It’s Halloween time, but the COVID-19 pandemic continues to make gatherings and trips a potentially deadly proposition. West Hollywood’s annual Halloween street party is cancelled, movie theaters can’t attract enough audience to justify the usual fan-favorite horror screenings, and few kids outside of Crazytown USA (which admittedly still has a sizable population) will be sent door to door collecting candy. But one thing COVID can’t take away, dear readers, is my annual Halloween horror lists. And this year, I’ve got a special lineup just for your coronavirus lockdown viewing pleasure.
The criteria this time is a little more fluid. The films on this list have to have themes about isolation, trust, disease, inequality in the midst of crisis, and/or anything else that seems relevant to me in a time of plague and socio-political upheaval. It’s not enough to just be “people in isolation” nor just “disease/pandemic,” since I’m looking for multiple forms of relevance.
That’s why, for example, I didn’t include I Am Legend. Likewise, I tried to avoid including multiple films from the same series or that otherwise tend to be paired together — Alien and The Thing show up together on a lot of horror movie lists, particularly when the context is “isolation,” so I chose to pick the one most relevant to the COVID experience.
As an extra treat, since this year has played far too many tricks on us, this top-10 list includes a special bonus movie. That’s right, this one goes to 11…
So, let’s get to it — here they are in no particular order, the top 10 horror movies to watch on Halloween lockdown!
The Platform — Representing social inequality and redemption, human greed and cooperation, isolation and the danger of others, this film released mid-pandemic and feels tailor-made for a lockdown watch party.
10 Cloverfield Lane — The ultimate lockdown experience, complete with a fully stocked bunker and the monotony of replaying the same games and jigsaw puzzles, as well as discovering new ways to entertain yourself and get to know each other.
Get Out — All the wealthy white people are having a get-together, they pretend everything is just fine (and that they aren’t racist), but of course nothing is fine. If you want to avoid getting their infection, then you better not go in that house.
The Thing — Isolated. Restless. Bored. Distrusted. Scared. Infected. Never was social distancing more necessary, and never were the questions “who is infected and who isn’t, stay quarantined or reopen?” more urgent.
The Purge — If being stocked up and locked in your home to protect your family from violent homicidal-suicidal extremists in a country on the verge of violent eruption has you feeling stressed, then this film
Misery — Forced lockdown, suspicion things aren’t what they seem, fear of seemingly helpful do-gooders’ motives, realizing you’re in worse shape than you thought, and fighting violent crazies who reject reality? Check, check, check, check, and check.
The Shining — Another case of simple lockdown, stockpiling, and boredom, except of course with a warning that you better watch each other closely, lest someone get the wrong idea about the cutlery or surprise you while you’re in the bathroom.
The Mist — When it’s time to lock yourself inside, first you need to stock up at the grocery store. Then, just stay inside until the danger’s gone. Those who go out too soon get got, and meanwhile there’s always someone shouting “It’s the end of the world!”
[REC] — If everyone just stayed in their own apartment, socially distanced, and followed the quarantine rules, a lot less people would wind up infected and eating each other. And yelling “fake news” at this journalist won’t make you look less like dinner.
It Comes At Night — An under-appreciated slow-burn horror gem driven by great performances, creepy atmosphere, and fear of the unknown, about a pandemic quarantine that got out of control until nobody knows who to believe or who to trust.
And the special #11 film on this 10-film list is The Lighthouse, a spectacular film with tour de force performances and exquisite cinematography, a nightmare manifesting as a psychological horror-thriller where unending isolation couples with insanity and slow dwindling of supplies in a grisly, surreal viewing experience.
Happy Halloween to all of you! Please remember to stay safe and practice good habits — wear a mask, wash your hands, socially distance, avoid going out (especially indoors) when it’s not necessary, and be good to one another.
