushion: Kimberley's Favourite Halloween Movies
We thought it would be fun to put together a list of each of our favourite Halloween movies to share with you before spooky season arrives. Whether that decision was made because we wanted to keep you informed or because we wanted an excuse to rewatch some of our favourite films… well, that’s a decision for you to make.
I am my own worst nightmare. I scare easily and still insist on regularly watching horror movies. I just need an emotional support blanket or cushion to get through them. It’s always entertaining though, because I can never get the timing quite right.
Anyway, instead of rambling, I’m going to dive right in:
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1. Alien (1979)
Is Alien the first thing that pops into my mind when I think of Halloween? No. Do I still find a way to watch it every Halloween? Absolutely.
There’s something about the mix of science fiction, the isolation of space and the sheer dread of knowing you’re trapped with something that really hits the spot for me. Instead of being stuck in a strange mental space with ghouls spinning rapidly into view (Carnival of Souls, 1962), the crew of the Nostromo are trapped with an acid-blooded alien and nowhere to hide.
I honestly can’t remember how old I was when I was first allowed to watch Alien, but I know I was young. It really kickstarted a love for this kind of film, leading into my next choice.
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2. The Thing (1982)
When I’m writing, I tend to find music that matches the way I feel about what I’m writing or the journey I want my characters to go on. Right now, I’m sitting at my kitchen table with a cup of tea, listening to Ennio Morricone’s soundtrack for The Thing, and honestly, that alone tells me how high this film deserves to be on my list.
Like Alien, The Thing is a window into isolation horror. Set in the freezing, endless clutches of Antarctica, there’s nowhere to run, and nowhere to hide. When a shape-shifting creature begins to assimilate everyone, the real terror isn’t the creature itself. It’s how paranoia spreads in confined spaces.
And then there’s the ending. I don’t want to say too much here, but I hope some of you know what I’m talking about. If you do, I would love to hear what you think about those final moments.
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3. The People Under the Stairs (1991)
The People Under the Stairs might seem like a bit of a rogue choice, but stay with me on this one. This might be the first horror film I ever watched, unless we’re counting Watership Down (1978). I was at a sleepover with an aunt who was higher than a kite, and wanted to show me one of her favourite films, but then had to fix her mistake by letting my eight-year-old self watch The Big Lebowski (1998) afterwards. I’m now realising that my love of horror and the Coen Brothers might not have been as elective as I thought.
Somehow, she managed to reshape this Wes Craven film for my brain, making me miss the abuse, the cannibalism and the exploitation, and every time I watch it now I’m almost amazed that she managed to pull off making me think it was just a film about a child rescuing children. Wes Craven has since earned a permanent space on my shelves.
You might be wondering if she learned from her mistake, but the next weekend she was struck by the realisation that I didn’t know the twist in The Sixth Sense (1999). The trio of hanging ghosts haunted me for a solid minute.
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4. The Evil Dead (1981) & Evil Dead II (1987)
I know, I know, it might be cheating to squeeze two films into one spot, but I feel like I have to include both The Evil Dead and Evil Dead II. Which one I recommend usually depends on how much comedy the person I’m talking to enjoys mixed into their horror. The Evil Dead is more focused on relentless terror, while Evil Dead II is full of slapstick chaos.
I also really enjoy Army of Darkness (1993), which catapults Ash from being a cabin in the woods survivor to a chainsaw-wielding fantasy hero. Watching the full trilogy gives you a front row seat to Sam Raimi’s genre blending.
You don’t necessarily have to watch The Evil Dead before Evil Dead II, as the second film essentially retells the first in its opening minutes. Sometimes I wonder why I don’t like basements, but is it really that surprising?
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5. Rosemary's Baby (1968)
A masterclass in sustained tension, Rosemary’s Baby is one of those films that still has me holding my breath, even when I know exactly what’s coming. I find myself panicking for Rosemary every single time. Mia Farrow plays her with such a raw vulnerability and quiet strength that I can’t help but feel the fear alongside her.
There’s something oddly comforting about this film, though I can’t quite explain why. Maybe it’s the way it explores grief and isolation, or how it captures the subtle, creeping horror of not being believed, especially in a time when women couldn’t even open their own bank accounts to have the financial security needed to escape. The gaslighting, the medical dismissal, the eerie normalcy of it all… everything that’s terrifying about Rosemary’s Baby goes beyond the supernatural.
And despite everything, there’s a line near the very end that has me in stitches every single time I watch it. If you know the one I mean, drop your guess in the comments. I’d love to see who else finds that moment as unexpectedly funny as I do.
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6. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
While I love the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) is a firm favourite that I always find myself watching while watching films like The Thing (1982). There’s something about the atmosphere that grabs me by the collar and pulls me in. It’s not just eerie, it’s downright delirious in moments. That spiral of paranoia that wraps tighter and tighter around the characters is what I need out of a Halloween film.
Donald Sutherland’s performance is a big part of what makes it effective. He starts off with a rational level of scepticism, brushing everything off with logic and reason, only for that calm exterior to crack like someone’s taken to it with a jackhammer. That shift from quiet unease to existential dread is everything.
And then there’s the ending. If you’ve seen it, you know the one. It hits hard no matter how many times I watch it, and I think it plays a huge part in why I prefer this version to the original.
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7. Scanners (1981)
My love for David Cronenberg probably isn’t a surprise at this point, and Scanners sits in that strange little space of films that I don’t regularly recommend to others, but that I love anyway. There’s something about the way the scanners blend into daily life, often overlooked or unnoticed, until we’re pulled into their world. And once we’re in it, everything fractures. Reality pulses, noise distorts, and nosebleeds become a sign in this collision of science fiction and body horror.
The world Cronenberg builds here feels clinical and strange, full of throbbing sound design, psychic static and people who look like they know something we don’t, but it also feels familiar. The head explosion scene is still one of my favourite practical effects. Not just because of what happens, but because of how long the tension is allowed to simmer before it bursts.
I almost gave this spot to The Brood (1979) instead, and honestly, I’m only mentioning this in the hope that you go and watch both.
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8. Poltergeist (1982)
How much can go wrong in a suburban house? Quite a lot, apparently. Poltergeist is one of those films I definitely watched too young, though I can’t remember quite how young. Either that, or someone hit fast-forward on the face-ripping scene, assuming that was enough to make it child-friendly. Did we just find the source of my fear of clowns?
This film does an incredible job of showing how horror can creep into the ordinary. Static on a television screen, a chair shifting slightly out of place, a tree tapping just a little too firmly against a window… it all feels familiar until it doesn’t. The haunting isn’t subtle, but it transforms the mundane.
Even now, Poltergeist holds up remarkably well, not just for the practical effects (and yes, I am talking about the house imploding, it’s amazing), but for how it captures the chaos of a family trying to stay grounded while their world is shifting.
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9. The Shining (1980)
Another one of the early horror favourites I was introduced to a year or two too soon. Or at least, one I tried very hard to forget that somehow became a staple. I remember doing everything I could to mentally expunge certain scenes from my system, potentially harbouring them from deletion forever in the process.
Years later, it even found its way into an essay I wrote during my degree about how blind corners can be used to heighten horror. I had some amazing lecturers when it came to letting me write about what I wanted to. I pulled from a few different sources to support my argument, including this film, Resident Evil (1996) and the Dead Space remake (2023), because apparently haunted hotels and derelict spaceships were where my academic focus peaked.
I did give Doctor Sleep (2019) a go, and while I appreciate what it was doing, it felt too much like two films stitched together that were much softer than they should have been. The way The Shining occupies its own cold, echoing space is what makes it work for me.
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10. Re-Animator (1985)
I have to admit, I slept on Re-Animator for far too long and only watched it properly about a year ago. If you’re into fun ‘80s horror with a mix of body horror and dark comedy, this one deserves a spot on your Halloween watchlist. There’s an evil scientist at the centre, though whether evil is the right word could be debated.
What makes Re-Animator work as well as it does is that it doesn’t try to hide what it is. From the dead cat in the fridge to the neon-lit experiments, it throws everything at you head-on and somehow that honesty makes the chaos even wilder. The practical effects are gloriously over the top and the film never lets up on that energy.
If you haven’t given this one a go yet, do yourself a favour. It’s not terrifying by any means, but it’s perfect for when you want horror with a side of fun and absolutely no reason to reach for your emotional support cushion.
Final Thoughts
And that’s a wrap! My emotional support cushion and I are now going to settle in and watch some of Ed’s recommendations. But I’d love to hear from you too, what are your favourite Halloween movies? Drop your recommendations in the comments or send them my way on social media.
Kimberley Ann Ashby
Kimberley is currently working on her first short film, a psychological thriller that explores how trauma can transform space. When not writing, she's usually found watching movies, playing records or partaking in whatever new hobby is soon to join the hobby graveyard.
Kimberley Ann Ashby
Kimberley is currently working on her first short film, a psychological thriller that explores how trauma can transform space. When not writing, she's usually found watching movies, playing records or partaking in whatever new hobby is soon to join the hobby graveyard.
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