The true meaning of Halloween

Oh, Halloween, how quickly you have returned to our lives. You bring with you the ever-pleasant prospect of free candy and the apparent idea that it’s alright for girls to walk around dressed as saloon hookers, just as long as they have some sort of animal-eared headband on.

Yes, Halloween, you are a lot of fun. But for a movie fan, you may be the most fun of them all.

You are the single day of the year when watching bad movies becomes an accepted practice.

For on this one and only night, we can watch Jaws 4: The Revenge and not feel a little dirty inside.

There is a select group of you out there who perfectly understand the importance of Halloween movie-watching. There are certain films in existence whose sole purpose is to be watched on a day full of wackiness and mayhem.

Wade’s top 10 campy wonders for Halloween

Because, really, Halloween is a celebration of two things: fear and “camp”. Regardless of how you look at it, it’s tough to find any one film more fun to watch than one that is either scary or ludicrous. 1. Anything With Bill Paxton.
2. The Goonies (Donner, 1985)
3. Tremors (Underwood, 1990)
4. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (Spielberg, 1984)
5. Serial Mom (Waters, 1994)
6. Dick Tracy (Beatty, 1990)
7. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (Algar/Geronimi/Kinney, 1949)
8. The Frighteners (Jackson, 1996)
9. The Blob (Yeaworth Jr., 1958)
10. Big Trouble in Little China (Carpenter, 1986)

There are those of you out there who have their traditions with notable characters like Freddy Krueger or Michael Myers.

Then there are the few left from our generation who actually appreciate midnight screenings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

But how many of you have taken in the gloriousness that is the double feature Grindhouse? Or embraced the true meaning of kick-ass through the basketball playing antics of Teen Wolf?

You simply don’t know what you’re missing if you haven’t taken in the likes of Bruce Campbell in Army of Darkness at least once.

Oct. 31 is a magnificent day indeed. But how exactly do you tell when a movie fits into this category of “camp”? Here are a few things to look out for.

Traditionally, “camp” falls in line with the likes of anything ridiculous or not mainstream. Certain directors such as John Waters, John Carpenter and Tim Burton have made a career out of what we refer to as “campiness”.

They have created movies that are appreciated for how absolutely wonderful they depict the odds and ends of the fantasy reality. Normally, when trying to distinguish a “camp” film, the title gives it away.

Something like The Man With Two Lives, Dr. Jekyll vs. The Werewolf or even the classic Something Wicked This Way Comes signifies exactly the kind of thing you should be looking for.

You are trying to find fun here, not just a product that is good for a fright. If the film actually has the term “vs.” in the title, then you are well on your way to a great night.

For those select few who don’t see the use of dressing up half-heartedly and getting needlessly drunk while a flimsy mask makes your mouth all gross and sweaty, gather your friends together and pop in your favourite film.

Whether that be from the amazingly dark ‘80s collection (like the incredible Heathers or the truly terrible Maximum Overdrive), something a little more well-known (like my personal favourite Mystery Men), or even a movie so incredibly terrible that you take Halloween as the once a year opportunity to enjoy it without being ridiculed in the least (I’m looking at you, Spiderman 3).

And just remember, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer will never be as good as it is on Halloween.

*Wade’s top 10 campy wonders for Halloween