With Halloween just around the corner, we find ourselves getting into the spirit of fall: apple picking, pumpkin picking, pear picking (all the pickings!), haunted houses, corn mazes, and most importantly, costume creations. Craft store shelves are constantly empty as DIY-ers occupy their time creating costume contest-winning ensembles. But what if you wanted to stay in this Halloween? What should you do this year? Watch some festive Halloween movies, of course! The LHS journalism staff compiled a list of the best movies to watch this Halloween. First and foremost, get your jammies on and grab some good snacks, because you can’t have movies without a snack and comfy clothes! Now let’s dive into the good stuff.

 Movie number one on our list is the classic, “Hocus Pocus.” This movie is a tale of Max Dennison who ventured into someplace he was not meant to be in, and released witches. The kids in the movie work hard with the help of magical cat, Thackeray Binx, to put the witches back to where they came from. But will they be successful? “Stranger Things” and “The Goonies” lovers, you will love this movie’s vibe!

Next that came up on the list was yet another classic must-watch, “Coraline.” Coraline is an adventurous girl who finds a life almost parallel to her own through a secret door in her new home. She goes there often and finds that it is better than her own life, that is until her “Other Mother” tries to keep her there and give her button eyes! Can she escape the “Other Mother” and this demonic parallel universe? You’ll have to snuggle up with your jammies and learn for yourself! Fans of “Monster House” and “Where the Wild Things Are” will scream for this emotional roller coaster movie.

Movie number three that came up most commonly was “The Nightmare Before Christmas.” Now, while this movie does have Christmas written all over it (literally), it has some Halloween spirit so of course it made our list. “The Nightmare Before Christmas” follows Jack Skellington as he goes on to find another way of celebrating Halloween because he has grown bored of the consistency of scaring people. He stumbles upon Christmas Land and crafts a plan to capture Santa and take over Christmas, but will he be successful and become the new Santa Claus? Maybe put on some Christmas socks and have hot cocoa while you follow Jack Skellington on his journey! Fans of The Corpse Bride will fall in love with this Tim Burton classic.

Another movie that deserves an honorable mention that ranked #4 on the list is: “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.” This Peanuts character film is a lighthearted movie with innocent humor. Perfect for those who don’t want a scary movie, but want to feel festive. “It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown” can be found for streaming on Apple TV+. “Hocus Pocus” and “Nightmare Before Christmas” can be found on Disney+ for streaming. You can find “Coraline” streaming on Hulu. This is just a small list of the countless classic Halloween movies that you could watch this year while you stay in!

Senior Samantha Lajoie is a staff writer for the 2020-2021 school year. She is typically thinking about all things Disney, so if she doesn’t answer, don’t be offended, join her on her journey to her imagination destination.