A questionnaire filled out by 57 North High students asked: “What is your favorite animated Halloween movie?,” and students were given the options: “Addams Family,” “Coraline,” “Corpse Bride,” “Hotel Transylvania,” “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,” “Monsters, Inc.,” “Spookley the Square Pumpkin” and “The Nightmare Before Christmas.” After completing the first question, an optional question of: “Why did you select the option above?” was prompted. 17 students chose to answer this question, with varying answers.
Of the 57 students, the selections varied widely, with “Corpse Bride” being the most selected and “Addams Family” being the least selected.
There was not a large margin between votes, with three movies tying for fifth place. Results such as these suggest that there is no “ultimate” Halloween movie, and that each Halloween movie has its own unique style.
“I’m surprised that ‘Coraline’ and ‘It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!’ were not higher, because they’re [Halloween] classics and very festive,” senior Lia Huang said. “And I am also surprised that ‘Monsters, Inc.’ and ‘It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!’ were voted the same, because I feel like ‘Monsters, Inc.’ is not as classic.”
Students such as Elenor Li agree with the sentiment, to an extent:
“I think that these results are unsurprising in terms of movies to watch at a sleepover or for the aesthetic, but movies such as ‘Monsters, Inc.’ and ‘Hotel Transylvania’ bring me a sense of nostalgia I don’t experience in other Halloween movies,” sophomore Elenor Li said.
This begs the question: why do people watch animated Halloween movies? The question was answered in the optional section of the questionnaire. Of 57 students, 17 answered the question, with the most common answer being “nostalgia” (47%).
“‘Monsters, Inc.’ is a great movie and a big part of my childhood,” sophomore Ian Tong said. “The Halloween aesthetic of the movie is just hidden by its child-like animation.”
While movies such as “Monsters, Inc.” may have a fanbase built on childhood nostalgia due to their lack of seasonal items or concepts such as pumpkins or magic, other movies such as “Coraline” can have both: a spooky vibe and elements of nostalgia.
“‘Coraline’ gives me childhood memories of me watching it and thinking it was a cute kids movie,” sophomore Maya Shamash said. “Now, watching it every Halloween gives me nostalgia.”
Students comment on how they continue to rewatch movies to experience the sense of childhood joy that they felt when they first watched the movie. However, this sense of nostalgia is not communal, and playing a movie based on your childhood memories may not be a safe bet for Halloween sleepovers. “Coraline” is commonly seen as a safe bet, as many teens have already watched the movie, yet the movie’s many intricacies are only noticed on a rewatch.
An incredibly sophisticated movie is certain to perform well, as it is fun to watch the first time while smaller details regarding the movie are revealed in later rewatches.
Additionally, many Halloween movies have fanbases that will watch the movie throughout the year, especially “Monsters, Inc.” and “The Addams Family,” as the movies are seen as regular movies with a spooky aesthetic. This concept leads to these movies being rated lower on a scale of Halloween movies, as they aren’t seen as signature Halloween movies.
Although different people may be partial to different movies, there is no objective best Halloween movie; each Halloween movie evokes a different reaction in different people. Whatever the occasion—a sleepover or a cozy night alone—each Halloween movie has its own purpose and fanbase.
