Fun family viewing to get you in the Halloween spirit
Getty Images/Official Trailers/Laika Need some suggestions for Halloween films to watch with the family? Look no further than our guide of new and classic live-action and animated treats (no tricks on our list). Official Trailer/DISNEY „Twitches“ (2005) Twin witches separated at birth? Sounds like a classic plot with a Halloween twist. Tia Mowry-Hardrict and Tamera Mowry-Housley play the „Twitches“ in this 2005 Disney Channel original movie. Their characters — Alex (Mowry-Hardrict) and Camryn (Mowry-Housley) — reunite on their 21st birthday just in time to use their powers to save those they love. Catch it now on Disney+. Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images „ParaNorman“ (2012) Laika, the Portland, Oregon, based stop-motion animation studio responsible for beloved, darkly-tinged family features like “Coraline” (see below), reached their peak with “ParaNorman.” This story follows an awkward kid named Norman (Kodi Smit-McPhee) who sees ghosts and uses his abilities to help save his small Massachusetts town from the threat of the undead and a very unhappy witch. A true Halloween treat you can watch on Netflix right now. Official Trailer/Culver Studios „Monster House“ (2006) Produced by Robert Zemeckis (and his ImageWorks Digital team) during the peak of his motion-capture animation phase, „Monster House“ is exactly what the title suggests — a family-friendly horror comedy with that Amblin edge (and Steven Spielberg as producer). With a winning design aesthetic (the setting appears to be somewhere between 1953 and 1983), wonderful performances (including Maggie Gyllenhaal as an uppity babysitter) and a genuinely creepy-cool concept, „Monster House“ deserves more love than it gets. It’s available to watch on Netflix. Official Trailer/Laika „Coraline“ (2009) Intoxicatingly creepy and visually stunning, „Coraline“ cemented Laika as one of the most exciting studios working in animation today. Adapted from Neil Gaiman’s 2002 novella, „Coraline,“ plunges into familiar horror when our titular heroine discovers a portal to a parallel universe, complete with „Other“ parents, friends and neighbors — all of whom have buttons for eyes. As she gets pulled further and further into the Other World, Coraline learns that in order to stay there she’ll have to pay a steep price. „Coraline“ is the rare, super-hyped film that deserves all of its buttons — err, stripes. Rent it on Vudu, Google Play, Amazon Prime Video, or another service. Official Trailer/Lee Mendelson Productions „It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown“ (1966) Charlie Brown and Linus split up on Halloween night to try and welcome the mythical „Great Pumpkin“ in this wholesome classic, also featuring Lucy, Snoopy and all the classic Peanuts characters.
