I love Halloween. I mean, I LOOOOVE HALLOWEEN. I'm not one of those "Go nuts and decorate the entire house and piss off your whole neighborhood" Halloween lovers, but I am one of those "Read Horror novels and comics and watch scary movies all month" Halloween lovers. I'm already a sucker for books about movies, but a book about movies to watch for Halloween....? Sign me up!
Author Nathaniel Tolle must have spent a LOT of time watching Halloween-themed movies and TV shows while writing this exhaustive, attractive tome.He lays down some simple ground-rules regarding which films were eligible for inclusion in the book, which sets this apart from a run-of-the-mill Horror movie guide.Tolle limits his selections to films and TV shows that are:
1)- Fun to watch. (Which disqualifies a lot of disturbing Horror films.)
2)-It has to be set in the Autumn.
3)- It cannot run over two hours. (I disagree strenuously with this one, but that's why he's writing a book,
and I'm not.)
4)- It cannot be mean-spirited or cruel.
5)- If it's not scary, it has to be directly associated with Halloween.
6)- If it is a sequel, it has to make sense to those who have never seen the original.
7)- It must have a fairly quick pace. (Another one I disagree with.)
Tolle starts off with an A-Z listing of films that meet this criteria, and while I consider myself to be fairly well-versed in Horror cinema, he managed to dig up a few that I've either never seen or never heard of. (Granted, I'm in no hurry to watch the majority of them, but I did find some films that I put on the back-burner, or that seem like something I could watch with my son.) This film section is followed by an long listing of exceptional episodes of Halloween-themed TV shows. (This was a section that I found extremely interesting, since there were a lot of these that I haven't seen.)
Tolle synopsizes each film and TV episode in a colloquial style that's reminiscent of a friend telling you about a film that "...you've gotta check out!" His writing style often leaves a lot to be desired, but his enthusiasm for the films, and the Holiday, more than make up for any shortcomings.
The hardcover, by Schiffer Books, is an extremely attractive package. It's profusely illustrated with full-color movie posters, as well as publicity shots and lobby cards from various films.
PUMPKIN CINEMA: THE BEST MOVIES FOR HALLOWEEN is a fun read, and should be in every Halloween lovers library.
Schiffer Books provided a review copy.
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