Top 5 Family-Friendly Halloween Movies. Did Your Favorite Make the List?
My family has a tradition of spending October nights watching Halloween movies and TV specials. It’s a fun way to get into the spirit of the holiday and a pretty good excuse to spend as much time as possible cuddling on the couch. Plus, it makes Halloween last all month long instead of for just one short night!
We definitely have our favorites that we watch over and over again, and I bet some of you do too. Back in September, Redbox.com conducted of survey of more than 1,200 members of the Redbox Customer Panel to find out their top choices for family-friendly Halloween movies. Do you agree with the winners? Is your favorite on the list?
1. Hocus Pocus
It’s been 25 years since everyone’s three favorite witches – the Sanderson sisters – first ran amok on our screens, and to celebrate, Disney has released an anniversary edition packed with enchanting goodies. This special version of the cult classic not only includes the original theatrical film, but you also get the We ♥︎ Hocus Pocus: Trivia and Treats Edition, which features pop up video extras including fun facts, trivia, deleted scenes, cast and crew commentary, and behind-the-scenes secrets. This multi-screen edition is definitely the most magical way for both new and old Hocus Pocus fans to enjoy the film, and it’s conveniently provided in both Blu-ray and digital, so you can watch it across different devices.
In “Hocus Pocus,” the Sanderson sisters are in for a devil of a time when their restless spirits are accidentally conjured up on Halloween night, in 1993 Salem, Massachusetts. Banished 300 years ago for practicing their sorcery, this trio of triple-threat demons vowed to one day reappear—and now they’re back—weaving an outrageous web of comedy and chaos. However, to guarantee their immortality, the things they need are the very things that could bring them down: Max Dennison, his little sister Dani, and Allison, three kids with the power to make or break the witches’ spell.
2. It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
Will this Halloween be the one when the Great Pumpkin comes? Longtime believer Linus thinks so, and keeps watch all night in the pumpkin patch to welcome him. Charlie Brown gets into the spooky spirit too, dressing up as a ghost with more eyeholes than needed, but not scaring up the usual kinds of Halloween loot when trick-or-treating. Never fear, World War I fighting ace Snoopy is here to battle the Red Baron, and in doing so, crash Violet’s Halloween party and Linus’ vigil as well. Your whole family will be glad it crashed this party. Good grief, you can’t help but have a happy Halloween! Special features include the bonus story “It’s Magic, Charlie Brown” and the all-new featurette “We Need a Blockbuster, Charlie Brown”.
3. Beetlejuice
What’s a couple of stay-at-home ghosts to do when their beloved home is taken over by trendy yuppies? They call on Beetlejuice, the afterlife’s freelance bio-exorcist to scare off the family—and everyone gets more than she, he, or it bargains for! Tim Burton guides this PG-rated comedy monsterpiece whose stars include Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, and Winona Ryder. And Michael Keaton is Beetlejuice, the ghost with the most who flings one-liners, spins into grotesque forms, gobbles insects, and who just can’t leave the ladies (living or dead) alone. Ghoul love it! Special features include 3 hilarious episodes from the animated Beetlejuice TV series, a music-only audio track, and the theatrical trailer.
4. The Nightmare Before Christmas
Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” the stop-motion animated musical-fantasy following Pumpkin King Jack Skellington’s misguided mission to make Yuletide his own, was hailed as a macabre masterpiece when it debuted in 1993 and holds a 95% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Twenty-five years later, fans can relive the merry misadventure—and sing or shriek along in brand-new sing-along mode—with the 25th Anniversary Edition of “The Nightmare Before Christmas.” Viewers can get their spook on instantly via Digital, Movies Anywhere, and on Blu-ray.
The new edition allows audiences to experience “The Nightmare Before Christmas” two different ways: the original, full-length film, in which the holidays collide with chaotic and comical consequences, and an all-new, sing-along mode, which includes pop-up lyrics to 11 unforgettable songs like “What’s This” and “This Is Halloween”. The Multi-Screen Edition of “The Nightmare Before Christmas” includes a Blu-ray and Digital Code giving viewers the flexibility to watch the film on different devices.
5. Hotel Transylvania
Welcome to Hotel Transylvania, Dracula’s lavish five-stake resort, where monsters and their families can live it up and no humans are allowed. One special weekend, Dracula (Adam Sandler) has invited all his best friends – Frankenstein and his wife, the Mummy, the Invisible Man, the Werewolf family, and more – to celebrate his beloved daughter Mavis’s (Selena Gomez) 118th birthday. For Dracula catering to all of these legendary monsters is no problem but the party really starts when one ordinary guy stumbles into the hotel and changes everything!
Four out of the five movies on the list were already in our regular rotation, but would you believe we only saw Hocus Pocus for the first time this month? Yes, my kids and I have been missing out, and while I don’t think I’ll ever put it ahead of The Great Pumpkin, we’re happy to have added a new film to our Halloween collection.
Do you agree with their top 5 choices? What’s your favorite Halloween movie to watch with the family?
-6 Comments-
I love all these movies and will be watching with my granddaughter this year
These are all my favorites to watch with my family. Nightmare Before Christmas is my #1 though.
Wow, these are great list of movies to watch this coming Halloween and my kids favorite is Hotel Transylvania which is included in this movie list.
I’ve seen all of these except for Hocus Pocus, which I’ve heard nothing but good things about over the years. They are all great choices for Halloween.
All the movies are good but my favorite is Hotel Transylvania.
Thanks for sharing. Most of them are my favorites.