It's not even October yet, but I am already getting excited for the arrival of Halloween. This time of year, to help get myself in the 'spirit', I love curling up with a blanket on the couch and watching a scary movie!  As a matter of fact, I've already knocked down the first one of the season. More on that in a minute.

I spent ten years of my professional life doing movie reviews. I had a talk radio show called The Screening Room and my cohost and I reviewed multiple movies a week. I also wrote capsule reviews and previews for News4U magazine in Evansville, Indiana and Owensboro, Kentucky. I have always been a fan of scary movies and, back in 2022, published this list of my all-time favorites.

READ MORE: These Are The Ten Scariest Movies of All Time, Change My Mind

While that list contains horror films that I absolutely love and films that I think define and set the bar for this particular genre, the movies on that list aren't ones that I necessarily watch repeatedly. However, as you'll see, a couple are.

To help get you ready for this Halloween, I decided to share a new list with you. These are The Five Films I Watch Every Halloween.

#1- HALLOWEEN

Look!  For me, it's THE definitive slasher film. It's relentless, stars a legendary 'scream queen' and features what I believe to be the scariest mask in horror movie history. Plus, that Halloween Theme- written by the movie's writer/director John Carpenter- sends chills through my spine every time I hear it.

#2- HALLOWEEN

I realize the 2018 relaunch of Halloween was met with mixed reactions. Personally, I loved it. It was a thrilling walk down memory lane to Haddonfield. Watching Jamie Lee Curtis reprise her role as Laurie Strode and face off with Michael Myers, her nemesis of 40 years, was EVERYTHING. Full confession. This is the movie I watched last weekend and I will probably watch it again before October 31st. Honestly, I am probably going to revisit Halloween Kills and Halloween Ends too.

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#3- THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS

The only horror film to win the big five trophies at the Academy Awards (Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Screenplay). Though it's over 30-years-old, I still quote it to this day. I can't tell you how many times, for fun, I have asked someone, "What did Miggs say to you? Multiple Miggs in the next cell. He hissed at you. What did he say?"

The story is expertly layered and the performances in this film are riveting. I saw this movie when I was in college and the lambs still haven't stopped screaming.

#4- ZODIAC

David Fincher directed the holy crap out of this movie. I have always been intrigued/obsessed with serial killers. I don't know why, but I find the methodical way they plot and execute (questionable word choice) their murders is riveting. That level of inhumanity is foreign to me, but I am captivated by the intellectual faculty that kind of madness requires.  Zodiac fired on all cylinders for me.  When I was reviewing movies during my tenure on The Screening Room, this movie clawed its way onto my Top 10 List when it was released back in 2007. I can't wait for a rainy, dark night to plop down on the couch and watch the drama (and letters) unfold.

#5- THE EXORCIST

The movie that traumatized me as a child. For my money, it's the scariest movie ever made. It's also, in my estimation and semi-expert opinion, THE smartest horror film ever produced. As scary as The Exorcist is, it's also a compelling analysis of the trappings of modern day society- religion, fame, modern medicine and single parenthood. Pardon the pun, but this movie still makes my head spin with its themes, its performances, its bone-chilling scares, and that 'tubular' soundtrack.

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