31st October 2009.

Hello & welcome to all things junk, in this pre-Halloween blog & wherever you are and whatever you are doing on Halloween have a great time.

Well there can be no doubt that the season to be scared has grown and grown every year, it’s more and more popular. So with this in mind I would like to indulge in some festering treats for your Halloween party or playlist and a few choices of some films suitable for young and old horror fans and the family.

To kick the film choices off, I would put forward:

Casper 1995:- At 1st look this is marketed as a cute children’s film, beyond the veil of that is an adult film dealing with issues of death and loss, with great effects and a touching ending, making this a film for young and old alike.

Scooby Doo 2002 & Scooby Doo Monsters Unleashed 2004:- What’s not to like about a bunch of meddling kids, Matthew Lillard as Shaggy and a talking dog?!

The Nightmare Before Christmas 1993:- Henry Selick’s cult favourite has and will remain a firm favourite for years to come, ideal for young and old and the perfect family movie, with just enough Halloween menace for younger viewers.

Sleepy Hollow 1999:-Tim Burton’s take on The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow, with a menacing Christopher Walken as the headless horseman with enough scares and atmosphere to make this a perfect Halloween movie.

Donnie Darko 2001:- Richard Kelly’s directing debut tale of time travel and teenage angst with events leading up to Halloween and with a cracking soundtrack too is well worth putting on for Halloween.

Halloween 3 Season Of The Witch 1982:- A stand alone movie from the Halloween series that still stands up as one of the best films to come out of the franchise, and it’s a shame that no other stand alone movies were made following this. With great performances and just the right amount of gore and shocks, watch and I dare you not to be chilled by Dan O Herlihy’s performance as a joker cum murderer of children. With an ending that’s so not Hollywood, watch and love it.

John Carpenters The Fog 1980:- A ghost story is always welcome at Halloween and The Fog plays like a ghost story of old, from the opening with John Houseman telling a story round a campfire. A classic film and this should always be shown instead of the terrible remake.

So that’s a few random films that could make a Halloween screening go well. So on to some tunes for your party play list. It’s easy to recollect the well known songs from movies but what about some of the lesser known songs, which still rock when played.

1st off: Under The Milky Way by The Church from the Donnie Darko soundtrack. Watching DD the soundtrack really sets the film off. The use of The Church in the movie is one of those bits that work so well with the music.

2. Hey Man Nice Shot from Demon Knight, a strumming baseline played to the opening scenes of breaker in the car being pursued by Billy Zane as the devil gives the film that opening edge, play it loud.

3. Down With The Sickness by Richard Cheese. The Disturbed used it in Zack Snyder’s Dawn Of The Dead. Both versions play so well it’s hard not to be down with the sickness with this tune in your head!

4. Zombie Nation by Kernkraft 400 from Shaun of the Dead, a definite zombie classic for zombie walks and other undead mayhem.

5 The Gonk from Romero’s Dawn of the Dead, a great & classic tune, which, love it or hate it, it’s the perfect supermarket music to get under your skin and for apple bobbing at parties.

6. Don’t Fear The Reaper by Blue Oyster Cult, a classic rock tune and should be on everyone’s list for playing at Halloween.

7. Shadows Of The Night by Pat Benatar; an 80s rock classic used well for a film that could easily have been made in the 80s. From Dance of the Dead, check out the video to see Bill Paxton and Judge Reinhold in the cast

8. Everybody Wants Some by Van Halen just used to perfection in the Zombieland trailer. Who wouldn’t like drums and David Lee Roth’s voice together? A sing-along future Halloween party classic.

9. Halloween theme John Carpenter, Tyler Bates for Rob Zombies Halloween. Tyler Bates tweaked it a little, added some vocals to the score and for me it’s reinvention that works. Some might say if it aint broke don’t fix it, but it’s not a complete hash.

10 The Killing Moon by Echo & The Bunnymen from the opening scenes of Donnie Darko. Echo’s song sounds so fresh and new set against the film, one for the playlist for anytime not just Halloween.Untill next time

Nicola.

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